[Informatics] The Myth of Brainstorming

[ken price]

Douglas Merrill https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_Merrill is credited
with the expression “All of Us is Smarter Than Any of Us”.

The evidence here suggests the reciprocal “Any of Us is Smarter Than All of
Us”

kp

On Fri, Mar 31, 2017 at 12:09 PM, Mark <mark at vceit.com> wrote:

> Hi all. So, here's a fly for your ointment.  I refer to Info U4O1 key
> skill 1.
>
> I am reading 'How To Fly a Horse
> <https://medium.com/galleys/brainstorming-does-not-work-6ad7b1448dcf>' by
> Kevin Ashton, which is a study of creative thinking. He discusses
> brainstorming, which is taken for granted as a standard tool for generating
> creative ideas. In short, he says brainstorming is a waste of time.
>
> He says that  brainstorming (invented by Alex Osborn in 1939 and published
> in his book of 1942) has two assumptions:
>
> 1. groups produce more ideas than individuals
>
> Researchers in Minnesota <http://psycnet.apa.org/psycinfo/1963-07944-001>
> tested this in the 3M company.
> Half the subjects worked in groups of four. The other half worked alone.
> In every case, the people working independently produced 30% to 40% more
> ideas than the groups, and the ideas were independently judged to be of
> higher quality.
> Later research found productivity decreased as group sizes increased.
> Conclusion: contrary to expectations, group brainstorming actually
> inhibits creative thinking.
>
> 2. no contribution should be criticised
>
> Ashton says that researchers in Indiana got groups to brainstorm ideas for
> brand names of products.
> Half the groups were told to refrain from criticising ideas. The other
> half were allowed to offer criticism as they went along.
> The groups that did not criticise produced *more* ideas, but all groups
> produced the same quantity of *good* ideas, according to independent
> judges.
> Deferring criticism added only bad ideas. Later research confirmed this.
>
> Conclusion: the best way to create solutions is to work alone and evaluate
> solutions as they occur. Don't try to create revolutionary ideas with a
> committee or a team.
>
> It makes one think...
>
> Regards,
> Mark
>
> --
>
> Mark Kelly
>
> mark at vceit.com
> http://vceit.com
>
> Powered by *Mitochondria.*
>
>
> --
Dr Ken Price MACS(Snr) CP ACCE Professional Associate.
Immediate Past President, TASITE http://www.tasite.tas.edu.au
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