Brainstorming and Beyond

A User-Centered Design Method

Chauncey Wilson

• Publisher: Morgan Kaufmann
• Year: 2013
• ISBN:
  9780124071667
• Topic: Computer Science
• Subtopic: Data Modelling & Design
• Index: Computer Science

Brainstorming and Beyond describes the techniques for generating ideas verbally, in writing, or through sketches. The first chapter focuses on brainstorming, the foundation method for ideation, which is a complex social process building off of social psychology principles, motivational constructs, and corporate culture. Brainstorming is commonly portrayed as an easy way to generate ideas, but in reality, it is a complex social process that is often flawed in ways that are not self-evident. Chapter 2 discusses Brainwriting, which is a variation on brainstorming in which each person writes ideas down on paper and then passes the paper to a new person who reads the first set of ideas and adds new ones. Since there is no group shouting out of ideas, strong facilitation skills are not required, and more often than not, Brainwriting results greatly exceed those of group brainstorming in a shorter time because ideas are generated in a parallel, rather than serial, fashion. Brainwriting is useful when time is limited, groups are hostile, or you are dealing with a culture where shouting out wild or divergent ideas might be difficult. Finally, in Chapter 3, readers learn about Braindrawing, a method of visual brainstorming that helps practitioners generate ideas for icons, other graphics, user interface layouts, or Web page designs. Each of these methods provides readers with ways to generate, present, and evaluate ideas so they can begin building a strong foundation for product success.

• Learn the proper techniques for generating ideas with limited time, hostile audiences, and limited facilitation support
• Explores efficient processes for analyzing the value of ideas
• Examines ways to generate visual as well as textual ideas

Chapter 1

Brainstorming

1.1 Overview of Brainstorming

1.2 When Should You Use Brainstorming?

1.2.1 Strengths

1.2.2 Weaknesses

1.3 Procedures and Practical Advice on Brainstorming

1.3.1 Planning the Brainstorming Session

1.3.2 Conducting a Brainstorming Session

1.3.3 After the Brainstorming Session

1.4 Variations and Extensions to Brainstorming

1.4.1 Buzz Sessions (Also Known as the Philips 66 Technique)

1.4.2 Free Listing

1.4.3 The Nominal Group Technique

1.4.4 Reserve (Negative) Brainstorming

1.4.5 Delphi Method

1.4.6 Remote Brainstorming

1.5 Major Issues in the Use of Brainstorming

1.5.1 What Is “Quality” in Brainstorming?

1.5.2 How Many Participants Should I Have in Brainstorming Sessions?

1.5.3 Social Issues that could Affect Idea Generation in Group Brainstorming

1.6 Data Analysis

1.6.1 Types of Data

1.6.2 Analysis Techniques

1.7 What Do You Need for Brainstorming?

1.7.1 Personnel, Participants, and Training

1.7.2 Hardware and Software

1.7.3 Documents and Materials

Recommended Readings

References

Alternate names: Brainstorming, creative thinking, group brainstorming, group ideation, interactive brainstorming.

Related methods: Affinity diagramming, braindrawing, brainwriting, buzz group, Delphi technique, individual brainstorming, KJ method, metaphor brainstorming, nominal group technique, remote brainstorming, unstructured brainstorming, and visual brainstorming.

1.1 Overview of Brainstorming

Brainstorming is an individual or group method for generating ideas, increasing creative efficacy, or finding solutions to problems. This chapter focuses on group brainstorming where participants generate ideas on a particular topic or problem in a nonjudgmental environment following a set of ground rules about appropriate behaviors. Table 1.1 is a method scorecard that highlights the relative investment needed to conduct a group brainstorming session and when brainstorming is most useful.

Table 1.1

Method Scorecard for Brainstorming

The basic procedure for group brainstorming involves:

1. Selecting a group of three to ten participants with different backgrounds.

2. Posing a clear problem, question, or topic to the group.

3. Asking the group to generate solutions or ideas with no criticism or attempts to limit the type and number of ideas. This is the “divergent” phase in which you want as many ideas as possible without any censorship.

4. Discussing, critiquing, and possibly prioritizing the brainstorming results for later action. This last step is often called the “convergent” phase where there is a winnowing of all the ideas into the ones that are judged as most applicable to a problem.

Variations on group brainstorming can be used to gather ideas from large groups, geographically-dispersed people, or participants who are inhibited by their shyness, the social environment, or cultural norms. These variations are described later in this chapter.

Alex Osborn, an advertising executive, is generally credited with developing modern organizational brainstorming procedures in the 1940s and 1950s (Osborn, 1963). Osborn described brainstorming (originally he called it “thinking up”) in his classic book, Applied Imagination: Principles and Procedures of Creative Problem-Solving.

“Brainstorms” as Mental Disease and Fortunate Thoughts

In the early part of the twentieth century, “brainstorm” referred to violent bouts of temper or bouts of lethargy and depression. Toward the middle of the twentieth century, the usage of “brainstorm” changed to mean “sudden and fortunate thoughts” (Oxford English Dictionary, 2012). Alex Osborn, the “father of brainstorming” used the term “brainstorm session” in the mid-1950s to describe his method of generating solutions to problems (Osborn, 1963).

There are three fundamental principles for group brainstorming:

1. Aim for sheer quantity. Quantity, not quality, is the goal of brainstorming. The primary criterion for the success of brainstorming is the sheer number of ideas that are generated.
Anything that limits the number of ideas is contrary to the intent of brainstorming. For example, brainstorming participants should not be taking their own notes because that keeps them (and those around them) from generating ideas. Participants should not be monitoring e-mail (so easy now with wireless connections, smartphones, and tablets!) or checking out Facebook during brainstorming. After the brainstorming session, you can criticize, rate, rank, or vote on what makes a good idea, but during brainstorming the focus should be on getting as many ideas as possible.

2. Defer judgment about the quality of ideas. Do not criticize the ideas of others either implicitly (e.g., through facial expressions or other nonverbal behaviors) or explicitly (saying “Wow! That is a crazy idea!”).

3. Encourage new and wild ideas. New ideas can be generated by synthesizing ideas, stretching ideas (bigger, faster, smaller), applying metaphors, or improving on existing ideas. Wild ideas that may not be directly applicable to a brainstorming topic can serve as triggers for ideas that are potentially useful. Ideas from science fiction stories or movies, for example, might seem odd, but many existing products are filled with concepts like teleportation, invisibility, and the ability to travel back in time (Freeman & Gelernter, 1996).

The apparent simplicity of these three principles leads many people to assume that successful brainstorming is easy and can be done by anyone. However, this assumption is not always warranted. Good brainstorming is rare, and in many cases what people consider “good brainstorming” is often seriously deficient. More on that later.

Tip

During a brainstorming session, should you praise people for ideas? The answer would generally be “No!”.

While the rule to avoid criticism during brainstorming is well known, another more subtle rule is to avoid praise. Praising an idea is attaching a judgment to that idea which means that the lack of praise for other ideas could be construed as tacit criticism. So, avoid both praise and criticism during brainstorming.

Osborn’s “structured brainstorming” approach, with clear ground rules and procedures, contrasts with “unstructured brainstorming,” where a group gets together to generate ideas without a facilitator or clear ground rules (Osborn, 1963). Ideas that emerge from unstructured brainstorming are often criticized as they are generated, and loud or dominant individuals can exert inordinate influence on the quiet participants, thus limiting the number and type of ideas that participants are willing to express. This chapter will focus on structured brainstorming where there is generally a facilitator and a set of explicit rules for participants.

Don’t Believe All That You Read on the Web: Group Brainstorming Isn’t Simple!

While group brainstorming seems simple, there are many social issues like status differences, shyness, informal relationships, ego, and cultural factors that can affect the quantity of ideas. Camacho and Paulus (1995, p. 1078) found, for example, that social anxiety had a significant effect on brainstorming productivity and suggested that “… interactive [group] brainstorming may be best suited for people who are low in social anxiety”.

A trained facilitator can mitigate some of these problems, but even a good facilitator won’t have total insight into all the social forces and group dynamics that can influence productivity. Sandberg (2006), writing in The Wall Street Journal, summarizes some key requirements for successful group brainstorming:

“In fact, great brainstorming sessions are possible, but they require the planning of a state dinner, plenty of rules, and the suspension of ego, ingratiation and political railroading.”

1.2 When Should You Use Brainstorming?

Use brainstorming to:

• generate ideas or requirements;

• find solutions to specific problems;

• support conceptual design by generating metaphors, ideas for user interface (UI) architectures, and new ways to do old things;

• explore new design spaces;

• generate social cohesion within product teams.

Brainstorming is often used in the early to middle stages of product development; however, this method is applicable any time that new ideas or solutions to problems are required. If you have an unexpected and difficult problem just before you release a product, brainstorming would be an appropriate method for generating potential solutions.

1.2.1 Strengths

• Brainstorming has name recognition. Most people have some sense of what a group brainstorming session is like and you don’t have to convince teams to use the method (which you might if you decide to try a lesser known approach like brainwriting).

• Provides ideas that may not surface any other way.

• Provides many ideas quickly.

• Requires few material resources. Paper, pens, sticky notes, and tape are about all you need unless you are doing remote brainstorming.

• Is a useful way to get over design blocks that are holding up a project.

• Is a democratic way of generating ideas (assu...

Table of contents

• Cover image
• Title page
• Table of Contents
• Copyright
• Introduction
• Chapter 1. Brainstorming
• Chapter 2. Brainwriting
• Chapter 3. Braindrawing