Lateral Thinking - Wikipedi

Lateral thinking - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

1 of 3

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lateral_thinking

Lateral thinking From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lateral thinking is a term coined by Edward de Bono, for the solution of problems through an indirect and creative approach. Lateral thinking is about reasoning that is not immediately obvious and about ideas that may not be obtainable by using only traditional step-by-step logic. The term first appeared in the title of de Bono's book New Think: The Use of Lateral Thinking, published in 1967.

Contents 1 Methods 1.1 Idea generating tools 2 Lateral thinking and problem solving 3 See also 4 Books 5 References

Methods Critical thinking is primarily concerned with judging the truth value of statements and seeking errors. Lateral thinking is more concerned with the movement value of statements and ideas. A person would use lateral thinking when they want to move from one known idea to creating new ideas. There are four types of "thinking tools" defined in Edward de Bono's Lateral Thinking: The Power of Provocation manual:[1] Idea generating tools that are designed to break current thinking patterns - routine patterns, the status quo Focus tools that are designed to broaden where to search for new ideas Harvest tools that are designed to ensure more value is received from idea generating output Treatment tools that are designed to consider real-world constraints, resources, and support

Idea generating tools Random Entry Idea Generating Tool: Choose an object at random, or a noun from a dictionary, and associate that with the area you are thinking about. For example imagine you are thinking about how to improve a web site. Choosing an object at random from an office you might see a fax machine. A fax machine transmits images over the phone to paper. Fax machines are becoming rare. People send faxes directly to phone numbers. Perhaps this could be a new way embed the web site's content in emails and other sites. Provocation Idea Generating Tool: choose to use any of the provocation techniques - wishful thinking, exaggeration, reversal, escape, or arising. Create a list of provocations and then use the most outlandish ones to move your thinking forward to new ideas.

9/25/2009 3:48 AM

Lateral thinking - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

2 of 3

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lateral_thinking

Challenge Idea Generating Tool: A tool which is designed to ask the question "WHY?", in a non threatening way, why something exists, why it is done the way it is. The result is a very clear understanding of WHY? which naturally leads to fresh new ideas. The goal is to be able to challenge anything at all, not just items which are problems. For example you could challenge the handles on coffee cups. The reason for the handle seems to be that the cup is often too hot to hold directly. Perhaps coffee cups could be made with insulated finger grips, or there could be separate coffee cup holders similar to beer holders. Concept Fan Idea Generating Tool: Ideas carry out concepts. This tool systematically expands the range and number of concepts in order to end up with a very broad range of ideas to consider. The other focus, harvesting and treatment tools deal with the output of the generated ideas and the ways to use them.

Lateral thinking and problem solving Problem Solving: When something creates a problem, the performance or the status quo of the situation drops. Problem solving deals with finding out what caused the problem and then figuring out ways to fix the problem. The objective is to get the situation to where it should be. For example, a production line has an established run rate of 1000 books per hour. Suddenly, the run rate drops to 839 books per hour. Ideas as to why this happened and solutions to repair the production line must be thought of. Creative Problem Solving: Using creativity, one must solve a problem in an indirect and unconventional manner. For example, if a production line produced 1000 books per hour, creative problem solving could find ways to produce more books per hour, use the production line, or reduce the cost to run the production line. Creative Problem Identification: Many of the greatest non-technological innovations are identified while realizing an improved process or design in everyday objects and tasks either by accidental chance or by studying and documenting real world experience. For example, a wind resistant umbrella could have been invented and manufactured hundreds of years ago by simply cutting a hole on the top of a normal umbrella about 20% the diameter of the whole umbrella and adding another layer over the hole allowing wind to pass through sideways while still allowing water to drain down and not entering the umbrella. This type of process or object modification requires no special technology and minimal expense to execute. Creative problem identification changes the process of inventing new solutions to identifying ways to improve current objects and processes.

See also Thinking outside the box Provocative operation Lateral thinking puzzles, also referred as situation puzzles Oblique Strategies Derailment (thought disorder)

Books Lateral Thinking, Edward De Bono, 1970. Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-021978-1

9/25/2009 3:48 AM

Lateral thinking - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

3 of 3

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lateral_thinking

Po: Beyond Yes and No, Edward De Bono, 1972. Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-021715-0 Serious Creativity, Edward De Bono, 1992. Harper Business. ISBN 0-88730-635-7 Test your Lateral Thinking IQ, Paul Sloane,(Sterling Publishing, 1994), ISBN 0-8069-0684-7 The Leader's Guide to Lateral Thinking Skills, Paul Sloane, (Kogan Page, 2006), ISBN 0-7494-4797-4

References 1. ^ Published in 2006 by de Bono Thinking Systems

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lateral_thinking" Categories: Thought | Creativity | Problem solving | Anticipatory thinking | Innovation | Logic This page was last modified on 21 September 2009 at 05:54. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. See Terms of Use for details. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.

9/25/2009 3:48 AM