North Carolina
Future Problem Solving
"Opening Doors to the Future"
The Future Problem Solving Process
The Future Problem Solving model serves as the foundation to dynamic, creative thinking process and includes the following six steps:
Identify Challenges
✸ Generate issues, concerns, and problems, applying background knowledge to the Future Scene.
✸ Consider major issues and categories of problems in order to think of more challenges.
✸ Select the sixteen best challenges.
✸ Write best challenges clearly & concisely; showing cause and effect reasoning while tying directly to the Future Scene.
Select an Underlying Problem
✸ Consider the major issues in the sixteen challenges identified in Step #1.
✸ Select the issues, one that will have a major impact on the Future Scene, for the focus of the underlying problem.
✸ Be forward-looking and proactive, not regressive and reactive, in developing the underlying problem.
✸ Write the underlying problem in correct format, beginning with the Future Scene conditions that are the basis for the idea.
✸ Indicate a desired action to be taken, a purpose for the desired action, and parameters tying the problem to the Future Scene.
Produce Solution Ideas
Generate and Select Criteria
✸ Generate multiple solutions to the underlying problem.
✸ Think futuristically and consider the use of technological advantages.
✸ Select the sixteen best solution ideas.
✸ Check each solution for its relevance to the underlying problem.
✸ Write the sixteen solutions clearly.
✸ Elaborate by telling who will implement the solutions, what action will be taken, and how (or why) the action will be taken.
✸ Generate possible criteria that could be used to evaluate the solutions.
✸ Consider the underlying problem and the Future Scene in developing criteria.
✸ Select five targeted criteria.
✸ Write criteria in question format, with a superlative and in the desired direction.
Apply Criteria
Develop an Action Plan
✸ Select the eight most promising solutions to include in the grid.
✸ Rank the solutions based on each of the criteria separately.
✸ Identify the best solution as the one with the highest number of total points.
✸ Plan how the best solution can be implemented.
✸ Describe the actions and steps of the plan.
✸ Make clear how the plan will address the Underlying Problem's Key Verb Phrase and Purpose.
