Problem-solving Mode Research Articles

Effectiveness of Creative Problem Solving Framework in English Language Teaching at Elementary Level in Pakistan

This study investigates the effectiveness of Starko creative problem solving framework (CPS) in teaching English at grade 6. Pretest Posttest Control Group Design with 40 students of public schools participated in the study. Students were equated on achievement test for random allocation in the groups. To deliver the lessons on CPS framework, the researcher obtained three days training from the supervisor that was aimed at encouraging discussion, generating ideas, preparing for action and acknowledging creative solutions based on the framework. Three achievement tests were used as pretests and posttests for gathering data to calculate the mean difference after studying three units. CPS Framework was effective in learning English among high and low achieving students because it focuses on the problem solving mode, allows multiple perspectives and provides space to students with academic multiple competence. The component of CPS Framework about “Preparing for action” provided space for students to think and implement practical tasks, which supported in generating creative ideas. Students conceived creative ideas in the form of constructing sentences on different patterns, organising paragraphs in logical sequence and reaching at self-correction. It is suggested for the educators to create awareness in institutions regarding the use of CPS Framework in order to promote creative thinking skills among students.

Teaching sustainability as complex systems approach: a sustainable development goals workshop

Purpose Approaches to solving sustainability problems require a specific problem-solving mode, encompassing the complexity, fuzziness and interdisciplinary nature of the problem. This paper aims to promote a complex systems’ view of addressing sustainability problems, in particular through the tool of network science, and provides an outline of an interdisciplinary training workshop. Design/methodology/approach The topic of the workshop is the analysis of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a political action plan. The authors are interested in the synergies and trade-offs between the goals, which are investigated through the structure of the underlying network. The authors use a teaching approach aligned with sustainable education and transformative learning. Findings Methodologies from network science are experienced as valuable tools to familiarise students with complexity and to handle the proposed case study. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first work which uses network terminology and approaches to teach sustainability problems. This work highlights the potential of network science in sustainability education and contributes to accessible material.

Employing Local Systemic Intervention for Evolving a Transformational Organization Strategy-Action Research in an Indian Business School

A recent survey discloses 93% of graduating management students from Indian business schools are unemployable. Several business schools have closed due to their chronic non-viability. This action research study in an Indian business school employs local systemic intervention, and the viable systems model to diagnose the school’s chronic pathology. Theories of neurotic organizations, psychic prisons, and escalation of commitment guide the critical review mode and help in acquiring a deeper understanding of the school’s dysfunctionality. The liberating systems theory and the challenge of getting national accreditation influence the problem-solving mode that includes initiating actions for operationalizing a ritualistic vision statement, re-designing academic processes aligned to the vision, making a shift from an ineffective commoditized approach to a personalized strengths-based approach to placement, and professionalizing the admissions process by making it competency-based. In the critical reflection mode, I share phenomenological insights on nuances of successful entrepreneurship, the disloyalty of loyalists, the syndrome of “operation successful, but the patient died”, the coupling of time with the principle of equifinality to influence decision choices, leadership’s confusion with populism and finally drawing a few key messages from the Indian sacred text of the Bhagavadgita. The significance of the study lies in providing a proof of concept for transforming a business school from non-visible to a viable system and in the transportability of the approach to other non-viable business schools and organizations across industries and geographies. The study provides a solution to the huge social costs associated with the unemployability of graduating management students.

The Problem-Solving Mode: Social Scientists Back Home and the Limits of Critique

Abundant debates on the problematic positioning of intellectuals in the Global South are typically confined to migrant scholars and to the insider/outsider binary vis-a-vis their object/subject of study. Yet intellectuals back home—both those returning and those who never left—must also forge through the fraught politics of location and epistemic privilege as the other side of the same coin. Nowhere is the politics of location perhaps more striking than in the social sciences and among social scientists based in the Global South who have mostly been trained in Western universities or in Westernized local universities. As academics who mobilize knowledge in the context of state-led and international donor-assisted development projects, their work demonstrates that in the Global South the primary goal of social scientists should be to not only offer a critique but to solve a problem toward making institutions and systems fulfill their functions. In this problem-solving mode, the distinctions between “outsider” as critical-distant (i.e., opening everything up for discussion and debate following a scholarly tradition but may be oblivious of contexts and particularities) and “insider” (i.e., possessing knowledge of the local manifestations of universalized and globalized processes but may not be critical-distant) are to be erased. The “outsider” joins forces with the “insider” as the social scientist moves from being critical-distant to being socially embedded and then back again. This problem-solving mode urges social scientists back home to be critical of but yet part of the system as one tries to solve a problem.

Social distancing as social engineering & health management: Applied ethics perspective to global management & strategic leadership

Resilient leadership and responsible attitude are the crucial factors for social-economic, engineering and management developments, and in the absence of those, a crisis usually takes place. The same happened in the case of Corona pandemic. Both China and WHO did not adequately manage the epidemic, and could not control; it turned ultimately in a pandemic. Asian Development Bank Report estimates global economic loss up to 8.8 trillion due to Covid-19. Undoubtedly, the Corona outbreak has severely affected SDGs and put forth several socio-economic-managerial challenges to sustainability and human development. The UN, World Bank, IMF, ADB, and ILO which prepare global social-economic strategies to reach the sustainability goals are working on the problem-solving mode to arrive at the best possible approach to get rid of the worst possible disease at present. Undoubtedly, reversing to a normal-healthy life is a difficult task. However, India is responding to the world's hopes, and motivating the leaders, policymakers, managers and technocrats to accept the new model of health management and medical leadership to contribute in developing the global narrative what we call the ‘New-Normal’.

Behind Subcontractor Risk: A Multiple Case Study Analysis of Mining and Natural Resources Fatalities

Subcontractors have always been linked to higher risk by the industry and academia. However, not much work exists in establishing the reasons behind this relationship. Much of the existing work, either categorise subcontractors under a theoretical label of work to apply the drawbacks of the label to them, or directly enter problem-solving mode. This study focusses on taking the perspective of subcontractors and explores ways in which this viewpoint interacts with safety systems and processes. This study applies a case study methodology to this problem. It examines a total of six cases reflecting six closed single subcontractor fatality accident investigation reports from the year 2004 to 2014 obtained from the Department of Natural Resources and Mines (DNRM) Queensland. These cases are then thematically analysed by employing subcontractor theory to identify themes to categorise the links between higher risk and subcontractors. The themes identified match two pre-existing categories (Institutional safety mechanisms do not cope with variability introduced by subcontractors; expertise in work does not translate to expertise in safety) and two new categories (communication does not flow to the subcontractor from the layers above them; safety work is viewed differently by subcontractor staff when compared to principal contractor’s/operators’) of subcontractor risk. This study aims to serve as a starting point for further research in understanding the subcontractor safety situation by putting things into the subcontractor’s perspective.

Using system dynamics approach to build policy scenario for reducing CO2 emission resulted from tourism travel to Karimunjawa

Purpose This study aims to create the causal relationship between transportation behavior to Karimunjawa, the number of tourists and the amount of CO2 produced; calculate the reduction of CO2 emissions from the transportation to Karimunjawa based on several proposed policy scenarios; and formulate the managerial implication and recommendation to support the implementation of several proposed policy scenarios. Design/methodology/approach This study develops a system dynamics‐based model by using three sub-systems, i.e. “the number of tourist sub-system,” “the switching behavior of tourist travel sub-system” and “the CO2 emission sub-system.” Findings The simulation results have shown that, under the current situation, tourist travel behavior should be changed to maximum condition to get the minimum CO2 emission. Improvement of the behavior of tourist in selecting the mode of transportation and the departure point of mini-tour bus and ferry are an effective way to reduce the CO2 emission. Research limitations/implications This study only considers limited variables as the driver of the level of change of the capacity of Karimunjawa and the road as well as the variables as the driver of tourism growth. This study only focuses on CO2 emission from the direct impacts of tourist travel; this study does not consider the indirect impact of tourism activity on CO2 emissions. International air travel is not included in the present study. Practical implications From a managerial perspective, this study demonstrates that change in the tourist travel behavior is generally not effective in triggering CO2 emission reduction, unless it is accompanied by the strict restriction policy related to the tourist route. Social implications This study has the potential to raise societal awareness that the causality of tourist growth and CO2 emissions should be seen as the impact of tourist travel behavior. In this case, to modify the travel behavior, tourist needs to change their mode of transportation to more sustainable transportation. Originality/value This paper intends to fill the literature gap of the effect of tourism growth from two perspectives, namely, tourist travel behavior and environmental. The modeling of tourist transport and CO2 emission will provide an overview of the selection of the problem-solving mode for tourist transport that can give a significant contribution to the greenhouse gas emissions reduction to the environmental.

The Problem-Solving Agricultural Knowledge Service System for Farm Households

With the advancement of agricultural modernization of China, farmer’s demand of agricultural service has turned from the traditional agricultural information service to the problem-solving mode gradually. Professional, personalized knowledge service is required. How to use Internet-thinking to construct problem-solving agricultural science and technology knowledge service system which is used to solve all kinds of problems in the process of agricultural production for farmers is the core content of our development. In this paper, system architecture and some major function features are introduced. Through the running of the system, the problems in the system are analyzed and the optimal solutions are proposed. Scientific and technological progress and innovation is the guarantee of the sustainable development of agriculture. With the advance of agricultural modernization, demand of china farmers of agricultural science and technology service has from the traditional agricultural information services, gradually turned to the purpose of problem-solving mode. How to effectively use the mobile Internet to provide fast, efficient, professional and personalized service for the majority of farmers, break the agricultural expert system affiliation, bring together experts in different fields to realize agricultural experts and farmers 24 hours face-to-face information interaction, realize the precision agriculture technology service, effectively solve the problem of farmers’ fields of production is the core content of the development of this system.

A Study on the Role of Human-Centered Design in the Realms of Policymaking and Public Service Implementation

Background This research views policy as a matter of design and seeks to present a range of concrete examples of how design is practiced within public service organizations, thus providing an empirically-based overview of how design is being utilized and where opportunities for innovation can be made. Methods First we reviewed the theory of policy design and reframed it as designing. Second, case analysis was carried out to identify how design approaches are currently applied in public sector organizations in industrialized countries and South Korea, in order to identify the patterns in utilizing design in the public sector. Results First, according to the levels of involvement, the type of public service innovation was divided into “gov-led” and “agency-led”. The former requires stronger government support and participation. Second, the willingness of policymakers was important to operationalize “humancentered design” from the beginning of the policy design cycle. Third, there is a very heterogeneous picture of the types of design approaches sought for a public sector setting: from high-level “policy design” to the more tangible “service design” and “participation” or “co-design.” Finally, the existence of physical “creativity” spaces offers a catalyst to drive innovation while improving the accessibility of design skills and resources. Conclusions We need to shift beyond the problem-solving mode of policymaking toward policymaking as an integrative approach to designing. There is need for further discussions on how HCD value can be integrated into normal processes of policymaking, thereby creating a new way of working and innovating organizational culture.

Granular computing: from granularity optimization to multi-granularity joint problem solving

Human beings solve problems in different granularity worlds and shift from one granularity world to another quickly. It reflects human beings’ intelligence in problem solving to some extent. In the era of big data, some new problems are emerging in real life. For example, traditional big data processing models always compute from raw data, failing to consider the granularity feature of human. Thus, they are hard to solve the 3 V characteristics of big data. Granular computing (GrC) combines the multi-granularity thinking pattern of human intelligence with problem solving mode to deal with big data. Based on the related notions and characteristics of GrC, this paper reviews the previous studies of GrC in three progressive levels: granularity optimization, granularity conversion and multi-granularity joint problem solving. Then we proposed the diagram for relationship among three basic modes of GrC. Furthermore, the feasibility of GrC for big data processing is analyzed. Some research prospects of granular computing are given.

Therapeutic mode preferences and associated factors among Norwegian undergraduate occupational therapy students: A cross-sectional exploratory study

Background: The Intentional Relationship Model is specifically focused on the relational aspect of therapy. The model describes six therapeutic modes; these represent different types of interaction for the therapist. However, preferences for therapeutic mode use are under researched.Aims: This study aims to describe preferences for therapeutic modes in undergraduate occupational therapy students, as well as to explore factors associated to each of the therapeutic modes.Methods: A sample of 96 occupational therapy students, based at two different Norwegian universities, participated in the study. They completed the Norwegian Self-Assessment of Modes Questionnaire along with sociodemographic information. Descriptive analysis, bivariate correlation and linear regression analysis were employed.Results: The problem-solving mode was most frequently endorsed. There were generally weak associations between the variables, but female sex and being a student in the education program in Trondheim were associated with higher preference for collaboration.Conclusion: There is diversity in students’ preferences for the modes, but the problem-solving mode was the most preferred. Students need to be aware of the mode they feel more comfortable with and make sure they use modes that fit with the specific client.Significance: The occupational therapy education programs need to incorporate raising awareness about therapeutic modes.

지역특성을 고려한 경축순환농업 모형의 가축분뇨 양분 흐름분석

Integration of crop-livestock farming has been a problem-solving mode for abatement of environmental pollution and recovery of resources in recent years. The objectives of this study were 1) to suggest the customized integration of crop-livestock farming model reflecting the regional characteristics through in-depth analysis of case study and 2) to analyze the livestock nutrients flow in terms of three primary elements as nitrogen(N), phosphorous(P), and potassium(K). The personal interview and survey were carried out in 2012 for a total of 161 farms from four different regions(NS, NW, JJ, YC) in South Korea. The mass balance analysis was used to suggest and evaluate the models for two sites(JJ and YC). The results showed that NS and NW sites produced relatively more livestock manure than the sites of YC and JJ because of the regional differences in livestock numbers and urbanization. The models were suggested for the site JJ and site YC, and 'two track model(energy and resource recovery)' and 'dispersal type model' were assigned respectively. For the nutrient flows, the releasing P and K with new models had increased up to 7%, while N release had decreased down to 15% in both YC and JJ sites compared to the present treatment system. Estimated value showed that there was oversupply of N (719 ton/yr) and P2O5 (1,269 ton/yr) in YC and deficiency of N (671 ton/yr) and excessive P2O5 (32 ton/yr) in JJ respectively. Therefore, P runoff has to be considered an eutrophication occurs in rural small stream when an integration of crop-livestock farm system is applied into both sites.

Non-representational marketing theory

The purpose of this article is to evaluate and advance tools that marketing and consumer researchers have recently gathered from assemblage and actor–network theories. By distinguishing between two different styles of applying these theories we explain that a ‘representational’, interventionist and problem-solving mode has come to dominate existing uses of assemblage and actor-network theories in our field. We explain that current applications can be supplemented by a non-representational mode of theorising that draws on work pioneered by Nigel Thrift. Specifically, we explain that non-representational marketing theory can expand our ontological sensitivities through improved attention to the minutiae and hitherto unrepresented constituents of life. Towards this end, we offer methodological suggestions to extend attention to flows of everyday marketplace activity, precognitive forms of networked agency, as well as affect and atmosphere in consumption spaces.

An Explorative fMRI Study of Human Creative Thinking Using: A Specially Designed iCAD System

Functional magnetic resonance imaging(fMRI) is widely used in cognitive neuroscience and psychological research. Studying the mechanism of creative thinking in humans is one of the hottest topics in fMRI studies, which is actually a subject received intensive attention across many different disciplines. In the field of intelligent computer-aided design(iCAD), the framework of "multi-source analog generation design" based on analogical reasoning is a computable model that can mimic human creative thinking to certain extent, because of its characteristics of capable of generating things that did not previously exist. We developed an iCAD software system, called "Three-Source Analog System for Face Generation", for fMRI studies of human creative thinking to explore its neurological mechanism. We also developed a magnetic resonance compatible platform, which can synchronize scanning with the corresponding experimental tasks, and simultaneously collect and record the subject's reaction. While nobody has introduced this concept into fMRI studies, we propose for the first time to study human creative thinking in our work, using this analogue generation model. In this study, we designed two kinds of task: The "design task" under the open-ends mode and the "control task" under the problem solving mode. Design task allows a participant to design with freedom, however, the control task imposes some limits. We collected imaging data from a total of 15 healthy participants. Statistical analysis of comparing the imaging data under the two modes showed that the design task induced more significant activations in the medial prefrontal cortex, middle frontal gyrus, right superior temporal gyrus, temporal lobe gyrus, anterior cingulate cortex, bilateral hippocampus and precuneus, which may suggest that these regions are highly related to creative thinking. This activation pattern in human brains is consistent with the well-known model of "Three-factor Anatomical Model of Creativity". Based on the findings, we speculate that:(1) The medial prefrontal cortex may be associated with the reception of ego during the creative activity,(2) The temporal lobe may be the major responsible region for continuous production and output of new ideas,(3) The limbic system consisting of the anterior cingulate cortex, hippocampus could be confirmed to be in charge of the power source for driving creative activity. In summary, this study has testified that creative thinking is the result of a collaboration of multiple brain regions, whose activities demonstrate a processing pattern of distributed network.

Self-Reported Therapeutic Style in Occupational Therapy Students

Introduction: The client-therapist relationship has long been viewed as important for both the process and outcomes of occupational therapy. The recently developed Intentional Relationship Model introduced six therapeutic modes as different ways of relating to clients. Increasing students' awareness of modes, and increasing their skills in using them flexibly, has the potential of improving their subsequent practice as occupational therapists. This article aims to describe occupational therapy students' affiliation with the therapeutic modes in a variety of hypothesized practice situations. In addition, relationships between the students' affiliation with the different modes are explored. Method: The study had a cross-sectional design. Data were collected from 31 occupational therapy students in Norway, using the Self-Assessment of Modes Questionnaire. Descriptive analyses, repeated measures ANOVA tests, and correlation analyses were employed in the analytic procedures. Findings: The students identified the problem-solving mode to be their most preferred way of relating to clients, whereas the advocating mode was the least preferred. High affiliation with the problem-solving mode was significantly associated with low affiliation with the collaborating mode. Conclusion: Several limitations indicate that caution should be taken when comparing this study with previous research. Nonetheless, differences between the results of this study and previous work on the therapeutic modes are of interest. Possible explanations for differences are discussed, as are implications for practice and research.

EEG-based expert system using complexity measures and probability density function control in alpha sub-band

This paper presents a novel expert system based on electroencephalogram (EEG) and demonstrates the process of knowledge acquisition and inference. As we known, the problem-solving mode of expert brains is: They judge the current situation (learn abou

Cognitive procedural learning in early Alzheimer's disease: Impaired processes and compensatory mechanisms

The aim of this study was to study cognitive procedural learning in early Alzheimer's disease (AD). Cognitive procedural learning was assessed using the Tower of Hanoi (TH) task. In order to take account of possible interactions between different systems during cognitive procedural learning, we also measured non-verbal intellectual functions, working memory, and declarative memory. Our results showed an apparent preservation of cognitive procedural learning in AD and a deleterious effect of the disease on verbal intelligence and declarative memory. Correlational analyses revealed a difference between AD patients and control participants in the type of processing they applied to the task. The non-involvement of declarative memory would appear to be partly responsible for a slowdown in the cognitive procedural dynamics of AD patients. As the AD patients were unable to use their declarative memory, they were still in a problem-solving mode at the end of the learning protocol and had to implement higher order cognitive processes (i.e., compensatory mechanisms) to perform the procedural task.

Medication use in patients with migraine and medication-overuse headache: The role of problem-solving and attitudes about pain medication

Excessive medication intake is a risk factor for the development of medication-overuse headache (MOH), a condition characterized by an increase of headache frequency to a daily or near-daily pattern. As yet, it is largely unknown why some patients overuse medication. In this study, we examined to what extent attitudes about pain medication, especially perceived need and concerns, and problem-solving are related to MOH. Patients with migraine (n = 133) and MOH with a history of migraine (n = 42) were recruited from a tertiary headache referral center and completed questionnaires measuring problem-solving and attitudes about pain medication. A problem-solving mode aimed at solving pain was associated with a higher need for and concerns about medication intake. Interestingly, in a model accounting for demographic factors and pain intensity, attempts to control pain, need for medication, and concerns about scrutiny by others because of medication intake all had a unique value in accounting for MOH. Results are discussed in terms of how repeated attempts to solve pain may trigger overuse of medication, even in the presence of clear negative consequences. Repeated attempts at solving pain may increase the need for analgesic medication, despite obvious costs. This mechanism might contribute to the problem of medication-overuse headache.

Practitioners' Use of Interpersonal Modes within the Therapeutic Relationship: Results from a Nationwide Study

Although occupational therapy literature emphasizes the importance of therapeutic use of self, there have been few studies of the interpersonal strategies used in response to different client needs. This study sought to explore therapists' use of self according to the Intentional Relationship Model by examining the use of different modes of interacting with clients. A questionnaire was mailed to a random sample of 1,000 practicing occupational therapists. Sixty-four percent responded and 563 met inclusion criteria. Modes used most to least often were: encouraging, collaborating, problem-solving, instructing, and empathizing. Mode use did not differ according to client population. Therapists who experienced more difficult behaviors and emotions reported higher levels of using all modes. Therapists facing difficult behavior in general were more likely to report use of the instructing and problem-solving modes. Therapists with anxious clients reported greater use of the problem-solving mode, whereas therapists with depressed clients reported increased use of problem-solving, collaborating, and empathizing modes. Implications for occupational therapy practice and education are discussed.

The Impact of Institutions on the Decision How to Decide

The human mind is not a general problem solving machine. Instead of deliberately, consciously and serially processing the available information, men can rely on routines, rules, roles or affect for the purpose. They can bring in technology, experts or groups. For all of these reasons, men have a plurality of problem solving modes at their disposition. Often, the meta-choice of problem solving mode matters for behavioural output. Some performance standards are only to be met if a certain problem solving mode is used, like a well-established skill. Other requirements are easier to fulfill with some problem solving modes. This explains why institutions frequently impact on the choice of problem solving mode. To show how institutions are able to do that, a model of problem solving modes is developed. It allows to systematise the access points for institutional intervention.