Problem Identification Stage Research Articles

Taking personal initiative and communicating about ideas: What is important for the creative process and for idea creativity?

Using multisource data, this study focused on the process aspect of creativity at work. A modification of Amabile's (1988) stage model of the creative process with the stages of problem identification, preparation, idea generation, and idea validation served as the basis for our study. We examined personal initiative and idea-related communication as two important factors for the creative process and for the degree of creativity of one specific idea an employee recently produced at work. In a sample of 52 nurses, we found that idea-related communication was positively related to engagement in the creative process but not to idea creativity. Personal initiative boosted engagement in the beginning of the creative process and was positively related to creativity as an outcome. Results suggest that idea-related communication is important for showing engagement in the creative process, whereas personal initiative is important in the beginning of the creative process and for idea creativity.

The effects of two computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) scripts on university students' critical thinking

The present study focuses on the use of two different types of scripts as possible ways to structure university students' discourse in asynchronous discussion groups and consequently promote their learning. More specifically, the aim of the study is to determine how requiring students to label their contributions by means of De Bono's Thinking Hats (script 1) and Weinberger's script for the construction of argumentation sequences (script 2) affects the ongoing critical thinking processes reflected in the discussion. The results suggest that both scripts successfully facilitated critical thinking. The results showed that the labeling condition (script 1) surpasses the argumentation script (script 2) with regard to the overall depth of critical thinking in the discussion, and the critical thinking processes during the stages of problem identification and problem integration in particular. Further, it can be argued that students in the labeling condition are engaged in more focused, more critical, and more practically-oriented discussions.

'Finding the person the disease has'--the case for multisensory environments.

Education about, and exposure to, the utilization of a multisensory environment (MSE) was provided to clinical staff as a response to findings from the problem identification stage of an action research study. Feedback was obtained about their experience and perceptions of its use. Through the auspices of focus groups and one-to-one interviews, respondents commented on the impact that using the MSE had on their perception of their clients and on subsequent care. The case is made that MSEs afford an opportunity to impact on care through their mediating influence on formal carers' perceptions of their clients and, as such represent a significant but as yet unrealized potential for improving the quality of care of older people with dementia.

Making Sense of Jargon During Consultation: Understanding Consultees' Social Language to Effect Change in Student Study Teams

Student study teams (SSTs) ideally offer education professionals a means of collaborative, multidisciplinary problem solving to support the academic and behavioral success of students who are at risk for school failure. However, SSTs may in practice not be truly collaborative because they lack an embedded mechanism for group facilitation. This qualitative study investigated how a language-focused consultation approach was used to facilitate the problem identification stage of SSTs in two rural, southern elementary schools. The results indicate that a language-focused consultation affected the SSTs' problem-identification process, which was inhibited by members' use of jargon and slang. This article describes how consultation bridged conceptual gaps between members, scrutinized definitions of jargon and slang, and encouraged collaborative renegotiation of work problems' meanings.

Dissecting Obesogenic Environments: The Development and Application of a Framework for Identifying and Prioritizing Environmental Interventions for Obesity

Background. The “obesogenicity” of modern environments is fueling the obesity pandemic. We describe a framework, known as ANGELO (analysis grid for environments linked to obesity), which is a conceptual model for understanding the obesogenicity of environments and a practical tool for prioritizing environmental elements for research and intervention.Methods: Development of the ANGELO framework. The basic framework is a 2 × 4 grid which dissects the environment into environmental size (micro and macro) by type: physical (what is available), economic (what are the costs), political (what are the “rules”), and sociocultural (what are the attitudes and beliefs). Within this grid, the elements which influence food intake and physical activity are characterized as obe sogenic or “leptogenic” (promoting leanness).Results: Application of the ANGELO framework. The ANGELO framework has been piloted at the population level (island communities) to prioritize the settings/sectors for intervention and at the setting level (fast food outlets) to prioritize research needs and interventions. Environmental elements were prioritized by rating their validity (evidence of impact), relevance (to the local context), and potential changeability.Conclusions. The ANGELO framework appears to be a flexible and robust instrument for the needs analysis and problem identification stages of reducing the obe sogenicity of modern environments.

The Fort: Opportunities for an effective urban conservation strategy in Bombay

A common scenario in Third World countries is that with the overriding social, economic and political implications being so complex and vast, the actual resolution to urban problems and issues is often lost and the planning process stalls at the problem identification stage. The key to the resolution of the urban decline affecting the central business district of Bombay, Fort, is in accepting and understanding its cultural and architectural significance to the city, its potential to continue as the financial centre with the influx of multinational offices being set up in the city, and to stop the degeneration of a district which already has large-scale formal and informal sector investment. The main argument of the paper is that time is ripe for an innovative conservation strategy. The proposed strategy begins with an action plan that would be essential should a program for conservation be accepted by the city's decision makers. It is a move away from the current piecemeal approach of identifying singular buildings for preservation, and pursues a more holistic approach to protect, regulate and retain the built, economic and social fabric of Fort. Encouraged by the Kanga Commission's initiatives, the proposed approach shows the steps towards a bold but manageable long-term solution.

Social and public policy analysis: a niche for social work practice.

This article provides front line social work practitioners with a mechanism for becoming more meaningfully involved in social and public policy analysis. It suggests that a new entry point for shaping policy formulation should occur earlier on in the problem identification stage of the rational policymaking process. The article offers a series of process questions to guide this approach and contends that practitioners have the necessary knowledge and skills to effect the various role expectations required of them in this regard.

A conceptual framework for the analysis of social policies

Increasing the involvement of psychologists in policy analysis requires clarification of the specific contributions that can be made by community psychologists and other applied social scientists. The present article examines the nature of social policies and outlines a model of the policy-making process. The “cycle of social policy” model emphasizes the stages of problem identification, policy formulation and adoption, implementation, evaluation, and dissemination. Attention is focused on the sociopolitical and organizational contexts in which policy processes occur. Potential roles for psychologists and other social scientists in policy making are identified. Two New Zealand examples, police intervention in domestic disputes and legislation intended to reduce imprisonment rates, are used to illustrate the application of the model.

A Conceptual Framework for Environmental Analysis of Social Issues and Evaluation of Business Response Patterns

A conceptual framework is developed to analyze and evaluate business response patterns under different temporal and sociocultural conditions. Corporate responses are classified along three dimensions: corporate behavior or social obligation, social responsibility, and social responsiveness. The contextual component (external environment) is analyzed by dividing the elapsed time between the emergence of a problem and its ultimate solution into four categories: the preproblem stage, the problem identification stage, the remedy and relief stage, and the prevention stage. Examples of current application of the framework and directions for future research are indicated.