Brainstorming
A group session to generate many ideas about a problem, leaving judgment for later.
What it’s for
It helps you move past the first idea and explore many before choosing.
Key elements
No judgment
Criticism comes afterward, not during.
Quantity
The more ideas, the more likely a good one turns up.
Build
Combine and improve other people’s ideas.
How it’s done
Frame the problem as a specific question.
Suggest ideas without criticizing them.
Group and choose once no more ideas come.
Applications in design
When to use it
When you need many options before deciding; better if everyone ideates in silence for a few minutes before sharing.
Avoid
Letting the most senior person speak first.
Don’t fall for it
If the group produces few ideas, try brainwriting.
Connections
Authors and works
- 1953
Alex F. Osborn
Gave it its name and rules, such as deferring judgment and going for quantity.
- 1987
Michael Diehl and Wolfgang Stroebe
Found that the same people produce more ideas thinking separately and pooling them than in a group, mainly because in a group you have to wait your turn.
Sources
Original sources
- Osborn, A. F. (1953). Applied imagination: Principles and procedures of creative thinking. Scribner.
- Diehl, M., & Stroebe, W. (1987). Productivity loss in brainstorming groups: Toward the solution of a riddle. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 53(3), 497–509. View source: Diehl, M., & Stroebe, W. (1987)
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