Stages of Problem Solving
Effective problem solving usually involves working through a number of steps or stages, such as those outlined below. For more detail continue to Stages of Problem Solving.
Stage: 1
Problem Identification:
This stage involves: detecting and recognising that there is a problem; identifying the nature of the problem; defining the problem.
The first phase of problem solving may sound obvious but often requires more thought and analysis. Identifying a problem can be a difficult task in itself, is there a problem at all? What is the nature of the problem, are there in fact numerous problems? How can the problem be best defined? - by spending some time defining the problem you will not only understand it more clearly yourself but be able to communicate its nature to others, this leads to the second phase.