An Experimental Study of Group Idea Generation Techniques: Understanding the Roles of Idea Representation and Viewing Methods

2011 ◽  
Vol 133 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
J. S. Linsey ◽  
E. F. Clauss ◽  
T. Kurtoglu ◽  
J. T. Murphy ◽  
K. L. Wood ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Factorial Experiment ◽  
Concept Generation ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Innovation Processes

Advances in innovation processes are critically important as economic and business landscapes evolve. There are many concept generation techniques that can assist a designer in the initial phases of design. Unfortunately, few studies have examined these techniques that can provide evidence to suggest which techniques should be preferred or how to implement them in an optimal way. This study systematically investigates the underlying factors of four common and well-documented techniques: brainsketching, gallery, 6-3-5, and C-sketch. These techniques are resolved into their key parameters, and a rigorous factorial experiment is performed to understand how the key parameters affect the outcomes of the techniques. The factors chosen for this study with undergraduate mechanical engineers include how concepts are displayed to participants (all are viewed at once or subsets are exchanged between participants, i.e., “rotational viewing”) and the mode used to communicate ideas (written words only, sketches only, or a combination of written words and sketches). Four metrics are used to evaluate the data: quantity, quality, novelty, and variety. The data suggest that rotational viewing of sets of concepts described using sketches combined with words produces more ideas than having all concepts displayed in a “gallery view” form, but a gallery view results in more high quality concepts. These results suggest that a hybrid of methods should be used to maximize the quality and number of ideas. The study also shows that individuals gain a significant number of ideas from their teammates. Ideas, when shared, can foster new idea tracks, more complete layouts, and a diverse synthesis. Finally, as teams develop more concepts, the quality of the concepts improves. This result is a consequence of the team-sharing environment and, in conjunction with the quantity of ideas, validates the effectiveness of group idea generation. This finding suggests a way to go beyond the observation that some forms of brainstorming can actually hurt productivity.

scholarly journals “Collaborating To Success”: An Experimental Study of Group Idea Generation Techniques

2005 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. S. Linsey ◽  
M. G. Green ◽  
J. T. Murphy ◽  
K. L. Wood ◽  
A. B. Markman
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Empirical Data ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Factorial Experiment ◽  
Concept Generation

Numerous concept generation methods have been developed that can assist an engineer in the initial phases of design. Unfortunately, limited empirical data is available to guide users in selecting preferred techniques. This study systematically investigates underlying factors of four well-used and documented techniques: Brainsketching, Gallery, 6-3-5, and C-Sketch. These techniques are resolved into their key parameters and a factorial experiment is performed to understand how the key parameters affect the outcomes of the techniques. The factors chosen for this study include: how ideas are displayed to participants (all are viewed at once or exchanged between participants, “rotational viewing”) and the mode used to communicate ideas (written words only, sketches only, or a combination of written words and sketches). This study also provides a method for measuring the quantity of ideas generated when the ideas are represented in the form of both sketches and words. A number of interesting findings are produced from the study. First, the study shows that individuals gain a significant number of ideas from their teammates. Ideas when shared, can foster new idea tracks, more complete layouts, and diverse synthesis. Second, the systematic exchange of a set of ideas between participants produces a greater quantity of ideas than having all ideas displayed in a gallery form. This result shows that techniques like 6-3-5 or C-Sketch, where each person views only a subset of all the team’s ideas at any given time, are more likely to produce a larger quantity of ideas than techniques where individuals can continuously view all the ideas the team has generated. Finally, as teams developed ideas, the quality improved. This result is a consequence of the teamsharing environment and, in conjunction with quantity of concepts, validates the effectiveness of group idea generation.

A Validation Regarding Effectiveness of Scenario Graph

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hiroyuki Yagita ◽  
Akira Tose ◽  
Madoka Nakajima ◽  
Sun K. Kim ◽  
Takashi Maeno
Keyword(s):  
Contextual Information ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Test Group ◽  
Problem Formulation ◽  
Service Development ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Design Teams ◽  
Concept Generation ◽  
Significant Difference

Scenario Graph is a structured mind mapping methodology that aids design teams to generate potential scenarios for new products and services while visually organizing contextual information. Since its introduction in industry and academia, the Scenario Graph has helped design teams to capture new values and behaviors of potential customers during the problem formulation stage. At the same time, the Scenario Graph, sharing a common challenge with various design methods, has faced difficulty regarding validation of its effectiveness as a design method. This paper describes a validation framework for a method in problem formulation stages and an experiment, which compare ideation results of 87 people — 43 people with the Scenario Graph method (as a test group) and 44 people with the Brainstorming (as a control group) — to solve an identical problem. While the results show no statistically significant difference in the number of ideas generated, the data reveals statistically significant differences in the quality of ideas. The test group, which used the Scenario Graph, yielded ideas that were more novel, feasible, and abstract than the control group, which used the Brainstorming, did. These metrics represent a way to measure the quality of ideas in the domain of engineering design. Our experiment confirms the hypotheses that the Scenario Graph is effective in improving the performance of idea generation sessions, which is consistent with qualitative evaluations. The lessons, gained from this experiment, provide an insight on how this method can be effectively used during the early stages of concept generation of a company’s process for product and/or service development.

Oil Shale Retorting in a Bottom-Burning Retort

1981 ◽  
Vol 103 (2) ◽  
pp. 119-127
Author(s):  
K. S. Udell ◽  
H. R. Jacobs
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Coordinate System ◽  
Combustion Front ◽  
Oil Shale ◽  
Thermal Processes ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Uniform Velocity ◽  
Moving Coordinate

An experimental study of a bottom-burning oil shale retort is described. It is shown that for a constant oxidizer flow the combustion front moves at a uniform velocity through the bed. This leads to the use of a moving coordinate system attached to the combustion front in evaluating the various thermal processes occurring in the retort. It is shown that the high quality of oil produced can be tied to a thermal refluxing not present in other retort processes.

scholarly journals Modelling the Dynamics of Influence on Individual Thinking during Idea Generation in Co-design Teams

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harshika Singh
Keyword(s):  
Social Influence ◽  
Significant Role ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Current Work ◽  
Design Teams ◽  
Concept Generation ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Idea Quality

Social influence is not evenly distributed in teams. Some individuals, referredto here as influencers, become more influential than others. Consequentially,these influencers play a significant role in shaping project performance.The current work simulates the presence of influencers duringidea generation in co-design teams to better understand emergent socio-cognitivephenomena. Besides providing, a novel approach for modelling learningin concept generation the model highlights the results related to individualcognition during idea generation. Idea quality and exploration of designspace are affected by the presence of influencers in design teams. Teamswith no well-defined influencers produce solutions with high general explorationbut less quality. In contrast, the agents in the teams with only oneinfluencer produce solutions high quality than those teams with no influencers.

scholarly journals Patients’ Use of the Internet to Find Reliable Medical Information About Minor Ailments: Vignette-Based Experimental Study

10.2196/12278 ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (11) ◽  
pp. e12278 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joyce Kwakernaak ◽  
Just A H Eekhof ◽  
Margot W M De Waal ◽  
Elisabeth A M Barenbrug ◽  
Niels H Chavannes
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Medical Information ◽  
Search Strategies ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Search Term ◽  
Internet Search ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Mcnemar Test ◽  
Minor Ailments

Background Little is known about the exact process of how patients search for medical information on the internet and what they retrieve. There is especially a paucity of literature on browsing for information on minor ailments, a term used for harmless diseases that are very common in the general population and thus have a significant impact on health care. Objective This vignette-based experimental study aimed to explore what kind of Web-based search strategies are applied and how search strategies, demographic characteristics, and the quality of the visited websites relate to finding the right diagnosis. Additional goals were to describe how searching on the Web influences one’s perception of the severity of the potential diagnosis and whether or not the participants would discuss the information they found on the internet with their doctors. Methods Out of 1372 survey participants, 355 were randomly sampled, and 155 of them were recruited and assigned to one of four clinical scenarios. Each search term they used was classified as one of three search strategies: (1) hypothesis testing, (2) narrowing within the general hypothesis area, and (3) symptom exploration. The quality of the websites used was determined by using the DISCERN instrument. To compare the diagnostic accuracy of the participants before and after the internet search, a McNemar test was used. Chi-square tests were used to describe which factors are related to the chosen search strategy. A multivariate binary logistic regression model was constructed to predict which factors are related to finding a sound diagnosis after searching the internet for health information. Results Most participants (65.8%, 102/155) used the symptom exploration strategy. However, this depends on the assigned scenario (P<.001) and the self-estimated severity score of the symptoms before the internet search (P=.001). A significant relation was found between choosing an accurate diagnosis and age (odds ratio [OR] 0.94, 95% CI 0.90 to 0.98) and the clinical scenario, as well as the use of high-quality websites (OR 7.49, 95% CI 1.85 to 30.26). Browsing the internet did not lead to a statistically significant change in participants’ beliefs about the severity of the condition (McNemar test, P=.85). Most participants (65%) shared their retrieved information with their physician and most of them (75%) received a positive response. Conclusions Our findings suggest that most patients use a symptom-based approach; however, if patients expect the potential diagnosis to be severe, they tend to use a hypothesis verification strategy more often and are therefore prone to certain forms of bias. In addition, self-diagnosing accuracy is related to younger age, the symptom scenario, and the use of high-quality websites. We should find ways to guide patients toward search strategies and websites that may more likely lead to accurate decision making.

scholarly journals Patients’ Use of the Internet to Find Reliable Medical Information About Minor Ailments: Vignette-Based Experimental Study (Preprint)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joyce Kwakernaak ◽  
Just AH Eekhof ◽  
Margot WM De Waal ◽  
Elisabeth AM Barenbrug ◽  
Niels H Chavannes
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Medical Information ◽  
Search Strategies ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Search Term ◽  
Internet Search ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Mcnemar Test ◽  
Minor Ailments

BACKGROUND Little is known about the exact process of how patients search for medical information on the internet and what they retrieve. There is especially a paucity of literature on browsing for information on minor ailments, a term used for harmless diseases that are very common in the general population and thus have a significant impact on health care. OBJECTIVE This vignette-based experimental study aimed to explore what kind of Web-based search strategies are applied and how search strategies, demographic characteristics, and the quality of the visited websites relate to finding the right diagnosis. Additional goals were to describe how searching on the Web influences one’s perception of the severity of the potential diagnosis and whether or not the participants would discuss the information they found on the internet with their doctors. METHODS Out of 1372 survey participants, 355 were randomly sampled, and 155 of them were recruited and assigned to one of four clinical scenarios. Each search term they used was classified as one of three search strategies: (1) hypothesis testing, (2) narrowing within the general hypothesis area, and (3) symptom exploration. The quality of the websites used was determined by using the DISCERN instrument. To compare the diagnostic accuracy of the participants before and after the internet search, a McNemar test was used. Chi-square tests were used to describe which factors are related to the chosen search strategy. A multivariate binary logistic regression model was constructed to predict which factors are related to finding a sound diagnosis after searching the internet for health information. RESULTS Most participants (65.8%, 102/155) used the symptom exploration strategy. However, this depends on the assigned scenario (<italic>P</italic>&lt;.001) and the self-estimated severity score of the symptoms before the internet search (<italic>P</italic>=.001). A significant relation was found between choosing an accurate diagnosis and age (odds ratio [OR] 0.94, 95% CI 0.90 to 0.98) and the clinical scenario, as well as the use of high-quality websites (OR 7.49, 95% CI 1.85 to 30.26). Browsing the internet did not lead to a statistically significant change in participants’ beliefs about the severity of the condition (McNemar test, <italic>P</italic>=.85). Most participants (65%) shared their retrieved information with their physician and most of them (75%) received a positive response. CONCLUSIONS Our findings suggest that most patients use a symptom-based approach; however, if patients expect the potential diagnosis to be severe, they tend to use a hypothesis verification strategy more often and are therefore prone to certain forms of bias. In addition, self-diagnosing accuracy is related to younger age, the symptom scenario, and the use of high-quality websites. We should find ways to guide patients toward search strategies and websites that may more likely lead to accurate decision making.

An Analysis of Rivet Die Design in Electromagnetic Riveting

1988 ◽  
Vol 110 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. G. Reinhall ◽  
S. Ghassaei ◽  
V. Choo
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Crack Formation ◽  
Radial Component ◽  
Die Design ◽  
Large Strains ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Riveting Process ◽  
Electromagnetic Riveting ◽  
Careful Design

This paper presents the findings of a numerical and experimental study of the quality of 7050-T73 aluminum rivets formed by an extremely fast electromagnetic riveting process. It is found that without careful design of the rivet forming die large strains are produced which cause crack formation in the rivet heads. By the use of finite element and experimental techniques, it is shown that control of the radial component of the flow of material in the rivet head is essential in avoiding crack formation. A rivet die design which is effective in producing high quality, crack free, rivets is proposed.

Online focus groups: a valuable alternative for hospitality research?

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (11) ◽  
pp. 3175-3191 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brendan Richard ◽  
Stephen Sivo ◽  
Marissa Orlowski ◽  
Robert Ford ◽  
Jamie Murphy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Hospitality Industry ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Innovation Process ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Treatment Groups ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Selection Of

Purpose This paper aims to test the idea generation capabilities of online text-based focus groups as compared to the traditional in-person focus groups using sustainability in the hospitality industry as the idea generation topic. Idea generation quantity and quality are analyzed and the theoretical and practical implications for the hospitality industry are discussed. Design/methodology/approach An experimental study tested the quality of ideas generated by online versus in-person focus groups. Participants were purposively sampled from the hospitality program at a large southeastern United States university and randomly assigned into one of two treatment groups: online text-based or traditional in-person focus groups. During both treatment groups participants generated ideas focused on sustainability in the hospitality industry. Findings The online focus group generated a comparable quantity of ideas, in addition to a similar average quality of ideas and number of good ideas. Practical implications The generation of ideas and the selection of opportunities drive the innovation process through which firms can strengthen their competitive advantage and maintain and grow market share and profitability. The results of this study may assist hospitality firms in determining which form of qualitative research delivers the highest return on investment by generating the best ideas at the lowest cost. Originality/value This paper breaks new ground by assessing the effectiveness of idea generation in online versus traditional focus groups, comparing both the quantity and quality of ideas generated from an experimental study that uses random assignment.

scholarly journals “WHAT’S THE POINT OF THE TASK?” EXPLORING THE INFLUENCE OF TASK MEANING ON CREATIVITY IN CROWDSOURCING

2020 ◽  
pp. 2150007
Author(s):  
THOMAS GÖRZEN
Keyword(s):  
Intrinsic Motivation ◽  
Field Experiment ◽  
Product Innovation ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Positive Influence ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Routine Tasks ◽  
Output Quantity ◽  
Practical Implications

In pursuit of product innovation, companies increasingly use crowdsourcing for idea generation. Apart from financial motives, previous studies on the motivation of crowd workers identified intrinsic motivation, such as task meaningfulness, to play a key role. These studies, however, focused on routine tasks such as image labelling, using output quantity as the variable of interest. Since the primary goal for a creative task such as idea generation is not abundance but high quality, we investigate the influence of task meaning on workers’ effort and on output creativity. In a field experiment involving idea generation by an online crowdsourcing platform, we vary the task meaning in two different conditions, and evaluate the quality of the ideas generated. We find that higher task meaning has no positive influence on either the quantity or the creativity of the output, which carries practical implications for both commissioners and crowdsourcing platform designers.

Influence of technology parameters of free-cutting steel continuous casting on the billet internal structure

2020 ◽  
Vol 76 (2) ◽  
pp. 139-142
Author(s):  
A. T. Kunakbaeva ◽  
A. M. Stolyarov ◽  
M. V. Potapova
Keyword(s):  
Regression Analysis ◽  
Continuous Casting ◽  
Internal Structure ◽  
Sulfur Content ◽  
Manganese Content ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Correlation And Regression Analysis ◽  
Cutting Steel ◽  
Continuously Cast

Free-cutting steel gains specific working properties thanks to the high content of sulfur and phosphorus. These elements, especially sulfur, have a rather high tendency to segregation. Therefore, segregation defects in free-cutting steel continuously cast billets can be significantly developed. The aim of the work was to study the influence of the chemical composition of freecutting steel and casting technological parameters on the quality of the macrostructure of continuously cast billets. A metallographic assessment of the internal structure of cast metal made of free-cutting steel and data processing by application of correlation and regression analysis were the research methods. The array of production data of 43 heats of free-cutting steel of grade A12 was studied. Steel casting on a five-strand radial type continuous casting machine was carried out by various methods of metal pouring from tundish into the molds. Metal of 19 heats was poured with an open stream, and 24 heats – by a closed stream through submerged nozzles with a vertical hole. High-quality billets had a cross-sectional size of 150×150 mm. The macrostructure of high-quality square billets made of free-cutting steel of A12 grade is characterized by the presence of central porosity, axial segregation and peripheral point contamination, the degree of development of which was in the range from 1.5 to 2.0 points, segregation cracks and strips – about 1.0 points. In the course of casting with an open stream, almost all of these defects are more developed comparing with the casting by a closed stream. As a result of correlation and regression analysis, linear dependences of the development degree of segregation cracks and strips both axial and angular on the sulfur content in steel and on the ratio of manganese content to sulfur content were established. The degree of these defects development increases with growing of sulfur content in steel of A12 grade. These defects had especially strong development when sulfur content in steel was of more than 0.10%. To improve the quality of cast metal, it is necessary to have the ratio of the manganese content to the sulfur content in the metal more than eight.

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