Another extraordinary way of generating ideas, along with techniques such as brainstorming and Edward De Bono's six hat method is the method of synectics. The synectics method is applied to solve problems and find new ideas through the use of analogies and the transfer of your tasks to ready-made solutions that exist in various fields and areas. Synectics is a combination of heterogeneous, and sometimes even incompatible elements in the process of setting and solving problems.

To more intelligibly explain the essence of this method, we can refer to the example of its application by the founder of synectics, William Gordon, who used it when creating Pringles chips.

Kellogg (a well-known American manufacturer of breakfast cereals) faced an impossible task - how to make and package potato chips in order to reduce the amount of air filled into the package, while making it more compact and avoiding product crumbling. To solve this problem, William Gordon was involved, who in 1961 wrote his famous book - “Synectics: the development creative imagination”, and a little later he created a company - Synectics Inc., which teaches creative thinking and provides development services innovative ideas(today the company's clients are corporations such as IBM, General Electric, Zinger and many others). As an analogy, to create new chips, Gordon chose the process of laying fallen leaves in a plastic bag. If the leaves placed in the bag are dry, certain difficulties arise - they break and scatter, and when the leaves are wet, they are soft and easily take the form of a neighboring sheet. If you remove the leaves after rain, you will need few garbage bags, because damp leaves leave much less air between themselves and are packed more compactly. This analogy gave rise to Pringles chips - shaping and wetting dry potato flour helped solve the problem with their packaging.

Appeared in the early 50s of the last century as a result of many years of work by William Gordon on the improvement brainstorming method. important distinctive feature The method we are considering today is that the synectics method is used to solve specific problems and is not aimed at using the objective laws of development of various systems. And a more or less trained and permanent group of trained specialists should work on its application (despite this, an ordinary person, having familiarized himself with the techniques of synectics, will be able to adopt some techniques to solve some of his problems and tasks). In this sense, synectics is a professional activity, and brainstorming is only a collective amateur activity. It is also worth noting that, unlike brainstorming, criticism is allowed in synectics. And, of course, the main feature is the essence of the synectics method - the use of comparisons and analogies. By focusing their flexible minds on the problem at hand, the synectics group uses four types of analogies to discuss.

Types of analogies of the synectics method

The fact that the existing analogies completely cover the experience and thoughts of people will become more clear if this classification is explained as follows: direct and fantastic are real and unreal analogies, and subjective and symbolic are bodily and abstract. However, we are not talking about their fundamental nature, since the regular practice of using the synectics method gradually expands the range of tools and allows you to develop more and more new methods of in-depth study and analysis of objects and phenomena.

Formation of a synectic team

The process of forming a group of synectors includes three phases:

1. The first is the selection of group members. Special tests are used, attention is drawn to the presence of a variety of knowledge, general erudition, a sufficient level of education, experience in experimental activities and flexibility of thinking. People are chosen as synectors different professions and preferably with the presence of two incompatible specialties, for example, a physicist, an economist-engineer, or a musician-chemist.
2. The second phase of the formation of a group of synectors is their training. In Russia, the synectics method did not take root (own educational and methodological developments are absent, and the existing world experience is rarely ignored), however, in the West, both small companies and large corporations spend a lot of money on training their specialists in special institutions. For example, in the United States, the preparation of synectic groups lasts about a year and consists of face-to-face and correspondence sessions. The first ones are held in training centers, and then the trainees do practical work in their companies, solving theoretical and real problems.
3. The final phase is the introduction of the group into the real environment. A company that has sent its specialists for training or ordered a ready-made team (this can be a one-time or regular cooperation) receives it under certain conditions to work on its own projects.

The history of the development of synectics shows that the application creative thinking in enterprises and the use of special units increases the likelihood of success in setting goals and solving problems, demonstrating the effect of synergy.

What are the special conditions created for the synectic procedure:

• Obligatory initial abstraction of participants from problems and tasks.
• Restraint of opinion and rejection of final conclusions.
• Naturalness and ease in discussions, a predisposition to playing around and modeling the situation.
• The manifestation of rationality in judgments.

As we can see, rationality appears only at the final stage of the synectic procedure. Before that, images, metaphors and analogies are used.

Stages of the synectics method

Like any other creative method of generating ideas, the synectics method consists of several stages, which, since its inception, have been constantly improved and modified. If we take the phases of the synectic process as described by William Gordon in his book Synectics: The Development of the Creative Imagination, they look like this:

At present, the steps of the synectics method are simplified and look more understandable. Although in reality this method is very difficult to use. It is not just that the training of synector groups lasts a whole year. If the owner of a large enterprise decides to use this method, one way or another he will need to find experienced specialists who train personnel in all the tricks of synectics. An ordinary person, on the other hand, can use analogies to solve creative problems, which are an important tool of the synectics method.

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And synectics are different techniques, they are both group and both contribute to the development of new ideas and the encouragement of creativity. Traditional sessions are hosted by a moderator, but can take place without one. Group members are instructed to generate ideas, approaches or solutions without thinking about cost, feasibility, etc. Group members are also asked not to criticize any ideas coming from their colleagues. Instead, they support the "construction" of ideas by other members of the group, developing and modifying them.

In a synectic assault, criticism is acceptable, which allows you to develop and modify the ideas expressed. This assault is led by a permanent group. Its members gradually get used to working together, stop being afraid of criticism, and are not offended when someone rejects their proposals.

In 1961, William Gordon's book Synectics: The Development of the Creative Imagination was published in the United States. book opened new chapter in the history of methods for finding new solutions. The approach to the organization of creativity described in it, the rules of work, training, had a great influence on the developers of new technology, methodologists. Unfortunately, the book was not published in our country.

Work on the method began in 1944. Gordon pointed out that the word "synectics" is of Greek origin and means the combination of various, and sometimes even apparently incompatible elements.

The idea of ​​synectics is to unite individual creators into a single group for joint setting and solving specific problems. The method includes practical approaches to the conscious decision and use of unconscious mechanisms that manifest themselves in a person at the moment of creative activity. The purpose of developing the method, according to Gordon, was the desire to increase the likelihood of success in setting and solving problems. But how can this be achieved? On the one hand, the incomprehensible spontaneity, the uniqueness of each individual, on the other hand, the need for a training system, measuring control. Attempts to combine these views led Gordon to the idea of ​​"groupthink". In the course of this work, in Cambridge in 1952, a group of sinectors was created, which conducted an experiment in increasing, gradual insight into the essence of creativity and the search for new things by observing in practice, both their own creative process and the process of the work of the whole group.

Observations of synectic groups during work, experiments involving individual people, made it possible to penetrate into the essence of the process under study.

Gordon solved the problem of identifying, objectifying mental activity directly in the process of creativity. He pointed out that psychological states, mechanisms that operate at the time when a person creates, are usually hidden from observation. In a situation where synectors are united in groups, they are required to express their thoughts and feelings on the issue under discussion. This makes it possible to bring the links of the most complex process of individual creativity to the public, after which they can be compared with others and analyzed.

The key point of synectics, which distinguishes it from the brainstorming method, is the approach to the decision process. The typical brainstorming of ideas is rejected by synectors for almost the entire process of work. It is indicated that a complete, holistic thought, which is an idea or a set of ideas based on certain premises, is issued by an individual after he himself comes up with it. This integrity can be accepted by others as true, useful, or rejected as incorrect. Integrity resists further change. No one can acknowledge the authorship of this idea, except for the one who expressed it. Attempts to combat this negative phenomenon are evident from the fact that before brainstorming, they specifically agree on the distribution (or commonality) of authorship for the ideas put forward, but this does not remove the problem.

On the other hand, irrational information is the cause of the manifestation in the memory of metaphors, images that are still vaguely outlined, unsteady. However, based on it, all members of the group can continue their movement towards a solution. Constant stimulation of the subconscious leads to manifestations of intuition. The phenomenon of "insight" manifests itself quite often in the work of a well-trained, prepared group, when it acts in a coordinated manner, constantly fixing itself on a more or less irrational basis, for some time avoiding attempts to formulate finally completed ideas, thoughts.

Thus, in synectics, according to Gordon, the results of solving the problem are rational, while the process leading to the solution is irrational. The organization of the group's influence on the creative activity of individuals is also unusual. At the same time, attention is paid to attempts to surpass oneself, the rejection of standard approaches. Risk, a difficult task, has great psychological prestige in the synector group, each tends to take on the greatest part of the difficulties.

Observations also showed that in the process of work it is useful to put forward completely unrealistic ideas, proposals, abstract images, that is, what was originally called by the author "game" and "irrelevance". However, the mood to identify the operators forced later to clarify what was hidden under these terms.

Here are five main principles underlying the synectic approach:

1. Postponement, i.e., first looking for new points of view or perspectives rather than solutions. For example, rather than directly discussing types of pumps for pumping water, it is better if the synectic group talks for more general theme how to move "things" from place to place.
2. Autonomy of the object, i.e., allowing the problem to "succeed" on its own. For example, instead of talking about what is feasible in terms of creating desktop publishing software, the group could focus on what the "ideal" desktop publishing system would be like. Thus, the problem, more than potential technological solutions, becomes the center of discussion.
3. The use of "platitudes", i.e., the use of the familiar in order to understand the unknown. An example of this approach: a group of university teachers is given the task to create academic plan in computer science for beginners. Rather than focusing on computer science, one might ask the group to focus on what would generally be regarded as "mastery" in that area.
4. Inclusion / selection, i.e., alternation of general and specific, particular, so that specific examples are identified and considered as part of a larger one.
5. The use of metaphors, i.e., the use of analogies to offer new points of view.

Playing with metaphor is one of the fruitful mechanisms when you need to make the familiar unfamiliar and the unfamiliar familiar. Metaphors are used based on explicit or implied comparisons, both between similar and clearly inconsistent objects. This also includes the mechanism of personification, with its main question: “How would this or that thing feel if it were a human being and could react to everything? How would I feel if I were this thing?

It is believed that the elegance of the decisions issued by the group is a function of the diversity of knowledge, interests, and emotional characteristics that the participants have.

An important criterion for the selection of group members is to take into account the emotional type. It affects how a person approaches a problem:

• Does he try to get to the bottom of the problem right away, or does he beat around the bush?
• Is he passive in the face of imminent defeat, or is he persistently striving to succeed?
• When he is wrong, does he connect it with his actions or justify himself, looking for reasons outside?
• Can he use his intellectual energy effectively in difficult situations or gives up at the most critical moment?

Here is another line of differences between synectics and brainstorming. The selection of a group of brainstorming generators consists in identifying active creators with different knowledge. Their emotional types are not particularly taken into account. In synectics, on the contrary, two people with the same baggage of knowledge will be more likely to be selected, if at the same time they have significant differences in the emotional sphere.

Avoiding specialization, the presence in the group of professionals in various fields of knowledge, allows you to work on the problem from a variety of points of view. Of course, no group can be competent in all areas of science and technology in which it has to solve problems. Therefore, often an expert in this field of knowledge is included in the group. Depending on the situation, he can play the role of "encyclopedia" or "devil's advocate" in the first mode, he works rather passively, i.e. issues specific advice, information at the request of group members.

In the "devil's advocate" mode, he immediately reveals and rejects the weaknesses of the put forward concepts, concepts, approaches. Often the expert is included in the group for a long time. The expert has to work hard to adapt the specific terminology of his specialty to the public. He must also deal with back translation, as well as allow the "invasion" of the group on the "territory" of his field of knowledge.

The most important element of the synectic process is the practical implementation of the ideas obtained in the process of work. Synectors must take part in practical work, this is considered a vital process for keeping them in good shape. Without access to practice, the process of thinking closes in abstractions, and they lead to even greater abstractions and uncertainty.

The solutions that sinectors offer often seem original, sometimes ordinary, ordinary, but it should be borne in mind that the basis and the greatest amount of work of sinectors is not in solving a problem, but in posing it, in the ability to see an unexpected angle, turn, accent. The tasks set are usually not difficult, usually solutions are found soon after the situation is clarified, so that additional means, for example, other methods of solving problems, are usually not involved. Synectics can be defined as a means for setting goals. Actually, finding a solution is a consequence of the well-known position that the correct formulation of the problem is half the solution.

Block diagram of the synectic process

1. Statement of the problem

2. Translation of the task, "as it is posed" into the task, "as it is understood."

3. Identification of a question that causes analogies.

4. Work on finding analogies.

5. Use of analogies:

• Direct analogy
• Symbolic analogy
• Personal analogy
• Fantastic analogy

6. Search for the possibilities of translating the found analogies and images into proposals for solving the problem.

Synectics operators

Synectics defines the creative process as mental activity in situations of posing and solving problems, where the result is an artistic or technical discovery (invention). Operators of synectics are specific psychological factors that support and drive forward the entire creative process. They should be distinguished from psychological states such as empathy, involvement, play, etc. Psychological states are the basis of the creative process, but they are not controllable. The terms “intuition”, “empathy”, etc. are just names attached to very complex actions. Operators of synectics, its mechanisms are designed to stimulate, activate these complex psychological states.

When solving a problem, it is pointless to try to convince yourself or the group to be creative, intuitive, involved, or to admit obvious disproportions. It is necessary to give the means to enable a person to do this.

Despite the fact that in the process of describing the evolution of synectics, we briefly touched on its main mechanisms, we will consider them again, already in a finalized form.

Globally, synectics includes two basic processes:

a) Turning the unfamiliar into the familiar.

b) The transformation of the familiar into the unfamiliar.

A. Turning the Unfamiliar into the Familiar

The first thing a person who has to solve a problem does is try to understand it. This stage of work is very important, it allows you to reduce the new situation to the already tested, known. The human body is fundamentally conservative and therefore any strange thing or concept threatens it. An analysis is needed that can “swallow” this strangeness, bring it under a certain, already familiar basis, give an explanation within the framework of a familiar model. To start working on the problem, specific assumptions must be made, although in the future, in the process of work, the understanding of the problem will change. The process of turning the unknown into the known leads to a huge variety of solutions, but the requirement for novelty is, as a rule, the requirement for a new point of view, a look at the problem. Most of the problems are not new. The point is to make them new, thereby creating the potential for new solutions.

B. Turning the familiar into the unfamiliar

To turn the familiar into the unfamiliar means to distort, turn over, change the everyday view and reaction to things, events. In the "known world" objects always have their definite place. In the same time various people can see the same object from different angles of view, unexpected for others. To insist on considering the known as the unknown is the basis of creativity.

Synectics identifies four main mechanisms for the transformation of the known into the unknown:

1. Personal analogy
2. Direct analogy
3. Fantastic analogy
4. Symbolic analogy

According to W. Gordon, without the presence of these mechanisms, no attempts to formulate and solve the problem are possible. These mechanisms are specific mental operators, special “tools” for activating the creative process. There is a certain prejudice of inventors against any mechanization of human creativity. However, synectics consciously implies just such a “mechanization”. The use of these mechanisms helps to sharply increase creative activity, to make it the result of conscious efforts.

Personal analogy

Personal identification with the elements of the problem frees the person from traces and products of its mechanical, external analysis. “The chemist makes a problem known to himself by means of equations, describing the reactions that take place. On the other hand, to make the problem unknown, the chemist may identify with the molecules in motion. A creative person can imagine himself as a moving molecule, fully involved in its activity. He becomes one of the host of molecules, he himself, as it were, is subject to all the molecular forces that pull him in all directions. He feels with his whole being what happens to the molecule at one time or another.” It is clearly seen here that to make the problem unknown means to see new aspects, facets that were not perceived before.

Direct analogy

This operator provides the process of comparing analogues that exist in parallel in various fields of knowledge, facts, technologies. It requires a person to activate his memory, turn on the mechanisms of analogy and identify in human experience or in the life of nature the similarities of what needs to be created.

The effectiveness of transferring ideas from biology to engineering practice is widely known. So, for example, a device for movement in the ground was created by engineers on the basis of a thorough study of the principle of operation of the shipworm “teredo”, which makes a tunnel for itself in a log. The fruitfulness of the use of analogies is constantly confirmed in practice in our time.

In fact, the use of a direct analogy is a free associative search in a huge outside world, based on the relationship of functions and procedures performed in various areas of life. The successful use of the mechanism of direct analogy is provided by a variety of professions and life experience group members.

Fantastic analogy

With a fantastic analogy, it is necessary to imagine fantastic means or characters that perform what is required by the conditions of the task. For example, I would like the road to exist where the wheels of a car touch it.

Symbolic analogy

This mechanism differs from the mechanism of previous analogies in that the symbolic analogy uses objective and impersonal images to describe the problem. In fact, the synector forms at this stage a poetic response to the problem. (The term "poetic" here means concise, figurative, contradictory, having a great emotional and heuristic meaning).

The purpose of symbolic analogy is to discover paradox, ambiguity, contradiction in the familiar. A proper symbolic analogy is a two-word definition of an object. The definition is bright, unexpected, showing the subject from an unusual, interesting side. This is achieved by the fact that each of the words is a characteristic of the subject, and in general they form a contradiction, or rather, they are opposites. There is another name for such a pair of words - "the title of the book." Here it is necessary to show in a bright, paradoxical form the whole essence of what lies behind the “title”. Synectors argue that symbolic analogy is an indispensable tool for seeing "the extraordinary in the ordinary."

Here are a few examples of such a vision of the analyzed objects:

• the exhibition is an organized accident
• sale - formalized trust
• the book is a silent interlocutor

The use of this mechanism in practical work is very valuable, as it allows you to see in the object a complex set of opposing tendencies, aspects, qualities.

Work on the preparation of synectic groups has been going on since 1955. During this time, a very large number of effectively working specialists have been trained. Synectics successfully tries to turn some unconscious mechanisms into conscious ones so that they would work as soon as they are needed. The work of synectors is most effective in the field of searching for ideas for new products, in creating effective and unusual advertising.

So, in this and the previous article, we looked at the “intuitive search methods” used in solving the problem: brainstorming and synectics.

Brainstorming serves as a means of generating a significant number of ideas. The weakness of the method lies in the fact that it lacks mechanisms and tools that allow you to work with images. But it is the images that serve as a source of ideas.

This drawback is eliminated in synectics, the main strength of which is the mechanisms for working with images, their generation and change. The generation of ideas here fades into the background, becomes a derivative of the idea found. But the images are also not primary, they are derived from the general picture of the world, from accepted in society and therefore not perceived frameworks, restrictions, norms. Like air, they surround us and are natural to complete "transparency". The apparent freedom of action within the framework of methods is freedom within the framework of an unconsciously limited space.

To overcome this level of limitations, the following method is intended - the method of free action. The essence of the method cannot be revealed in a short article. However, the general focus of the mechanisms used is to identify internal boundaries and barriers, stereotypes and overcome them. This method allows you to correct the images and ideas formed about the object, and therefore go beyond the usual. It is this kind of overcoming stereotypes that at all times led pioneering companies to the ideas of new products, opened new niches in the market, and sometimes, in principle, changed this concept itself.

Methods for developing new creative ideas are in demand today in various fields. With their help, the leaders of large companies and organizations increase the efficiency of their activities in a competitive environment, and creative teams stimulate extraordinary thought processes. There are many ways and practical techniques for implementing the idea of ​​a non-trivial approach to solving problems - from classic brainstorming to the six hats technique. Recently, another method has become popular - synectics, the effectiveness of which has long been proven in practice. A feature of this technique is the possibility of using various techniques, the totality of which expands the boundaries of the search for original solutions.

General information about synectics

The author of the method is William Gordon, who in the early 1950s was actively working to improve the technique of brainstorming. The fruit of the scientist's work was the synectic approach to solving problems. This word means "connection of different elements", which reflects the peculiarity of this method. Although the synectics method belongs to the methods of activating creative skills, it is used in a variety of fields, including even industrial enterprises.

The first acquaintance with the technique may give the wrong impression of it as an accessible technique. In fact, it requires a complex organization and serious preparation from the members of the synectic group. It should also be noted that synectics solves specific problems and does not involve the use of patterns in the development of different systems. As already noted, this technique is based on To be more precise, it represents its modified version, designed for professionals.

The social significance of the method

Studies show that modern companies and organizations are governed by certain laws that determine their policies. Often, strict adherence to a particular course does not allow the use and even consideration of ways to solve problems that could increase the efficiency of activities, but are contrary to the charter. Quite often, the adopted rules and regulations really reflect the reality and work for the benefit. But there are also reverse cases, when corporate laws are nothing more than a set of habits from the past. In turn, innovative ideas are capable of changing the situation without destructive processes from within, the main thing is to use the method correctly. Synectics, even at the lower management levels, allows you to achieve good results in the decision-making process.

The essence of the method

In practice, this method is implemented on the basis of the principles of analogy. That is, to solve the task, experience is adopted from another area in which a similar problem has already been resolved. To illustrate this approach, an example can be given that was solved by Gordon's group. The creator of the method was faced with the task of how to place the chips in the package with the greatest compactness so that they do not crumble at the same time. The way out was found with the help of analogy, which demonstrated the essence of the synectics method as a method of comparison. The scientist's group used the principle of bagging leaves, which at the same time retained their structure because they were wet. In the case of chips, a special molding and flour wetting technology was used, which made it possible to save space in the package. This is how the famous Pringles brand was born.

Creation of a synectic collective

The process of forming the members of the group that will implement the method includes several stages. At the first stage, potential participants of the synectic event are tested. During the tests, the general erudition, the level of education, the flexibility of thinking, the experience of participating in various experiments are determined. Tests for specialized knowledge may also be required, which determine the specific purpose of synectics methods in a particular area. For example, in construction tasks, knowledge of architecture may be required, and in the food industry, chemistry. Then the members of the group are trained. It should be noted that in the West this method is actively used in a variety of ways, and therefore synectics training centers are quite common. The final stage is the introduction of the prepared group into the real environment to work on the task.

Method Implementation Order

Like any other method of generating new ideas, synectics involves several phases of working on a task. To begin with, in order to maintain the abstractness of thinking, a general idea of ​​the problem is given without specifying the requirements for the result. Then the problem is divided into several simplified parts, after which the group works on an independent search for possible problems and ways to solve them.

It is important to note that in this phase, too, the participants deal with the problem in the form in which they understand it, that is, without clarification. At the main stage, solving problems using the synectics method involves considering analogies that are closest to the problem posed. This phase ends with a decision on the choice of analogy, and a comparison is performed from another area and the problem posed. It is worth emphasizing the important difference between this approach and the classical brainstorming method. In the case of synectics, criticism of the proposed idea by experts is also envisaged, as well as bringing the solution to practice.

Operating mechanisms of synectics

Members of synectic groups have to work with a wide range of tools, including operational mechanisms. In particular, it can be a game with metaphors, in which, again, analogies are used that are similar to the problem posed. Usually, among the main goals of such work is the transformation of the familiar into the unfamiliar. In other words, the framework and barriers are eliminated, which makes the method more effective. Synectics makes it possible to comprehend the problem in a new form and from an unusual point of view. It is noteworthy that it is impossible to teach psychological tools. Such mechanisms as playing with intuition suggest the possibility of their use by each person at a conscious level.

Types of analogies in synectics

Analogies are the key mechanism that provides a synectic result. There are several types of this tool, including direct, fantastic, personal and symbolic comparisons.

Direct analogies assume that a third-party object will be as similar as possible in certain properties to the subject of the problem. Analogies personal property set the goal of searching based on their own impressions, emotions, memories, etc. The symbolic method of analogies is also popular. Synectics in this case instructs the participants to express the problem through the language of metaphors and symbols. In the process of such searches, the object is transferred from the real world to the system of abstract concepts. The method with the use of fantastic analogies has similar features. Participants endow objects with special properties and qualities, which also makes it possible to more effectively solve the tasks.

Pros and cons of synectics

The advantages of the method include its versatility, efficiency compared to alternative ways of developing abstract thinking, as well as the improvement of individual qualities, including intuition and imagination. Also, synectics is one of the methods of activating thinking, which provides for critical assessments in the preparation of the result, which improves the quality of the work of experts. If we talk about the minuses, then the main one will be the complexity. Although the tools and mechanisms of technology seem simple, the organization of synectics at a professional level is quite a complex undertaking.

Conclusion

The basic principles of synectics involve the use of various means of developing imagination and thinking. And the very nature of this technique does not preclude its improvement. To date, there are several directions in which the method is developing. Synectics in the simplest models is available for implementation by one person, who, through the same analogies, finds at least original and new ones. Another thing is that the effectiveness of such an approach will not be high. The traditional approach to synectics still involves group work on the problem, in which criticism of proposals is not excluded.

What ways of generating new ideas and development have not been invented by man! Brainstorming and the method "", and the method of focal objects, indirect strategies, morphological analysis, "Trap for ideas", the method "Bus, bed, bath" and many others. But one of the most striking and extraordinary among them all is the method of synectics, where analogies are used to search for new ideas and non-standard solutions to problems, and the tasks set are transferred to ready-made solutions that take place in some other areas and fields of activity. But we will talk about the method itself a little later, and first we will say a few words about its creator, William Gordon.

William Gordon

William Gordon is a renowned inventor and explorer of the mindset of creative people: other inventors and artists. In the course of his activity, he determined that individual creativity and group creativity are similar to each other. This was the reason for the creation in 1952 in Cambridge of the first synectic group, where the ideas of combining the classical method of brainstorming, step-by-step discussion of the problem and the use of all kinds of analogies and metaphors were discussed.

Then, in 1960, the consulting company Synectics Inc. was founded in Boston by William Gordon, and in 1961 his book Synectics: Developing the Creative Imagination was published. Since then, the synectics method has been actively developed and gained popularity all over the world. By the way, the clients of the Synectics Inc. organization created by Gordon are such global companies as "Zinger", "General Electrics", "IBM" and many others.

Now let's proceed directly to the description of the synectics method itself.

Synectics Method by William Gordon

The term "synectics" means the combination in the process of finding a solution to the problem of heterogeneous, sometimes even incompatible elements. Many compare it to the brainstorming method, but there are fundamental differences. Firstly, criticism is welcomed in synectics, and secondly, various kinds of comparisons and analogies are actively used. In the process of solving the task, a group of people (synectics) takes part, and the discussion consists of four main stages:

• Direct analogies. They are often located in different systems (even biological ones) that solve problems similar to the one set. For example, it is believed that during his observation of how a wood borer drills a tubular channel in wood, the French engineer Marc Isimbar Brunel came to the discovery of the caisson method in the construction of underwater structures.
• Subjective (personal) analogies. An example would be an inventor who imagines how his own body would function if he could use it to achieve a desired result. How would he feel if his hands, for example, were the wings or blades of a helicopter? Or how would his body behave if he were a crane?
• symbolic analogy. Comparisons, allegories, metaphors can be used here, where the properties of something one are identified with the properties of another. For example, a space of options, an acute problem, a steel solution, etc.
• Fantastic analogies. At this stage, you need to represent things as they cannot be, by definition. For example, any moment of your life is accompanied only by music that you can choose. Or whenever you drive a car, all obstacles, etc., automatically disappear in your path.

Below is a general scheme of the sequence of stages of the synectic method:

The principle of operation according to the synectic method

The very same work on the synectic method of William Gordon is as follows:

First stage

First, a group of specialists is selected - the so-called "development department". It should consist of 2-3 people who are specialists invited from outside and representing different scientific disciplines, fields of knowledge or professions; and 2-3 people who are members of the main team for which the work is being done. Specialists should be selected based on the range of their knowledge, practical experience (preferably diverse), flexibility of thinking, age and psychological type (it is better that everyone has it different). The group must be located in a separate room and all the necessary conditions must be created for its work: the room must be equipped with the required equipment (if required), it must have a marker board, markers, paper, pens, etc.

Second phase

The group should be given the opportunity to conduct a test session on the use of analogies to orient the nervous system of all participants and their brain activity in solving the problem. Synectics should discuss analogies and use these discussions as a means of spontaneously orienting their thought process to the problem at hand.

Next, the four types of analogies presented above (direct, personal, symbolic, fantastic) are put into action. They are fundamental, because can capture the experience, knowledge and thoughts of all members of the group. It is especially good if you use them according to such a system: direct - real, personal - bodily, symbolic - abstract, fantastic - unreal. Along with this, it is especially important that each member of the group must overcome his fear of revealing his personal thoughts to the rest. To do this, you can first familiarize the participants with the work of experienced synectics by showing, for example, a video recording of the synectic method in action. And in order for all participants to learn to recognize the signs of approaching the solution of the problem, audio recordings of the stages passed should be used in the process of work.

Third stage

At this stage, the problem is directly solved, which also consists of several components:

• Formulation of the main problem (so that all participants clearly understand the problem that needs to be solved);
• Discussion possible solutions and rejection of inefficient ones (allows you to reduce the time to solve the problem and not waste energy and creativity on unnecessary ideas);
• Search for analogies that can make it possible to express the task in terms that are familiar and familiar to each member of the group (so that each participant will be able to put forward their own proposals);
• Identification of all kinds of problems and difficulties that create obstacles to solving the problem (allows you to eliminate emerging obstacles and come to a solution in the shortest way);
• Asking leading questions and “working out” each of them (clarification and concretization of the solution).

If the analogies become too abstract, the discussion of the problem is transferred to a more understandable channel for everyone. And when at least one promising idea appears, it must be developed until the moment when it becomes applicable in practice.

Often, analogies allow familiar ideas to be transformed into unfamiliar ones, which increases the likelihood of finding a solution to the problem, and also contributes to the fact that the knowledge and experience that the participants already have can be used in the very process of finding this solution.

Fourth stage

If the solution to the problem was found and turned out to be effective, then the group of synectics is invited to look for solutions to other problems that are relevant for this team in this moment. Conditions and time frames for this stage are negotiated separately.

Brief Summary

To date, the description of the synectics method and its steps have been greatly simplified for understanding and it all seems easy to use. However, in reality, using the synectic method is quite difficult. In addition, for its effective use, the training of groups of synectics should continue for at least a year.

In the event that a businessman or the head of a large organization decides to resort to the synectic method, he will need to find specialist synectics who can train the staff in all the features and nuances of the technique. But any ordinary person in the process of finding solutions to problems or creative tasks can simply apply analogies, which are an integral and most important part of the synectic approach.

We wish you creative success!

We are glad to welcome you, dear readers of Valery Kharlamov's blog! Today we will talk about how easy it is to generate ideas and find creative solutions to even the most complex problems. For these purposes, the synectics method is successfully used, which is such a symbiosis of absolutely heterogeneous elements that help to solve the problem.

A bit of history

This method originated around the 1950s thanks to William Gordon, who spent a long time trying to create more adaptive and advanced brainstorming options, and eventually invented this method. Although it is an improvement, synectics differs significantly from its origins in that it allows criticism and the use of analogies.

I will give an example to make it clearer. Do you know how Pringles chips appeared? Kellogg asked Gordon to help them come up with a way to make the chip packaging as compact as possible, while still protecting the product from damage during transport, storage or sale. William proposed an option that is used to clean the streets from fallen leaves.

If you try to collect dry leaves in a trash bag, the process will be long and painstaking, because they will break, scatter in different directions and take up a lot of space. But if you wet a bunch of leaves, they will “stick together” and will not leave gaps in the bag, as well as crumble with any impact on them. Genius, right?

Types of comparisons of synectics

1. Direct analogy, most often has a natural or technical basis. For example, the combination of colors on parrot feathers is actively used by both designers and artists, the technique of painting walls is excellent in relation to furniture, and self-cleaning paint was created based on the structure of an ordinary sheet, which, having certain depressions and grooves, is able to repel water.
2. Symbolic. Includes the use of metaphors and the transformation of the ordinary into the extraordinary, and vice versa. For example, in cinema this type of comparison is very popular, as it helps to intrigue the viewer and attract attention, let's say you watched the movie "The Living Dead"? Have you heard people say: “This was the beginning of the end”, or “I turned out to be guilty without guilt”?
3. Subjective. It is also called personal, and all because the one who uses it needs to try to feel himself in the role of some object or object. The peculiarity of this method is that it allows a non-standard, completely different angle to look at a problem or task that, due to certain circumstances, cannot be solved using ordinary thinking and logic. For example, psychologists recommend during a serious conflict to abstract a little and imagine yourself as a fly on the ceiling, which in this moment watching the fight. This helps not only “not to break firewood”, destroying relationships, but also to understand how this situation looks from the outside.
4. Fantastic. Synectors (that is, people using this method), ignoring all the laws of physics and so on, try to imagine that some object or phenomenon has superpowers. Well, let's say, in order to finish some task faster, they imagine that the pen is magic wand that can speed up your workflow.

Formation phases

1. As, in principle, everywhere, first you need to select the members of the synective group. This happens with the help of testing, the important components of which are indicators of the level of general knowledge and competence in professional activity, flexibility of thinking, the ability to find creative solutions, to experiment.

Among other things, an important selection criterion is:

• Age. Individuals from 25 to 40 years old are accepted.
• Non-verbalism, that is, the ratio of what a person says with his bodily reactions and manifestations.
• Sociability. You will have to work in a group, and if a person is not able to “build” relationships with other people, he will not be able to actively participate in discussions, search for options, and so on.

For work, they try to connect people from completely different areas, for example, such pairs can be created as: a doctor-artist, an athlete-chemist, a literary critic-engineer, and so on.

2. Next, you need to teach the new members of the group the basics of the method. In America, this takes about a year, during which synectors, in addition to theory, constantly solve problems and look for completely innovative approaches to problems in various fields of activity. Unfortunately, in the CIS countries this method has not taken root, due to the fact that it requires considerable financial investments in the process of specialized training.

3. Direct practice of already prepared specialists. It happens in different ways, either a person independently applies to such a center to improve his qualifications and change the field of activity, or the company sends its employee to courses so that in the future he will lead projects on the modernization and development of the corporation.

Special conditions required for the group:

• Providing a space in which they can abstract from pressing issues and join the process so that the generation of ideas occurs without hindrances and distractions.
• The ability to express your opinion no matter how absurd or unrealistic it is.
• Creating a relaxed environment so that people have the opportunity to experiment and act out different options, simulate situations and simply participate in discussions.
• Rationalize any decision already at the final stage of finding a way out of a difficult situation.

Stages

1. First of all, the participants get acquainted with the problem.
2. The process of turning the unknown into the known. Nuances invisible at first glance are explored and considered in more detail. After that, they are divided into several components and are determined in the line of tasks.
3. At this stage, the information that “surfaced” the group earlier is taken into account, that is, the participants now start only from those tasks that were originally formed.
4. The time has come to act, therefore, during this period, the team, armed with various types of analogies, begins to work. Metaphors are used, representations of oneself in the place of the complexity itself and direct, fantastic comparisons. This helps to reveal the essence of complexity much more and make it clearer for those who are included in the search for answers.
5. Now the reverse actions - the transformation of familiar nuances into the unknown and new form. This makes it possible to look into hidden corners that have not been seen before. Again, if we draw an analogy, then this process is similar to when a 3D picture is viewed from different sides. Suppose we see a three-dimensional square in front of us, but, looking around the corner, we understand that its back side- triangle.
6. It is important to take into account the psychological state of people. That is, if there is a critical remark or disagreement with the idea, no one should be offended. And this can be achieved only if the participants “work together”, they have confidence in each other. Recognition if they communicate on an equal footing, showing respect for the knowledge, experience and, in general, the personality of a colleague.
7. Union. Now all thoughts and metaphors need to be structured a little, dressed in a form and outlined boundaries. The most successful idea is selected and tried on for the main task.
8. It is necessary to transform the chosen analogy into a very real solution. For example, if there was a suggestion to repeat the structure of the sheet for a water-repellent effect, then you need to draw up a pattern of the pattern, adapt it to the customer’s material, etc.
9. After a series of experiments, the most suitable solution is selected and submitted for evaluation by experts and directly to the customer.

Information about the expected results is kept silent, only the manager is aware of the conditions and essence. Do you know why this is done? In order not to limit synectors, after all, if you put a certain task in front of them, then they will act according to patterns. And in this technique, the usual type of thinking and logic, on the contrary, are not welcome. Thus, the group will be able to find "weak points" of the voiced problem, which even the management did not know about. Also offer your options for their elimination or improvement of quality, design, etc.

And psychological maturity is also important, thanks to which a person will not “fall out” from a professional position into a personal, childish one, believing that they are unfair to him and intentionally want to offend, therefore they do not accept any offer. The most banal example of non-professionalism and “falling out” is when you talk to the seller about the poor quality of the goods, and he takes the remark personally, sincerely indignant and offended.

In general, if the necessary microclimate has been created earlier, then at this stage ideas, thoughts and suggestions “hover” in the air. Everything that comes to mind is said without fear of condemnation and rejection.

Conclusion

And that’s all for today, dear readers! Despite the fact that this method is complex, and its application in everyday life is almost unrealistic (at least if we take into account the fact that it should not be taught less than a year), you can simply use the main tool of synectics - comparison. Try to move away from the usual patterns of thinking, suspend logical reasoning and so on, and you may be able to create something completely new and ingenious. I wish you success!
The material was prepared by Alina Zhuravina.