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Skip to 0 minutes and 7 secondsThis alternative to brainstorming is idea writing or brainwriting. In contrast with brainstorming, which is an oral generation of ideas by a group, Brainwriting is the silent, written generation of ideas by a group of people. That is like you ask people to write down their ideas about a question or problem on a sheet of paper for a few minutes then, you ask each participant to pass their ideas on to someone else, who reads the ideas and adds new ideas. Which approach is better is not an issue. It depends on a number of factors which is listed in the table below. The method chosen should be the one that maximizes its strengths for a particular situation.

Skip to 0 minutes and 54 secondsFor instance, if social interaction needs are critical for group success, if no status differences exist, and if dysfunctional interpersonal conflicts are unlikely, then brainstorming might be selected. If social interaction needs are not very strong, if status differences are evident, and if group conflict is likely, then brainwriting would be more appropriate. However, some considerations may come into play in choosing between these two methods. One of the most important would be the psychological effects of using brainstorming. For example, if the group has had unpleasant or unproductive experiences then they may be more inclined to favor brainwriting. A group must decide which approach will work better for it.

Skip to 1 minute and 44 secondsIn the following steps, we have several useful brainwriting techniques for you and I hope you will find a technique that you particularly like to use.

What’s brainwriting?

brainstorming sometimes is not suitable for each group, and then it’s time for brainwriting! Without speaking, you can get lots of ideas at the end. Isn’t it fantastic?

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This video is from the free online course:

Using Creative Problem Solving

National Chiao Tung University

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