Boundary-examination Technique

The objective of this technique is to restructure assumptions (boundaries to our thinking) and provide new ways of looking at the problem. Another way of thinking about this situation is to try to suspend assumptions. Senge says that ‘suspending assumptions is a lot like seeing leaps of abstraction and inquiring into the reasoning behind the abstraction.’ Boundary expansion is used primarily to question various frames of reference in defining a problem. Boundary examinations are based upon the assumption that a problem’s boundaries are neither correct nor incorrect. The objective is to restructure the assumption of a problem to provide a new way for looking at it.

The major strengths of the technique are its potential for

1) Producing more provocative problem definitions.

2) Clarifying often indistinguishable problem boundaries.

3) Demonstrating the importance of formulating flexible problem definitions.

4) Coping with management teams that are overly precise in their problem definitions.

Procedure for Use

1. Describe the problem as presently understood.

2. Identify key elements of the definition and examine them to reveal underlying assumptions.

3. Analyze each assumption to determine its causes and effects.

4. Restate the problem based on your deeper understanding of the elements of the problem.