TOWARDS META-SYNTHETIC SUPPORT TO UNSTRUCTURED PROBLEM SOLVING

Abstract

Decision support system (DSS) aims to provide effective support to solve unstructured, ill-structured or wicked problems as its initial claim in the late 1960s. Great as those technology achievements, "people problems" are key reasons of unimplemented goals of DSS, and sometimes increase uncertainties to decision making process. Meta-synthesis system approach (MSA) is oriented to complexities in those problems. In this paper, we adopt a paradigm of decision making in a DSS context, which emphasizes the synthesis of perspectives towards problems description and analysis, to explain the meta-synthetic support to unstructured problem solving. After very brief introduction of basic ideas of MSA and its testbed, Hall of Workshop on Meta-Synthetic Engineering (HWMSE), which is regarded as a knowledge creating ba, we address computerized supports to expose problem structure by collaborative activities for qualitative meta-synthesis. A practical tool and its visualization of humans' ideas are introduced.