Morphological Box

Background: Heuristic creative technique. Assumes that only limited knowledge is available and generates pragmatic solutions from it. Also known as morphological analysis. 

Goal: Should reveal limited resources as completely as possible and generate the best feasible problem solution.

Approach: The problem is defined as precisely as possible and broken down into parameters and their possible expressions. In this way a table - a box, hence the name - is created, which structures the parameters in rows and the values of the parameters in columns. (Example: Redesign of the return process of found articles. Parameters in rows: parameters "P1: Target group", "P2: Objects", "P3: Type of marking", etc. The characteristic values in columns. The specification of P1 "Target group" would then be "A1: Business people", "A2: Young people", "A3: Older people". etc.) For concrete solutions, a line is now drawn visually from top to bottom and from specification to specification. The result is a compendium of variants and concrete parameters with concrete characteristics.

Advantage: By decomposing a problem, the complexity becomes comprehensible. Parameters and characteristics make it possible to offer an almost complete picture of solution variants.

Disadvantage: High effort to format the problem and to set up parameters and values. Expert knowledge for problem elements necessary (therefore requires interdisciplinary cooperation).

Further link: https://denkmotor.com/kreatives-wissen/morphologischer-kasten/