The Six Thinking Hats method is a creative thinking and decision-making technique developed by Edward de Bono. It encourages individuals or groups to approach problems from multiple perspectives, helping to improve collaboration, uncover blind spots, and reach balanced decisions. Each “hat” represents a different style of thinking, and participants are encouraged to wear one hat at a time, focusing their thoughts in a specific direction.
The Six Hats and What They Represent: #
- White Hat – Focuses on facts, data, and objective information.
- Red Hat – Brings in emotions, feelings, and intuition.
- Black Hat – Looks at potential risks, problems, and logical concerns.
- Yellow Hat – Highlights the positives, benefits, and value of ideas.
- Green Hat – Encourages creativity, alternatives, and new possibilities.
- Blue Hat – Manages the thinking process, organizing and directing the discussion.
How It Works #
During a session, participants metaphorically “put on” each hat, one at a time. For instance, a group might start with the White Hat to gather facts, then shift to the Red Hat to express initial gut reactions, and so on. The Blue Hat often begins and ends the process, helping to structure the flow and summarize conclusions.
What are the Benefits of the Six Thinking Hats Method? #
- It promotes structured and focused thinking.
- It encourages balanced consideration of ideas.
- It helps teams think more clearly and collaboratively.
The Six Thinking Hats method offers a practical way to look at problems from all angles, leading to more thoughtful, inclusive, and effective decisions.
List of recommended resources #
For a broad overview #
How to Use the Edward de Bono’s Six Thinking Hats for Decision Making
This short training film by BiteSize Learning gives an introductory overview of how to use the Six Thinking Hats method for decision-making. The video tutorial provides an explanation regarding each hat, along with practical examples where this method could be used.
Six Thinking Hats: use parallel thinking to tackle tough decisions
This blog post by Amy Rigby gives a brief about the Six Thinking Hats method. Rigby starts with how the method originated, and then goes on to explain how it works giving step-by-step instructions, along with how this technique enables better decision making.
For in-depth understanding #
Edward de Bono, in his book Six Thinking Hats, talks about how meetings can be transformed to produce quick, decisive results. The Six Hats method is a simple technique based on the different modes of thinking in our brains. The book is written in a simple, classic de Bono style, making it accessible for everyone.
The Six Thinking Hats: How to Improve Decision Making, with Examples
This article by Matthew Channell for TSW Training gives an in-depth understanding of the Six Thinking Hats method, what it is, in what order it should be used, and how to use it in practice.
Case study #
This study by Zamri Mahamod, Mohd Qhairil Anwar Azhar, and Hadi Hassan aims to identify the difference in the Six Thinking Hats based on gender and specialization among Malay Language primary school teachers. This survey was conducted on all primary language primary school teachers in the Sentul Zone Education Office, Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur. The implication of this study is that the use of Six Thinking Hats in the teaching and learning of Malay Language can increase the interest and achievement of the students.
This paper by Charles Kivunja draws upon de Bono’s Six Thinking Hats model to analyse and contribute to an understanding of how critical thinking and problem solving can be taught effectively in educational institutions. Following an exposition of the key tenets of De Bono’s Model, the paper discusses how each of the Six Thinking Hats could be used in an effective pedagogy.
References #
Six Thinking Hats – Problem Solving and Brainstorming Techniques
