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Enhancing Problem Solving Skills in Operational Research: the Well-Structured Problem Case Study.

The rapid development of the technology has continually increased the complexity of problems as the industries and society progress. Moreover, many studies have indicated that Malaysian graduates do not possess the required problem solving skills to meet these industrial and societal demands. In fa...

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Main Authors: Cheng, Sheila, Siow, Heng Loke
Format: Journal
Language:English
Published: 2014
Subjects:
HD28 Management. Industrial Management
Online Access:http://ur.aeu.edu.my/50/1/Enhancing%20Problem%20Solving%20Skills%20in%20Operational%20Research.docx
http://ur.aeu.edu.my/50/
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spelling my-aeu-eprints.502017-08-16T04:00:32Z http://ur.aeu.edu.my/50/ Enhancing Problem Solving Skills in Operational Research: the Well-Structured Problem Case Study. Cheng, Sheila Siow, Heng Loke HD28 Management. Industrial Management The rapid development of the technology has continually increased the complexity of problems as the industries and society progress. Moreover, many studies have indicated that Malaysian graduates do not possess the required problem solving skills to meet these industrial and societal demands. In fact, the crux of Operations Research (OR) is to help people to make better and informed decision by providing a quantitative basis for decision. Furthermore, one of the significant OR characteristics is generally applied to problems, specific and localized in nature.Henceforth, the problem solving skills of Malaysian graduates could be enhanced if they learn how to solve OR problems effectively in their formal education. This paper explores the cognitive processes adopted by 42 Malaysian business degree undergraduates (BDU) in solving a well-structured (WS) OR problem. In-depth observations and interviews were conducted. The problem solving sessions using the ‘think aloud’ approach were audio- and video-recorded. The cognitive processes of the problem solvers were determined from their behavior and performance exhibited while they were delineating the concepts, proposition and strategies in their solution paths. The similarities and differences of solution paths adopted by the successful and unsuccessful problem solvers were also discussed. The findings from this study reveal that non-linear cognitive processes were adopted by the majority of the solvers. Successful solvers could recall, retrieve and relate the relevant concepts to the problem, while unsuccessful solvers were unable to comprehend the problem although they indicated that they had learnt the relevant concepts and knowledge. It is envisaged that due to the lack of acceptance in the past, these OR research findings could enlighten the academic community of the importance of equipping problem solving skills among Malaysian BDU students. 2014-11-24 Journal PeerReviewed text en http://ur.aeu.edu.my/50/1/Enhancing%20Problem%20Solving%20Skills%20in%20Operational%20Research.docx Cheng, Sheila and Siow, Heng Loke (2014) Enhancing Problem Solving Skills in Operational Research: the Well-Structured Problem Case Study. Paper presented at the World Business Institute, 29th International Business Research Conference, Sydney, Australia. pp. 1-19.
institution Asia e University
building AEU Library
collection Institutional Repository
continent Asia
country Malaysia
content_provider Asia e University
content_source AEU University Repository
url_provider http://ur.aeu.edu.my/
language English
topic HD28 Management. Industrial Management
spellingShingle HD28 Management. Industrial Management
Cheng, Sheila
Siow, Heng Loke
Enhancing Problem Solving Skills in Operational Research: the Well-Structured Problem Case Study.
description The rapid development of the technology has continually increased the complexity of problems as the industries and society progress. Moreover, many studies have indicated that Malaysian graduates do not possess the required problem solving skills to meet these industrial and societal demands. In fact, the crux of Operations Research (OR) is to help people to make better and informed decision by providing a quantitative basis for decision. Furthermore, one of the significant OR characteristics is generally applied to problems, specific and localized in nature.Henceforth, the problem solving skills of Malaysian graduates could be enhanced if they learn how to solve OR problems effectively in their formal education. This paper explores the cognitive processes adopted by 42 Malaysian business degree undergraduates (BDU) in solving a well-structured (WS) OR problem. In-depth observations and interviews were conducted. The problem solving sessions using the ‘think aloud’ approach were audio- and video-recorded. The cognitive processes of the problem solvers were determined from their behavior and performance exhibited while they were delineating the concepts, proposition and strategies in their solution paths. The similarities and differences of solution paths adopted by the successful and unsuccessful problem solvers were also discussed. The findings from this study reveal that non-linear cognitive processes were adopted by the majority of the solvers. Successful solvers could recall, retrieve and relate the relevant concepts to the problem, while unsuccessful solvers were unable to comprehend the problem although they indicated that they had learnt the relevant concepts and knowledge. It is envisaged that due to the lack of acceptance in the past, these OR research findings could enlighten the academic community of the importance of equipping problem solving skills among Malaysian BDU students.
format Journal
author Cheng, Sheila
Siow, Heng Loke
author_facet Cheng, Sheila
Siow, Heng Loke
author_sort Cheng, Sheila
title Enhancing Problem Solving Skills in Operational Research: the Well-Structured Problem Case Study.
title_short Enhancing Problem Solving Skills in Operational Research: the Well-Structured Problem Case Study.
title_full Enhancing Problem Solving Skills in Operational Research: the Well-Structured Problem Case Study.
title_fullStr Enhancing Problem Solving Skills in Operational Research: the Well-Structured Problem Case Study.
title_full_unstemmed Enhancing Problem Solving Skills in Operational Research: the Well-Structured Problem Case Study.
title_sort enhancing problem solving skills in operational research: the well-structured problem case study.
publishDate 2014
url http://ur.aeu.edu.my/50/1/Enhancing%20Problem%20Solving%20Skills%20in%20Operational%20Research.docx
http://ur.aeu.edu.my/50/
_version_ 1644539650756313088
score 13.211869

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