Army Decision-Making Process

Decision making is achieved through the application of cognitive skills in critical thinking in order to come up with plausible solutions to the present problems. In order to achieve effectiveness in decision making, there are elements which assist one in arriving at the decision. The process of decision making follows a sequence of cognitive and psychological tasks from the receipt of information, the analysis of the information, the identification of the problem, the development of solutions, and the implementation of the most plausible solution. This paper seeks to understand the decision making process from the perspective of Army Problem Solving Process. The objective is to answer the question whether the elements of critical thinking

The problem solving process requires that information is received, problems are identified, and solutions are generated from which the most plausible solution is arrived at . The inference made by this process is that the elimination of problems through solution development is based on the fact that there are many problems which may be present but one must be identified and solved before another is identified. According to Drs. Paul and Elder, this is referred to as relevance . The determination of whether a problem is relevant under Army problem solving enables the Commanding Officer to focus the thought process towards a particular issue. The focus on one issue or problem helps in the development of more effective

Theories are statements which describe a behavior based on the input of independent variables which impact the outcome of the dependent variable. In the same breath, the Army problem solving process requires foresight from the leader in order to determine the impact of the solutions offered and developed on the public as well as on the policy which is being implemented . Based on this fact, it can then be argued that the application of theoretical perspectives on the problem solving process would enable the leader to determine the outcomes of the different possible solutions before they are implemented. Additionally, in critical thinking, the identification of the implications and consequences of the decisions before they are implemented help in the analysis of the decision before they are selected and implemented. In Army problem solving processes, the nature of the decisions which are made require the determination of the least potentiality of collateral damage . Therefore, the inclusion of predictive models which would determine the presence, nature, and magnitude of collateral damages as would be made possible through critical thinking and analysis would increase the effectiveness of the solutions developed and