Six thinking hats
Examine an issue through several distinct thinking perspectives.
30–60 minutes · 5 - 20 people per group
Use this activity in the Studio →Source timing: 30 minutes - 1 hour. The range above is given by the source. Source group guidance: 5 - 20 people per group. This describes the playing group, not a maximum attendance for the whole event.
Intention / Goal
Examine an issue through several distinct thinking perspectives.
Materials
Flip chart, Markers, A visible guide to the thinking perspectives
Facilitator & access notes
Keep perspectives separate from people’s identities. This is a concise Seeds-informed reference adaptation, not an official de Bono training product.
How to facilitate it
- Introduce Edward de Bono’s Six Thinking Hats as the credited framework and agree a question.
- Guide the group through separate passes for information, feelings, possibilities, risks and benefits, with a process-management pass to organise and conclude.
- Capture insights from each perspective and agree next steps, without presenting this summary as official certification or licensed training.
Reflection prompts
- Notice: What did this activity reveal about how we work together?
- Carry forward: What would you like to try next?
Credit & lineage
Edward de Bono, Six Thinking Hats; concise version documented by Seeds for Change.
Concise original Playformation facilitator wording based on the Seeds for Change guide. Consent/access alternatives and estimated planning defaults are identified; this is not a claim of original authorship.
Anti-copyright: you may copy, adapt, use and distribute this adapted entry, provided the resulting work remains anti-copyright. Source: https://seedsforchange.org.uk/resources
Seeds for Change: Six thinking hats ↗
Seeds for Change facilitation tools PDF, page 35 ↗
The de Bono Group: Six Thinking Hats ↗
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