Decision Making and Problem Solving

What the official syllabus says

Preliminary Examination, General Studies Paper II:

• Decision making and problem solving;

This area tests the ability to choose a sound course of action when facts, rules, people and limits pull in different directions. It covers both rule-based problems (apply stated conditions to a case and reach the only correct outcome) and situational problems (pick the most appropriate response in an administrative or social setting). Like every question in the paper, these carry the same negative marking for wrong answers.

Topics in detail

The decision-making process

• Defining the problem correctly; separating the symptom from the cause.
• Gathering relevant facts and setting aside irrelevant ones.
• Generating alternatives rather than choosing between only two.
• Evaluating alternatives by costs, benefits, risks, time and who is affected.
• Choosing, implementing, monitoring and correcting the decision.
• Rational decision making and its limits: incomplete information, time pressure and bounded rationality.

Rule-based decisions

• Eligibility problems: a set of conditions (age, qualification, experience, marks) and candidates to be accepted, rejected or referred.
• Exceptions and provisos in rules: "if a candidate does not satisfy condition (ii) but has ..., the case is referred to ...".
• Applying several conditions in the right order; checking every condition before deciding.
• Recognising when the data given are not sufficient to decide.

Situational decisions in public service

• Conflicts between rules and compassion; between speed and procedure.
• Pressure from superiors, politicians, relatives or the media to act improperly.
• Emergencies: floods, fires, accidents, epidemics and law-and-order situations; immediate and long-term steps.
• Delivery of services to the public: delays, complaints, corruption by subordinates.
• Allocation of scarce resources: funds, staff, relief material and time.
• Protecting vulnerable people: women, children, the elderly, persons with disabilities and the poor.
• Responses that are lawful, fair, transparent and practical, and that address the root cause.

Problem-solving techniques

• Breaking a problem into parts; working backwards from the goal.
• Identifying constraints and the options that satisfy all of them.
• Prioritisation: urgent versus important; the order in which to act.
• Trade-offs and opportunity cost.
• Consultation with stakeholders and use of expert advice.
• Learning from feedback and outcomes.
• Decisions under uncertainty: preferring reversible steps first; acting on precaution where the risk to life or safety is high.
• Delegation and escalation: what to decide oneself and what to refer to a higher authority, with reasons recorded in writing.

Judging the options

• Preferring action over inaction where action is needed and lawful.
• Avoiding options that pass responsibility to others without reason.
• Avoiding extreme options (immediate suspension, ignoring the matter) where a measured step fits.
• Considering the effect of a decision on the institution's credibility and the public's trust.

Overlaps

• The case studies of General Studies IV ask for the same kind of judgement in written answers.
• Rule-based problems use the conditional logic of Logical Reasoning and Analytical Ability; workplace situations overlap with Interpersonal Skills Including Communication Skills.