A process for solving ill-structured problem supported by ontology and software tools

Abstract

Problem solving requires a lot of work for selecting and organizing resources and information, as well as defining the best solution approaches. In the case of ill-structured problems (ISP), due to the possibility of several potential solutions, the task becomes harder. Group work can better support this task but requires cognitive tools in order to allow the registration and the recovery of data about the problem and the exchange of ideas. This paper presents a process to support solving ISP, using ontology and software tools in order to facilitate the group work. Preliminary experiments indicate the feasibility of the process. © 2012 ICST Institute for Computer Science, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering.