Cognitive Scaffold

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MENTAL MODEL · M12642

Question Formulation Technique, QFT

Question Formulation Technique, QFT
StructureHigh supportCritical Thinking
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Updated 2026-08-13

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INTRODUCTION

English translation pending.

CORE DEFINITION

The Question Formulation Technique was developed by Dan Rothstein and Luz Santana of the Right Question Institute. A group receives a focus, produces as many questions as possible without judging or answering them, converts closed questions to open ones and back, then prioritizes. The core claim is that formulating questions is a teachable skill that determines whether a problem can be solved, so it deserves explicit practice. The qualification is that the protocol produces candidate questions rather than answers, so it must be followed by investigation.

SCAFFOLDING EFFECT

psychology

Reduce cognitive load

- Divergence rule: generate questions without judging or answering them, and only then evaluate. - Flip drill: convert closed questions to open ones and back to expose hidden assumptions. - Priority pick: rank the questions and pursue only the few that would change your action.

anchor

Anchor fast decisions

The quality of an answer is bounded by the question, since a question that assumes the wrong structure directs effort toward the wrong evidence. Producing many questions before evaluating any of them prevents premature convergence on the first framing, and converting between open and closed forms exposes what each framing takes for granted. Prioritizing then concentrates effort on the questions whose answers would actually change the decision.

MINIMUM ACTION

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Practice this model in one real situation:

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Source support: Explicit

  • link
    rightquestion.orghttps://rightquestion.org/question-formulation-technique/ZH · Explicit
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