Using Wuzzle Picture Puzzles for Building Teams, Enhancing Creativity, and

Improving Decision Making

By Steve Dunphy, Ph.D.Associate Professor of Management

Indiana University Northwest3400 Broadway

Gary, Indiana 46408

July, 2006

For Submission to: The Journal of Business and Training Education

Keywords: Teambuilding, enhancing creativity, word puzzles.

Abstract

The use of “wuzzle picture puzzles” is proposed for building teams, enhancing

creativity and improving small group decision making. Picture puzzles are first solved

individually and then in groups. The author suggests that this exercise will be useful for

team building while enhancing creativity and improving decision making. It’s is

proposed that the results will be significant in more ways than those merely statistical.

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Introduction

A number of large, American corporations have come under criticism in recent

years for the fact that the various parts of the corporation may not be “working together”

to produce “innovative products” indicative of that cliché, “thinking outside the box”

(Appendix: wuzzle picture puzzle b, #7). The management literature is rife with calls for

improved teamwork, enhanced creativity and better decision making. To name but one

case, according to a recent study on the consumer electronics industry, lead times are

longer for Japanese companies but “manufacturing performance was vastly superior to

that of Western companies” (Oliver et. Al., 2004). Citing one reason behind the

problems with American manufacturing, Rossetti and Choi (2005) document the short

term orientation of a number of manufacturers in the aerospace industry and show how

strategic outsourcing, when focused on immediate cost reductions, may result in a

weakening of the buying firm’s long run competitiveness. Management consultant Paul

Engle believes that American companies can foster their competitiveness through “gains

in efficiency, responsive customer service, and a motivated work force” (Engle, 1004).

Perhaps the researcher Charles Watson can provide a unique perspective on

today’s debate from years ago. In a treatise on creativity, Watson (1975) asserted that

certain traits such as “open-mindedness, flexibility, humor and the ability to consider

irrational ideas and impulses are a help.” Watson links the development of creativity to

“concentration, problem selection, information gathering, free wheeling thinking,

unconscious mind works and solution discovery.” These are all skills needed to solve the

wuzzle picture puzzles.

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The Group

Administrators are often asked to find ways to get their employees to improve

their productivity, resolve conflict, and increase cohesion in order to “act as a group.”

Management textbooks describe “group cohesiveness” as one of the more important

determinants of a group’s structure (Greenberg and Baron, 2001). Without it,

members do not desire to remain a part of the group. In fact, a number of deleterious

consequences may result from employees failing to work as a group. According to

Kidwell and Mossholder (1997), a deterioration in group cohesiveness may

negatively impact “citizenship behavior” - among other things. If this statement is

coupled with the fact that more and more group work involves “virtual teams” or the

use of interactive technologies (Lurey and Raisinghani, 2001), then the question

becomes how can the administrator at least warm the group up?

A start may be to consider that group cohesion shows up in the way members are

attracted to each other and motivated to stay in the group. A number of factors such

as face-to-face communication, time spent together, the severity of the initiation,

group size and external threats all affect cohesiveness. Still, professional managers

explain that it remains difficult to coordinate the work of the staff with the demands

of upper management, the requirements of the customers and the demands of the

general public (McAdoo and Pynes, 1995; Mulroy, 2003). For example, in surveying

employees of a mental health services agency, McAdoo and Pynes found that the

statistically significant factors contributing to employee dissatisfaction with their jobs

included employees reporting that they “did not feel involved,” believed that

“management was(n’t) interested in the success of line staff,” that “mutual trust and

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respect” was lacking “among co-workers or between management and line staff,” and

that they had no “voice” (p. 367). Mulroy’s study pointed out that stressors

“constrained executives’ ability to collaborate.” Stressors included “uncertain

funding streams” and “conflicting policies.”

Using Wuzzle Picture Puzzles

Are there exercises to build group cohesiveness, espirit de corps and teamwork

which might enable the manager to collaborate, enhance motivation and develop an

energized, positive environment leading to greater creativity and innovation? A simple,

informational paper and pencil exercise involving the process of understanding and

deciphering “wuzzle picture-puzzles” is proposed for this very purpose.

The wuzzle picture-puzzle exercise may be used either as a stand alone activity or

as a warm-up to some other event involving, for example, in depth team building or even

a meeting about the organization’s mission and current objectives. The manager need

merely pass out “Wuzzle Picture-Puzzle A” to each participant (see Appendix A) and ask

him or her to solve the puzzles as quickly as possible. Sixteen boxes each contain an

anagram representing a commonly used or commonly known phrase, short set of words

or concept that is depicted by the picture. Participants must identify the phrase. After

completing the exercise, the manager should have participants switch then grade each

other’s papers. One point should be recorded for each correct answer. A perfect score

would total 16 points.

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After grading the papers, the administrator may wish to randomly assign

participants to teams or even assign participants who do not seem to “get along” to the

same team. Teams may consist of 2, 3 or even 4 members per group. Teams are given

“Wuzzle Picture-Puzzle B” (see Appendix B) and told to solve the puzzles using the

collective wisdom of the group. Again, after completing the exercise, papers should be

switched and graded among teams. Scores typically increase significantly when

individual results are compared with group results.

At this point, the manager can explain that in the team condition, group members

were able to capitalize on the diversity of their teammates by playing to each other’s

strengths and minimizing each other’s weaknesses. In working with others, participants

are typically able to uncover personal biases and stereotypes, learn about other points of

view, overturn inaccurate beliefs, assumptions and misunderstandings, improve their

comprehension of others who are different, and improve the quality of their decision-

making. The result should be a synergistic decision process wherein interpersonal skills

are combined with rational skills. By learning to more effectively and efficiently

communicate with each other, team members should be able to engage in active listening

and in responsive clarifying. The idea is that team members will pay attention and

respond to each other’s feelings and ideas because they have a clear incentive to solve the

puzzle. Prizes or awards are not necessary. Team members will naturally wish to

demonstrate their skills or avoid embarrassment by not exposing their lack thereof.

Successful groups typically have members who are supportive and appreciative of

each other. All of these factors should combine to support the decision-making process

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and the result is typically a marked improvement in wuzzle picture-puzzle performance

scores from test A to test B. Scores may even double.

Debriefing and Conclusion

This exercise should demonstrate that working in diverse groups may result in an

improvement in overall performance. Research in this area seems to indicate that a

mixed group of experts who are afforded the opportunity to freely contribute ideas to the

decision-making process and whose skill set on a structured task is complementary, will

typically outperform an individual decision maker (Hill, 1982; Wanous & Youtz, 1986;

Yetton & Bottger, 1983).

Can the manager now extrapolate these findings from the teams to the work unit’s

mission and objectives? Most organizations face a structured task. What types of

structured tasks does the organization face? How are participants in fact similar to a

“mixed group of experts”? Can participants think of new and improved ways to achieve

the manager’s structured tasks through an invigorated process of decision-making? If

they can, the wuzzle picture-puzzle exercise may prove to be a meaningful experience for

networking, understanding, and improved decision-making first inside the organization

and then beyond.

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REFERENCES

Dunphy, S. (2004). Building volunteer group cohesiveness and teamwork: the ball toss

exercise. The Journal of Volunteer Administration. Vol. 22, #4. p. 40.

Dunphy, S. (2004). Demonstrating the Value of Diversity for Improved Decision-

making: The “Wuzzle-Puzzle” Exercise. The Journal of Business Ethics. V. 53.

p. 325.

Engle, P. Breaking the Rules. 2004. Industrial Engineer. November. V. 36#11, p. 22.

Esser, J K. (1998), Alive and Well after 25 Years: A Review of Groupthink Research.

Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes. Vol.: 73, Issue: 2/3,

February/March. 116 - 141.

Hill, G.W., (1982). Group versus Individual Performance: Are N + 1 heads better than

one? Psychological Bulletin, 91. 517-539.

Lurey J. & Raisinghani, M. (2001). An empirical study of best practices in virtual teams.

Information & Management. 38, 523-5444.

Mathis, R & Jackson, J. (2003). Human Resource Management (10th ed). Mason, Ohio:

Thomson Southwestern Publishing.

McAdoo, S. and Pynes, J. (1995). Reinventing mental health service delivery: One

nonprofit’s experience. Public Administration Quarterly. Vol;. 19. Iss. 3. pg. 367.

Milliken, F., Martins, L. (1996). Searching for Common Threads: Understanding the

Multiple Effects of Diversity in Organizational Groups. Academy of Management

Review. Vol 2, No. 2, 402-433.

Mulroy, E. (2003). Community as a factor in interorganizational partnerships. Vol. 14.

#1. Fall. Pg. 47.

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Oliver, N., Dostaler, I. and Dewberry, E. 2004. New Product Development Benchmarks:

The Japanese, North American and UK consumer electronics industries. Journal

of High Technology Management Research. August. V. 15#2, p. 248=9.

Rosetti, C. and Choi, T. 2005. On the dark side of strategic sourcing: experiences from

the aerospace industry. The Academy of Management Executive. February/ V.

19, Iss. 1, p. 46.

Tuckman, B. W., Jensen, M.A. (1977). Stages of small group development revisited.

Group and Organization Studies. No. 2, 419-427.

Wanous J., & Youtz, M., (1986). Solution diversity and the quality of group decisions.

Academy of Management Journal, 29, 141-159.

Watson, C. 1975. Developing Creative people. Research Management. May. V18#3, p.

14.

Watson, W., Johnson, L. Merritt, D., (1996). Team Orientation, Self-Orientation, and

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June. 161-188.

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Wuzzle Picture Puzzles A (to be solved individually)

1 2 3 4

5 6

Win or Lose?7 8

No

9 10

11 12

13

14 15 16

or

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Play ball!

Answers: Wuzzle Picture Puzzles Version A

1. A penny for your thoughts.2. It “ain’t’ (or isn’t) over ‘till the fat lady sings.3. Drunk as a skunk4. The buck stops here.5. On a wing and a prayer (or, “coming in on a wing and a prayer”).6. It’s not whether you win or lose, it’s how you play the game.7. Like shootin’ fish in a barrel.8. Never look a gift horse in the mouth.9. Put your money where your mouth is.10. An apple a day keeps the doctor away.11. A tempest in a teapot.12. A flash in the pan.13. The devil is in the details.14. Don’t pee on my leg and tell me it’s raining.15. Signed, sealed and delivered.16. Fish or cut bait.

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Wuzzle Picture Puzzles B (to be solved as a group)

1 2 3 4

5 Hi. My name’s Tim.

Buck

+Buck

(reverse the sum)

Start “from here.”

6 7 8

9 10 $

$

$

11 E verything’s 12

13

$1.00

(Hint:: what is thisyoung lady wearing here?)

14 15

=

16

12

Hi! My name’s “Dory.”

Answers: Wuzzle Picture Puzzles Version B

1. Don’t put the car before the horse (or “putting the cart before the horse”).2. Punch his lights out.3. Cry wolf.4. See ya later, alligator.5. From here to timbuktu.6. It’s raining cats and dogs.7. Thinking outside the box.8. Walking on eggshells.9. Lightning never strikes the same place twice.10. A fool and his money are soon parted.11. Eye candy or “Dutch treat.”12. Everything’s “hunky dory.”13. A day late and a dollar short.14. Swimming with the sharks. 15. You can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.16. That’s a “no brainer.”

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