Design Thinking Tools: Reverse Brainstorming

Summary: Reverse brainstorming is an effective approach based on brainstorming that makes problems worse before identifying solutions, opening the opportunity to observe problems from different perspectives and reducing judgmental attitudes within the team.

Several techniques are utilised in the design thinking process to explore problems and potential solutions, such as brainstorming, reverse brainstorming,  Six Thinking Hats and SCAMPER.  Probably brainstorming is the easiest and most commonly used technique, as it can involve different techniques during the discussion. Generally, brainstorming was first introduced by Alex Faickney Osborn in 1939 as a way for employees in the advertising industry to develop creative ideas. The brainstorming process depends on focusing on quantity to produce quality, withholding criticism, and presenting unusual ideas. Based on these characteristics, the ideas are combined and refined to yield a single, most applicable idea (see Charette Procedure).

However, we can’t guarantee new ideas or solutions using the same flow of thought we usually. Sometimes, the traditional way of thinking hinders our ability to see problems from different perspectives (see the Multi-Perspective Problem Framing). Reverse brainstorming provokes our thoughts and disrupts the traditional approach to problem-solving by thinking the other way around.

What is Reverse Brainstorming?

Reverse brainstorming is a creative problem-solving technique in which we intentionally explore ways to cause, worsen, or guarantee a problem before turning those negative ideas into practical solutions later in the process. For example, instead of asking “How might we improve user experience?”, we ask “How might we make the user experience harder and less usable?” The technique itself evolved from Alex Osborn’s original brainstorming method and later reversal-based creative thinking techniques.

Reverse brainstorming tries to solve the problem in a reversed way from the flow we already know. The method can influence the human mind to create better ideas and solutions. So, instead of asking how to solve the problem, reverse brainstorming focuses on what causes the problem or on how to achieve the opposite of what is expected. This method helps the team understand the problem and identify ideas to solve it, as well as other ideas discussed during the meeting. 

Reverse brainstorming offers unconventional approaches to reaching solutions that other thinking methods, such as the 5 Whys and 8D problem-solving, cannot. For example, the Double Diamond Design Thinking process enforces the team to be solution-oriented, which itself can limit ideas. Reverse brainstorming can be applied to unlock stuck ideas or see the situation from a different perspective.

The Advantages of Reverse Brainstorming

Reverse brainstorming is based on the idea that it is easier to identify the broken part of the system than to fix it. This shift in mindset is aligned with several benefits that can be achieved through applying the method in discussions as follows:

Negative productively

Spotting problems is usually seen as a negative attitude, which means missing opportunities that may arise from looking at the situation from the other side. Reverse brainstorming turns that natural critical thinking into an organisational asset.

Cognitively, the reverse brainstorming follows counterfactual reasoning and the Default-Mode Network. When we imagine negative scenarios, we use the default-mode network in the brain, which is most active during self-referential thought, autobiographical memory, and simulation of hypothetical futures. Studies showed that this reasoning is more effective compared to the traditional upward counterfactual reasoning.

Reveals hidden assumptions

When a team asks, “How could we make this fail?” they often discover assumptions they had not named. As the team discusses how to make ideas worse, they reveal assumptions that may not appear in the traditional way of addressing problems. It allows the team the opportunity to interrogate these assumptions and learn from them. The concept is driven by Karl Popper’s theory of falsification: a strong theory is one that we can use the scientific method to falsify, and we usually learn more by trying to falsify the hypothesis than by supporting it.

Judgement-free environment 

In the traditional way of thinking, the team aims to be creative and correct, opening the social risk that their ideas may be judged as inadequate. In reverse brainstorming, the team deliberately seeks destructive ideas, eliminating social judgment. Amy Edmondson defined this concept as situational reframing for psychological safety: while the environment remains the same, changing the way of thinking contributes to more honest outcomes, especially for team members who are censored or afraid of judgment.

The table below shows a quick comparison between traditional brainstorming and reverse brainstorming.

How to Conduct Reverse Brainstorming

An advanced reverse brainstorming session works to achieve the target through seven main steps. The team goes through each step and discusses it as a group. While the basic session can take 30 minutes to complete, the advanced session can take around 60-120 minutes to allow in-depth framing, root-cause analysis, prioritising solutions and building an action plan. The reverse brainstorming process includes seven steps:

• Step 1: Define the problem
• Step 2: Reverse the problem into a failure question
• Step 3: Generate bad ideas
• Step 4: Cluster failure patterns
• Step 5: Identify root causes
• Step 6: Reverse the bad ideas into solution principles
• Step 7: Prioritise solutions

The above steps start and end in a similar manner to the ordinary brainstorming process. However, the inner steps are reversed to reach the best solution through understanding the worst cases. These steps are discussed during the stakeholder meeting using simple tools such as a whiteboard, erasable markers with different colours, and sticky notes. But reverse brainstorming can also be done online using platforms such as Miro and Mural.

Example of Applying Advanced Reverse Brainstorming

In this practical example, we will apply advanced reverse brainstorming to identify problems with users booking a doctor appointment online. 

Step 1: Define the problem

A clear and accurate definition of the problem plays a crucial role in generating the appropriate and effective outcome. So, instead of brief problem questions, such as:

“How might we help patients register and book a doctor appointment online quickly, confidently, and without needing to call the clinic?”

The team should provide a more accurate statement to define the problem, such as:

“How might we help first-time and returning patients complete online doctor appointment registration within five minutes, with minimal errors and high confidence that their booking has been confirmed?

The target user is the general public who would like to book an appointment through the GP practice website. The outcome is to complete the booking quickly, without complications or the need to call the clinic.

Step 2: Reverse the problem into a failure question

After defining the main problem statement in a positive direction. The team reverses the statement to create failure rather than success. So, the question turns into:

"How could we make online doctor appointment booking confusing, stressful, and impossible to complete without calling the clinic by increasing the registration time, number of errors and confusion?"

Step 3: Generate failure ideas

Then we try to answer the failure question by making the system more complex and confusing. The table below shows the suggested action and the target outcome of this action to make the user experience more difficult.

Failure (bad) idea	The consequences
Hide the “Book Appointment” button	Patients cannot find where to start
Ask for too much information before showing available appointments	Patients feel the process is too long
Use medical or administrative jargon	Patients misunderstand what is required
Show appointment times only after account creation	Patients may not commit without seeing availability
Require a password with complex rules but poor guidance	Patients get stuck during account setup
Do not explain whether new patients can book online	New patients become uncertain

Step 4: Group the patterns

Then, the team organises the failure ideas into themes to give a bigger idea of how these problems are connected. This step is very similar to the thematic analysis method, but of course, on a limited scale.

• Visibility problems
  Hidden booking button, unclear appointment options
• Trust problems
  No confirmation, unclear payment/insurance rules
• Language problems
  Medical jargon, unclear form labels
• Process friction
  Too many fields, forced account creation, complex password rules

Step 5: Find root causes

Now, the team returns to a solution-finding mindset by identifying the root cause of each problem. The root cause can be explored using methods such as the 5 Whys.

Failure	Possible root cause
Patients cannot find where to start	The website is structured around clinic departments, not patient tasks
Patients abandon before choosing a time	The system asks for commitment before showing value
Patients enter incorrect details	Form labels use internal administrative language
Patients call reception after booking online	Confirmation and next steps are not clear enough

Now, the team knows that the main problem is that the registration system is designed around the clinic’s administrative workflow rather than the patient’s experience (see the journey mapping complete guide).

Step 6: Flip into solutions

After the team explored the problem's root causes, they returned to the main failure functions and addressed them. 

Failure	Reversed solution
Hide the booking button	Place a clear “Book a Doctor Appointment” button on the homepage and relevant service pages
Ask for too much information upfront	Show appointment types and available times before requesting detailed information
Use medical jargon	Use plain-language labels with short explanations
Require account creation too early	Allow guest booking or delay account creation until after appointment selection
Give vague error messages	Provide specific, helpful error messages, such as “Enter your date of birth in DD/MM/YYYY format”
Send no confirmation	Show an on-screen confirmation and send email/SMS confirmation
Make rescheduling hard	Include “Reschedule” and “Cancel appointment” links in the confirmation message

Step 7: Prioritise and act

Once the team is clear about the actions to improve user experience, they start prioritising the tasks to identify which are most important. The team can use Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA), one of the accredited methods commonly used in engineering design, to identify errors and prioritise addressing them.

Solution	Impact	Effort	Priority
Add a clear booking button	High	Low	Do first
Improve confirmation message/email/SMS	High	Low	Do first
Rewrite form labels in plain language	High	Medium	Do next
Add specific error messages	High	Medium	Do next
Show available appointments earlier	Very high	High	Plan as major improvement

Conclusion

The reversed brainstorming technique is one of the tools that empower companies and organisations to solve problems through a creative approach. Identifying the problem and how it can be worsened can actually help the team understand the best solution.

The reversed brainstorming technique can also be applied to design and creative education. It helps students think more creatively by exploring new thinking methods.

Resources

Evans, N. (2012). Destroying collaboration and knowledge sharing in the workplace: a reverse brainstorming approach. Knowledge Management Research & Practice, 10(2), 175-187.

Hicks, M. J. (1991). Brainstorming. In Problem Solving in Business and Management: Hard, soft and creative approaches(pp. 87-107). Boston, MA: Springer US.

Wilson, C. E. (2007). Inverse, reverse, and unfocused methods: variations on our standard tools of the trade. Interactions, 14(6), 54-ff.