Published on GEOG 885: Advanced Analytic Methods in Geospatial Intelligence (https://www.e-education.psu.edu/geog885)

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Lesson 06: Team Project - Application of a Diagnostic Technique

Introduction

Introduction

Lessons 5, 6, and 7 immerse the professional in the field of analytics. Analytics is a term commonly used to describe how an organization arrives at a decision based upon data - facts! Traditionally, the field has been thought to be the domain of mathematicians and statisticians who could use facts to justify a decision.

The field has grown and is now thought to be better defined as the art and science of analysis, since the spatial/temporal data in many cases are not known exactly, and the facts are not the result of measurement, but human observations and interpretation. The professional is confronted with a mix of quantitative and non-quantitative information that needs to be analyzed.

The professional should view SATs as ways to think about thinking - ways to engage the mind in analyzing information - a structured approach to analysis - the art and science of analysis.

Lessons 6 uses Randolph H. Pherson's book, "Handbook of Analytic Tools & Techniques," Pherson Associates. The book presents twenty-two structured analytic techniques that the professional can use in her/his analysis.

Lesson Objectives

At the end of lesson 6 you will be able to:

  • Understand and apply the Systems Thinking Intelligence Framework
  • Understand and apply the Structured Analytic Tools and Techniques for imagination Techniques and Application

The Course Roadmap is intended to help you understand where we are in the overall learning process and to place our dual case study and project focus into context.

 Course Roadmap: see text description in link below
Figure 1: Course Roadmap
Click for text description of Figure 1

The image above shows a basic outline of assignments for all lessons in the course. Students are currently on Lesson 6. 

  • Lesson 1: Introduction and Review
    Case Study & Project
  • Lesson 2: Structured Geospatial Analytic Method (SGAM)
    Project
  • Lesson 3: Structured Analytical Techniques
    Project
  • Lesson 4: SGAM - Question and Grounding
    Case Study & Project
  • Lesson 5: SGAM - Hypothesis and Evidence
    Case Study & Project
  • Lesson 6: Diagnostic Techniques
    Project
  • Lesson 7: SGAM - Fusion and Conclusions
    Case Study
  • Lesson 8: Challenge Exercise
    Project
  • Lesson 9: Work Period
    Project
  • Lesson 10: Presentation
    Project

Lesson 6 is one week in length. (See the Calendar in Canvas for specific due dates.) To finish this lesson, you must complete the activities listed below. You may find it useful to print this page out first so that you can follow along with the directions.

Steps to Completing Lesson 06
Step Activity Access/Directions
1 Read the lesson Overview and Checklist. You are in the Lesson 06 online content now. Click on the "Next Page" link to continue.
2

  • Skim A Tradecraft Primer: Structured Analytic Techniques for Improving Intelligence Analysis [1]
There are three different styles of reading that are referred to in the lessons:
  • Scan: Do not deal with all of the content, but search through the material for a specific purpose or a specific word (or its synonym). Scanning is used for such purposes as finding the answer to a particular question.
  • Skim: To skim, read a page by reading the headings and first sentences of each paragraph or section.
  • Read: The purpose of this style is to understand the concepts and arguments that the text contains, and it should be preceded by the Skim reading style.
3 Complete the Application of a Diagnostic Technique Exercise Complete the Diagnostic Technique Exercise [2] (Lesson 6, Part 3). Post your results to your team's Canvas project dropbox.

NOTE: All of the team's work will be contained in a single document file uploaded to the team's dropbox in Canvas.
4 Read lesson Summary. You are in the Lesson 6 online content now.

Diagnostic Technique Exercise

Diagnostic Technique Exercise

To help develop the project, your team will use one of the Diagnostic Techniques found in A Tradecraft Primer: Structured Analytic Techniques for Improving Intelligence Analysis [3]. The number one reason for flawed analysis is the failure to fully consider alternatives. The inability to properly structure problems and frame decisions is often the reason why we fail to fully consider alternatives.

Your team will use one of the following techniques to examine your analytic question:

  • Key Assumption Check; list and review the key working assumptions on which fundamental judgments rest.
  • Quality of Information Check; evaluates completeness and soundness of available information sources.

Do not examine Indicators or Signposts of Change or Analysis of Competing Hypothesis. We will investigate these techniques later.

Complete the Diagnostic Technique Exercise. Post a summary of how you used one of the techniques and the results to your team's Canvas dropbox.

Summary

Summary

At the end of lesson 6 you should be able to:

  • Understand and apply the Systems Thinking Intelligence Framework
  • Understand and apply Imagination Techniques and Indicators

Looking ahead

In Lesson 7, we will study the Challenge and Reframing Techniques and understand how they are applied.


Source URL:https://www.e-education.psu.edu/geog885/l7.html

Links
[1] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/geog885/sites/www.e-education.psu.edu.geog885/files/geog885q//file/Lesson_06/Tradecraft_Primer-apr09.pdf [2] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/geog885/node/2098 [3] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/geog885/sites/www.e-education.psu.edu.geog885/files/geog885q//file/Lesson_05/Tradecraft_Primer-apr09.pdf