Problem solving often starts by trying to discover the root cause of the problem such as the “5 Whys” method for root cause analysis. The “5 Whys” method which originated from the Toyota Production System, developed by Taiichi Ono in the 1950s is about trying to analyse the underlying reason causing a problem by iteratively asking the question “why did this happen” five times, following which “the nature of the problem as well as its solution becomes clear.”

This method along with many other problem-solving methods have become very popular today. They are based on the idea that if we can uncover the root cause of a problem, we can make improvements that prevent the problem from occurring again.

The root cause analysis concept has its roots (pardon the pun!) in industrial operations where people sought to improve the quality and consistency of factory line production.

In a factory, a small problem can quickly snowball into a huge problem over time, as machines churn out thousands of products. Hence, it is useful to actively find ways to eliminate errors and fix problems early and doing a root cause analysis helps to trace problems back to its source to be corrected.

What determines the usefulness of the root cause depends on the following:

• Is everything fully within your control? The next time the problem occurs, are your actions alone sufficient to determine the outcome of the situation? Do you have absolute control over every single factor that might affect the outcome? If the answer is no, then your outcome is subject to external factors like circumstances, environment, decisions, and random acts made by other people.
• Will the situation, circumstance or process repeat in exactly the same way in the future? If the answer is no, then there is no guarantee that the root cause to the previous problem is fully applicable to future situations and scenarios.

Clearly, the times when we are in full control of all factors and a past scenario re-occuring in exactly the same way is exceedingly rare. Unfortunately, life is not a factory, and we are not robots or machines to be fixed.

Unlike a factory production line where identifying the root cause of a problem in a production line guarantees a better future outcome due to the highly controlled and structured environment and repeated processes, the world we live in is full of uncertainty and variety. What caused a problem for us yesterday may no longer be relevant today. Very often there isn’t a single root cause but a complex random confluence of various factors. This is true especially within a social context such as an organisation , school, or society. Even if we discovered the supposed root cause of a problem, it is of limited relevance and usefulness.

The main reason for this is that most issues we face are complex in nature. This means that the issue is not due to a linear cause and effect (eg insufficient battery power causing a mobile phone to shut down) but due to a variety of factors that interact to cause the phenomenon in our lives.

For instance, global warming is not the result of a single root cause but a wide range of different factors that are constantly changing and evolving. It is not only unproductive and impossible to attempt to identify and find all the causes to a complex problem. In fact it is irrelevant for the future! What has happened may not happen again, and is unlikely to happen in exactly the same way again!

Paradoxically, solving for one or two root causes would likely give rise to more unintended consequences and effects, and may likely contribute to causing the original problem to become even more complex!