M inistry o f Higher and Secondary Specialized Education o f the Republic o f Uzbekistan

UNIT 1 GLOBAL PROBLEMS
Problem Cause
Student: Professor, may I ask you for some 
suggestions for my library-research paper?
Tutor: Yes, o f course. W hat is the problem?
Student: You know I am writing a research paper 
about arising problems. I am really confused, what 
should I to begin with?
Tutor: Oh, the way I see it, you should begin with 
analyzing root causes o f problems.
Student: How to analyze roots o f problems? For 
example, in medicine it’s clear to understand the 
difference between treating symptoms and healing 
an illness. I f you’re in pain because of your broken 
leg, you WANT to have your symptoms treated first! 
However, taking painkillers won’t cure your leg, and 
you need true treatment to get well. How should I 
approach, How should I act, as far as it is concerned a 
problem at work or study?
Tutor: I f you only set a problem going superficially- 
the problem will happen again... which will lead to 
reiteration o f action concerning the same problem. In 
my opinion, you should look deeper to reveal root 
causes o f the problem arising, fix the underlying 
systems and processes.
Student: How to understand to reveal root cause of 
the problem?
Tutor: To reveal root cause o f problems is 
identifying the origin o f problems.
Student: Well, are there any peculiarities of 
identifying the origin o f problems?
Tutor: Certainly. There is a specific set o f steps 
to find the initial cause o f the problem, so the first 
thing you do is: determining the incident, its reasons 
and ways o f reducing the likelihood in case it happens 
again. The way I see it, all systems and events are 
interconnected. Actions trigger one another and so on 
until they become a problem. By tracing back these 
actions, you can clarify the root o f the problem and 
how it becomes the problem you’re now facing.
Student: Usually problems are quite different. Are 
there any common types o f causes?
Tutor: 
Well yes. 
Causes are classified into
6 2
Scale Up
three basic types: Physical causes, which depend 
on tangible, material items failed in some way (for 
example, a car’s engines stopped working), Human 
causes, when people did something wrong, or did 
not do something that was needed. Human causes 
typically lead to physical causes (for example, no one 
filled the brake fluid, which led to the brakes failing) 
and Organizational causes, which arise because of a 
system, process, or policy that people use to make 
decisions or do their work is faulty (for example, no 
one person was responsible for vehicle maintenance, 
and everyone assumed someone else had filled the 
brake fluid).
Student: Yeah, I see. Is it necessary to clarify all 
types o f causes?
Tutor: It is desirable to look at all three types 
o f causes. It involves investigating the patterns of 
negative effects, finding hidden flaws in the system, 
and discovering specific actions that contributed to 
the problem. Thus, you can reveal more than one root 
cause.You can do such kind o f analysis almost in any 
situation. Be careful to understand when you’ve found 
a significant cause that can, in fact, be changed.
Student: Oh, thank you for your good advice, 
professor. I will do my best in preparing my paper. 
May I ask you to check my paper after I finish it?
Tutor: Oh, yes with pleasure, o f course “No 
problem.”.