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OneSmartWorld is a platform for thinking skills development, team building, accelerating collaboration, innovation and productivity. The company, based in Collingwood, Ontario, Canada, has been notable and widely quoted and covered for it's 4D-i thinking preference tool program.

Background
In 2000, Bob Wiele, M.Ed. (University of Toronto), as founder of OneSmartWorld,launched the initiative with five objectives.
 * 1) Invent a new model for thinking skills. This research was based on the identification of the core strategies of critical, analytical and creative thinking and integrating these strategies with core strategies of emotional intelligence and resilience, into one framework. The focus was the identification of learnable precision thinking strategies, not static personality traits.
 * 2) Build a scientific, research-based psychometric assessment. The goal was to map and measure preferences for the use of the thinking strategies.
 * 3) Develop the world’s first online platform to carry our the assessment and to deliver instant results, in an interactive format. The goal was to integrate the assessment function with the development function to increase self understanding and provide a launching pad for personal and professional development
 * 4) Design a common symbolic language to make the system easy to learn and use everyday at work, in relationships and in life
 * 5) Accelerate collaboration in relationships and teams. The goal was to invent thinking strategy-based process maps. These thinking process maps were to enable teams to design and align the diversity of thinking skills in a group to reduce time wasted and produce superior results more effectively and efficiently.

4D-i
The 4D-i ® or 4Dimensions Inventory, is an online thinking preferences psychometric questionnaire, first developed in 2000-2001,as an assessment for learning four essential dimensions and twenty one strategies of quality thinking in total intelligence – creativity, understanding, decision-making (1)(2) and personal spirit (3) The originalconstruct of total intelligence, developed by Bob Wiele,brought together three layers of intelligence into one integrated framework - cognitive thinking strategies, emotional thinking strategies and personal spirit or resilience strategies. The 4D-i instrument was based on measuring individual preferences for the use of each of the twenty one strategies to identify thinking styles. The first section of the 4D-i contains 45 paired choices, organized into nine clusters of five different personal situations, two inter-personal situations and two group settings, all to identify preferences for the use of specific strategies in creativity, understanding and decision-making. The second section of the 4D-i contains twenty four self-rating statements for mapping personal spirit. The 4D-i produces results based on a normative database, described below.

The Four Uses of Each Dimension, Mindset and Strategy
Each dimension, mindset and strategy in total intelligence and the 4D-i was designed to have four core applications. The first application was as an indicator of thinking style or preference for the user. The second application was as a 21st century skills map of a set of specific mindsets and skills in a portfolio of twenty one thinking strategies. The third application was to identify and select different specific states of mind individuals and teams can shift into in order to direct the focus their thinking to match specific tasks. The fourth application was to use as the building blocks of thinking process design tool for developing sequential planning and problem solving processes. Each of the four dimensions in the total intelligence model was color coded, using a traffic light as a mnemonic device, to make the system, the language and the skills easier to remember and the use in everyday life.

===The Conceptual Framework for Total Intelligence and the 4D-i The 4D-i was constructed on the total intelligence conceptual framework of 4 dimensions of high performance thinking and a set of twenty one strategies in creativity, understanding, decision-making and personal spirit. The first three dimensions of the model each have a cognitive or thinking mindset and an emotional or feeling mindset. The thinking mindsets were named cool to align with accessing more objective cognitive thinking strategies. The emotional mindsets were named warm to align with accessing more subjective, sometimes intuitive emotional thinking strategies.

Creativity is the first dimension of total intelligence and is visually represented by a green circle. It has six strategies. There are four strategies in the creative thinking or cool green mindset - brainstorm ideas, challenge assumptions, reframe problems into opportunities and envision possibilities. There are two emotional strategies in creative intuition or warm green mindset – flow and flash of insight.

Understanding is second dimension and is visually represented by an inverted yellow triangle. It has six strategies. There are three strategies in analytical thinking or cool yellow mindset - scan the situation, structure information and clarify understanding. There are three emotional strategies in the compassion or warm yellow mindset - tune-in to feelings, empathize with others and express feelings.

Decision-making is the third dimension and is visually represented by a red stop sign. It has six strategies. There are four strategies in the critical thinking or cool red mindset - get to the crux, conclude, validate the conclusion and rely on experience. There are 2 emotional strategies in the two emotion-based decision-making or warm red mindsets – beliefs-based/values driven and gut intuition/trust your heart.

Personal spirit is the fourth dimension and is visually represented by a white diamond. It has three strategies. These are named outlook, sense of control and initiative.

The model of total intelligence and the development of 4D-i is described in Wiele’s book, Smart for Life It contains detailed descriptions and applications of the 4 dimensions, the seven mindsets and the twenty one strategies. More information on each mindset and strategy is embedded into the online 4D-i instrument’s dashboard, consisting of My 4D-i, Coach, Portfolio report and Search functions.

The Sources for the Total Intelligence Construct and 4D-iInstrument
For several decades, Wiele had conducted informal research and compiled data from ongoing review of the literature in brain development, thinking styles, psychology, learning, sport psychology, mental fitness and high performance thinking skills. Wiele’soriginal search for foundationalthinking strategies to construct the total intelligence framework and the 4D-iwas inspired and informed by a wide variety of thought leaders, authors and researchers in a variety of disciplines including learning, brain development, education, psychology, leadership development and sport psychology. Key sourcesfor the development of the total intelligence framework were Robert Sternberg and his work on the three types of thinking in successful intelligence– practical, analytical and creative thinking and Jerry Rhodes’ work in the UK and Europe on the elements of effective intelligence – to judge, describe and realize. Rhodes stands as a significant pioneer in the identification, classification and organization of ‘thunks’, the specific conceptual tools that comprise effective intelligence. Rhodes’ work had a significant influence on the early development of the total intelligence system. ChogyamTrungpa,Geshe Michael Roach and other Buddhist teachers’ writings and skills programs provided insight and guidance on compassion, mindfulness and mental self management.MihalyCsikszentmihalyi’s work on flow was vital in the development of creative intuition. The research and writings of Peter Salovey, John Mayer and Daniel Goleman were useful in applying elements of emotional intelligence in the 4D-i. Edward Russo and Paul Shoemaker’s work on decision-making and Gary Klein’s research on the use of gut intuition and deep experience in decision-making were useful in formulating some of focus and strategies in decision-making. Wiele researched other thought leaders’ work on thinking dispositions, thinking styles and the elements of critical and creative thinking. Some of these included Sternberg’s and David Perkins work on thinking styles, John Clarke’s Patterns of Thinking and Art Costa’s Habits of Mind. Wiele’s five year collaboration from 1986 to 1990 with the Canadian sport psychologist, Peter Jensen, contributed to the understanding of the techniques to develop mental fitness and harness high performance thinking under pressure.

The 4D-i is based on identifying and developing thinking skills and strategies, not identifying personality traits or styles. It does not include any references to personality constructs.

The 4D-i was the first psychometric to incorporate a dimension on personal spirit. Personal spirit was built into the original 4D-i research in 2000 as a potential factor in increasing resilience, health and high performance. Personal spirit is a construct that is aligned with a number of other psychological constructs including Albert Bandura’s work on self efficacy, Salvatore Maddi and Suzanne Kobasa’s research on hardiness at the University of Chicago, Martin Seligman’s research on learned helplessness and learned optimism, Barbara Fredrickson’s research on positivity and the construct of grit developed by Angela Lee Duckworth in 2007. The selection of initiative as a key factor in personal spirit was based on Robert Kelley’s research on star performers at Bell Labs.

The evolution in the uses of the 4D-i has matched ongoing developments in brain-based learning, the uses of attention management to produce disciplined focus, and the emergence of intelligence as more personal, applied, adaptable and contextual and not fixed or hardwired.

The Scientific Method used in the 4D-i Development Process
The 4D-i was constructed on the identification of four core dimensions of total intelligence and the designation of 21 precision thinking strategies. The 4D-i as a preference tool, integrates 11 cognitive strategies with 7 emotional strategies and 3 strategies in resilience, into one conceptual framework.

The formal research processto develop the instrument was initiated in 2000 and the first phase concluded in 2001.The early versions of the tool were code named the 3 Q-i and 3 S-i, based on the 3 layers of cognition, emotion and personal spirit that the instrument was based upon. The scientific research team was made up of organizational psychologists from Jackson Leadership Systems, an Ontario based, global leadership development firm. Chuck Evans Ph.D, was the lead researcher on the 4D-i project. Evans was assisted by Kim Snyder, Ph.D, Murray Stainton, Ph.D. and by Professor Kevin Kelloway, Ph.D., from St Mary’s University.Dan Clements led the project team. Clements and Lynn Iles both contributed significantly to the research and conceptual design of the total intelligence model. Clements was instrumental in the design and development of the online interactivity in the 4D-i instrument. The development of the 4D-i instrument used accepted scientific research protocols to refine and validate the initial assessment test items, based on the four dimensions and the twenty one strategies. Mandy St Germaine and a group of colleagues provided useful advice and critical feedback, during the early phases and subsequent revisions both to the development of the total intelligence platform and the content produced for the users of the 4D-i.

The first version of the 4D-i was normed on a research population of approximately 1000 working people from 11 countries. This research process refined the conceptual model of seven mindsets and the clustering of the twenty one strategies. A subsequent re- norming project in 2004 was based on the profile results of 8,000 people. A third norming project in 2008 used 4D-i results of 25,000 people.

The 4D-i assessment produces online and print portfolio results that use a common, color-coded, symbol-based language to identify thinking styles. It is also used to enhance thinking skill development and as a framework to direct thinking efforts in everyday tasks such as self management, planning, problem solving, collaborating and innovating.

Applications and Uses in Education and in Business
A core intent of the 4D-i is to provide tools and skills to help people improve personal and professional effectiveness. The 4D-i empowers learners with increased self-understanding through the highlighting of individual thinking styles and preferences. It helps users learn a simple common language for thinking. It is based on a set of skills and strategies that can be developed to achieve competency in all 4 dimensions.

The uses of the 4D-I are to provide a simple to learn conceptual framework for thinking and to build explicit thinking skills for use in education, leadership development, workforce development and human capital in business. The 4D-i ‘s uses are aligned with recent discoveries of neuro-plasticity and the brain’s inherent potential for adaptation, to both external and internal stimuli.

A critical use of the 4D-i is to empower the user to understand and harness the brain’s potential for change and the individual’s ability to grow and change their thinking. It is closely aligned with Carol Dweck’s work on fixed vs. growth mindsets in education. The 4D-I provides information to ‘know self’ and specific coaching advice to ‘grow self’ by expanding one’s repertoire of thinking skills.

The 4D-i was designed to function as an ‘assessment for learning’ – for self discovery and self awareness and an ‘assessment as learning’ –to acquire the fundamental rubric for a language for thinking. The 4D-i is not designed as an ‘assessment of learning’ or competency. The total intelligence framework can be used as a method to develop specific competencies in thinking skills and as a way to assess performance in thinking skills at different levels.

In 2003, the 4D-i was rated as the number one leadership development instrument from a pool of 120 assessments, by an expert panel from Simon Fraser University, Camosun College and University of Victoria. It was selected for the government of British Columbia’s Leading the Way program to train over 6000 managers and executives. The 4D-i has been selected by a wide range of institutions seeking new tools to develop leaders, build teams and support cultures of accelerated collaboration and talent optimization.

In 2004, the 4D-i was the first psychological assessment to be recognized and accepted by the government of Canada’s Scientific Research and Experimental Development program. The 4D-i was classified as a scientific advance in measurement theory and practice.

In 2009 a formal three year study on the return on investment of corporate training, the use of the 4D-i and the application of the OneSmartWorld system in meeting processes and performance produced a 558% ROI for a leading Canadian airline. This was the highest recorded return on investment from a formal study of the financial impact of corporate training programs.

The 4D-i in Education: Developing 21st Century Skills
In 2011, a research project on at-risk learners in six learning centres at the Simcoe County District School Board in Ontario identified a pattern of a low preference for analytical thinking across a population of approximately 1000 adult students in six learning centres. To increase academic retention, student success and graduation rates, teachers developed specific curriculum interventions to develop thinking skills in the three strategies of analytical thinking.

In 2014, a research project at Centennial College, Scarborough, Ontario in 2014, students in a business course, who showed a high preference for analytical thinking were more likely to achieve higher academic results than students who did not show a preference for that type of thinking.

Bob Wiele, BA, McGill and M.Ed, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. As president of OneSmartWorld, he has been the driving force in the conceptual design of the 4D-i and its extension into 21st century skills development in education to prepare students with the higher order thinking and behavioural skills in critical, analytical and creative thinking, problem solving, communication, collaborative teamwork and resilience, Current applications include leadership development, enhanced team work, meeting productivity and accelerating collaboration and innovation.

Wielebegan his work in adult education at the Elliot Lake Centre for Continuing Education in Ontario. In 1967, he was hired by Frontier College to open up the first full time school for adult Inuit, in Frobisher, NWT, now renamed Iqaluit. In 1972, he was hired to become the first Director of Continuing Education for the Ontario Association of Architects. In 1974, he was engaged as the adult education subject matter expert in the design and development of the curriculum for Canada’s National Coaching Certification Program, that has certified over 500,000 sport coaches. This project accelerated his work to uncover and identify the psychological roots for learning and the mental constructs and behaviors of high performing people. In 1986 to 1990, he partnered with the sports psychologist Peter Jensen to map out key cognitive and emotional elements of mental fitness. From 1990 to 2001, he worked with Jerry Rhodes to adapt his work on effective thinking to the needs of North American business. In 2000, he set out to build a new 21st century research-based toolkit to help people think better and work smarter in managing complexities and rapid change.

To meet the growing needs for 21st century skills in education, Wiele and his team created the Smart Skills system, a higher order thinking skills application of the 4D-ifor K-12, post secondary education and workforce development programs. The big idea was to create a simple operating system, that was easy to learn and use to equip students with five essential higher order 21st century skills – thinking, problem solving, communication, collaborative teamwork and resilient self management - all off a single conceptual framework that was introduced by the 4D-i.

The 4D-i is the portal for learning the SmartSkills system and its application to higher order thinking and behavioural competencies. For education, the goal was to bring 21st century thinking tools to schools to prepare students with the strategies they need to increase their conceptual skills, their autonomy and self-efficacy, by expanding their abilities to think critically, creatively and analytically. For business, the 4D-i was designed to address the shifts in the workplace to provide people with practical tools to understand their world better, increase their versatility, harness cognitive style diversity and improve decision-making. An emerging central focus is on the use of Ericcson’s construct of deliberate practice to build the requisite cognitive and emotional skills for use in the contexts they are needed.

The 4D-i has been used in school boards community colleges and universities as a foundational tool to help develop 21stcentury skills in thinking - creative, analytical and critical thinking, problem-solving, inter-personal communication, collaborative teamwork and resilience.

The 4D-i is a registered trademark of OneSmartWorld Inc.