/moai-foundation-thinking

name: moai-foundation-thinking
description: >
  Unified thinking toolkit: Creative frameworks (Critical Evaluation, Diverge-Converge,
  Deep Questioning), First Principles reasoning (absorbed from moai-foundation-philosopher),
  and Adaptive Thinking via the `ultrathink` keyword. Use for ideation, strategic
  analysis, architecture decisions, and deep reasoning on complex problems.

when_to_use: >
  Use for thinking and ideation: creative frameworks (critical evaluation,
  diverge-converge), first-principles reasoning, five-whys root-cause
  analysis, trade-off and architecture decisions,
  technology/library/database selection, and Adaptive Thinking via the
  ultrathink keyword.

license: Apache-2.0
compatibility: Designed for Claude Code
allowed-tools: Read, Grep, Glob
user-invocable: false
metadata:
  version: "2.0.0"
  category: "foundation"
  status: "active"
  updated: "2026-04-25"
  modularized: "true"
  tags: "foundation, critical-thinking, brainstorming, ideation, evaluation, creative-thinking, diverge-converge, first-principles, adaptive-thinking, philosophy, architecture-decision"
  related-skills: "moai-foundation-philosopher, moai-workflow-thinking"

# MoAI Extension: Progressive Disclosure
progressive_disclosure:
  enabled: true
  level1_tokens: 100
  level2_tokens: 5000

MoAI Foundation Thinking

Structured thinking toolkit for creative problem-solving and rigorous analysis. Integrates three complementary frameworks that cover the full spectrum from idea generation to critical evaluation.

Core Philosophy: Generate broadly, evaluate rigorously, question deeply. Creativity and criticism are complementary forces.

Quick Reference

What is the Thinking Toolkit?

Three integrated frameworks for structured thinking:

• Critical Evaluation: Rigorous 7-step analysis to assess proposals and detect flaws
• Diverge-Converge: Systematic brainstorming from 20-50 raw ideas to 3-5 validated solutions
• Deep Questioning: 6-layer progressive inquiry to uncover hidden requirements and risks

When to Use Each Framework:

• Evaluating a proposal or recommendation: Critical Evaluation
• Generating solutions for an open-ended problem: Diverge-Converge
• Exploring an unfamiliar domain or unclear requirement: Deep Questioning
• Complex decisions: Combine all three (Question first, Generate second, Evaluate third)

Quick Access:

• Rigorous proposal assessment: [Critical Evaluation Module](modules/critical-evaluation.md)
• Creative solution generation: [Diverge-Converge Module](modules/diverge-converge.md)
• Progressive inquiry: [Deep Questioning Module](modules/deep-questioning.md)

---

Implementation Guide

Framework 1: Critical Evaluation

Purpose: Systematically assess proposals, claims, and recommendations to detect flaws before commitment.

Seven-Step Evaluation Process:

Step 1 - Restate: Reformulate the claim or proposal in your own words. Ensures genuine understanding before critique.

Step 2 - Assess Evidence: Examine supporting data. Is the evidence empirical, anecdotal, or assumed? What is the sample size and recency? Are there contradicting data points?

Step 3 - Detect Fallacies: Check for common reasoning errors. Appeal to authority without substance. False dichotomy (only two options presented). Hasty generalization from insufficient examples. Straw man misrepresentation of alternatives.

Step 4 - Expose Assumptions: Identify unstated premises. What must be true for this conclusion to hold? Which assumptions are testable? Which assumptions carry the highest risk if wrong?

Step 5 - Note Alternatives: For every claim, ask what else could explain the evidence. Generate at least two alternative interpretations. Consider the null hypothesis.

Step 6 - Check Contradictions: Look for internal inconsistencies. Do different parts of the proposal conflict? Are there contradictions with known facts or constraints?

Step 7 - Evaluate Burden of Proof: Determine if the evidence is proportional to the claim. Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. Identify what additional evidence would strengthen or weaken the case.

Output Format:

• Evaluation Summary: Overall assessment (Strong, Moderate, Weak, Flawed)
• Key Strengths: What holds up under scrutiny
• Critical Gaps: What needs more evidence or revision
• Recommended Actions: Next steps to strengthen the proposal

WHY: Uncritical acceptance of proposals leads to preventable failures. IMPACT: Structured evaluation catches 60-80% of flawed recommendations.

Framework 2: Diverge-Converge Brainstorming

Purpose: Generate a broad solution space then systematically narrow to the best options.

Five-Phase Process:

Phase 1 - Gather Requirements: Define the problem space clearly. Identify stakeholders and success criteria. Set explicit constraints (budget, timeline, technology). Document "must-have" vs "nice-to-have" criteria.

Phase 2 - Diverge (Generate 20-50 Ideas): Quantity over quality during divergence. No criticism or filtering during generation. Include wild and unconventional ideas. Combine and build upon previous ideas. Use prompts: "What if we...", "How might we...", "What would happen if..."

Phase 3 - Cluster (Group into 4-8 Themes): Identify natural groupings among ideas. Name each cluster with a descriptive theme. Note which clusters have the most ideas (signals interest). Identify gaps where no ideas exist (potential blind spots).

Phase 4 - Converge (Score and Select): Rate each cluster against success criteria (1-10). Apply weighted scoring based on priority of criteria. Select top 3-5 candidates for deeper analysis. Document why rejected options were eliminated.

Phase 5 - Document and Validate: Write up selected solutions with rationale. Define validation experiments for top candidates. Identify risks and mitigation strategies. Plan implementation sequence.

Output Format:

• Problem Statement: Clear definition of what we are solving
• Idea Count: Total ideas generated and cluster distribution
• To