id: 2122,10E
title: Five Whys is a cause analysis technique.
date: 2024-09-29

Five Whys is a cause analysis technique.

Often used in defect management, the technique guides participants to move from symptoms or problems back into its cause. The question “why?” solicits an analysis of the factor, but by no means suggests that there is only one factor underneath and subsequently only one root cause; the exercise should pursue any interesting leads that arise. The assumption that there’s only one cause is problematic.