What is the purpose of the '5 Whys' technique?

The '5 Whys' technique is specifically designed to drill down to the root cause of a problem. This method involves asking "why" repeatedly—typically five times—until the underlying issue is identified. The primary goal is to move beyond the surface symptoms of a problem and explore deeper into the causal factors that originate it.

This technique is valuable because by isolating the root cause, teams can create effective solutions that address the fundamental issue rather than just the symptoms, leading to long-term improvement. For example, if a car won't start, simply addressing a dead battery might be insufficient if the real problem is a faulty alternator. By using the '5 Whys', you would uncover that deeper issue.

In contrast, the other choices focus on different processes: generating multiple solutions, prioritizing tasks, or assessing team performance each serve different functions unrelated to root cause analysis. Thus, they are not suitable for describing the primary purpose of the '5 Whys' technique.