{"id":59905,"date":"2024-05-17T11:52:10","date_gmt":"2024-05-17T11:52:10","guid":{"rendered":"\/aryydrc\/attribute-listing-and-morphological-analysis\/"},"modified":"2026-01-13T14:54:51","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T14:54:51","slug":"attribute-listing-and-morphological-analysis","status":"publish","type":"product-content","link":"https:\/\/www.mindtools.com\/aryydrc\/attribute-listing-and-morphological-analysis\/","title":{"rendered":"Attribute Listing and Morphological Analysis"},"content":{"rendered":"

Being creative can be tough. Say you need to design a new product in a hurry. You might have to come up with a working prototype before a trade show, for example.<\/p>

Or, maybe sales are flagging and you need to revitalize your existing products. And all you have in front of you is a blank screen!<\/p>

That’s where attribute listing and morphological analysis can help. In this article, we explore how these simple tools provide a logical, step-by-step process for generating great new design ideas, and for discarding the bad ones.<\/p>\n\n

What Is Attribute Listing?<\/h2>\n\n

Attributes are the properties, qualities or design elements of the product or service that you want to produce. They’re the things you need your product to have to satisfy your customers’ needs.<\/p>

For example, the attributes of a car would be build material, engine type, number of seats, trunk capacity, color, weight, price, and so on.<\/p>

Or, if you want to design a new marketing strategy<\/a>, your attributes would include the markets open to you, the ways in which your product is used, and the skills you have available.<\/p>

Attribute listing is the process of identifying these key features as they’re needed in a new product or process. First, you select a product or process that you need to design or redesign. Then, you break it down into its key attributes or qualities.<\/p>

This allows you to examine each attribute in turn, and to identify how you can improve its performance.<\/p>\n\n

What Is Morphological Analysis?<\/h2>\n\n

Morphological analysis takes attribute listing a stage further, using a matrix to help you decide on the design of your product. It follows the same basic process as attribute listing, but you can use it to create a new product by mixing the elements in new ways.<\/p>

First, you list the necessary attributes as column headings (see the example, below). Then, beneath each heading, you write a list of characteristics for each attribute. Write down as many variations of the attribute as possible in each column.<\/p>

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Tip:<\/h4>\n\n

You could use brainstorming<\/a> with your team to produce a range of new ideas. Or, check out our articles, Generating New Ideas<\/a>, and SCAMPER<\/a>, to learn more.<\/p><\/div><\/div>

Next, you select a characteristic from each column. You may already have an idea of the kind of combinations that will work best: in which case, try them out. Alternatively, select characteristics randomly from each column and assess what you come up with.<\/p>

Not all the results will work, but some will, and some may stimulate interesting and unexpected new lines of inquiry.<\/p>

Finally, evaluate and improve the combination you’ve decided on until it becomes a viable product with a likely market.<\/p>\n\n

Example<\/h2>\n\n

Imagine that you want to carry out a morphological analysis to create a new lamp.<\/p>

First, list the attributes that you need to consider. For a lamp, these are power supply, bulb type, size, style, finish, and material. Set these out as column headings on a table, as shown below.<\/p>

<\/p><\/div><\/div>

Power Supply<\/strong><\/p><\/th>

Bulb Type<\/strong><\/p><\/th>

Size<\/strong><\/p><\/th>

Style<\/strong><\/p><\/th>

Finish<\/strong><\/p><\/th>

Material<\/strong><\/p><\/th><\/tr><\/thead>

Battery<\/p><\/td>

Halogen<\/p><\/td>

Very Large<\/p><\/td>

Modern<\/p><\/td>

Black<\/p><\/td>

Metal<\/p><\/td><\/tr>

AC\/Mains<\/p><\/td>

Bulb<\/p><\/td>

Large<\/p><\/td>

Antique<\/p><\/td>

White<\/p><\/td>

Ceramic<\/p><\/td><\/tr>

Solar<\/p><\/td>

Daylight<\/p><\/td>

Medium<\/p><\/td>

Roman<\/p><\/td>

Metallic<\/p><\/td>

Concrete<\/p><\/td><\/tr>

Generator<\/p><\/td>

Colored<\/p><\/td>

Small<\/p><\/td>

Art Nouveau<\/p><\/td>

Terracotta<\/p><\/td>

Bone<\/p><\/td><\/tr>

Crank<\/p><\/td>

Eco<\/p><\/td>

Handheld<\/p><\/td>

Industrial<\/p><\/td>

Enamel<\/p><\/td>

Glass<\/p><\/td><\/tr>

Gas<\/p><\/td>

<\/p><\/td>

<\/p><\/td>

Ethnic<\/p><\/td>

Natural<\/p><\/td>

Wood<\/p><\/td><\/tr>

Oil\/Petrol<\/p><\/td>

<\/p><\/td>

<\/p><\/td>

<\/p><\/td>

Fabric<\/p><\/td>

Stone<\/p><\/td><\/tr>

Flame<\/p><\/td>

<\/p><\/td>

<\/p><\/td>

<\/p><\/td>

<\/p><\/td>

Plastic<\/p><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/div><\/figure>

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Note:<\/h4>\n\n

This table is sometimes known as a “Morphological Box” or “Zwicky Box,” after the scientist Fritz Zwicky, who developed the technique in the 1960s. [1]<\/p><\/div><\/div>

Interesting combinations might be:<\/p>