Why OST helps us solve wicked problems
Chris Corrigan
chris.corrigan at gmail.com
Mon May 2 11:05:41 PDT 2005
In my post on Friday, I mused about the depth we access in Open Space.
Today, I read a paper which most of you will find useful, at the very least
because it makes a stunning case for OST. I've posted this at my weblog too:
In the Open Space world, we talk about the four pre-conditions that make for
great open space events: diversity, complexity, passion and urgency. The
more you have of these, the juicier the event becomes. That is counter
intuitive to most ways of thinking, because in most cases it seems that
problem solving processes aim to homogenize, simplify, rationalize and slow
down. If we can just get a handle on the problem, the thinking goes, we can
apply the best possible solution.
This mechanistic view does not work with so-called "wicked problems." It can
generate solutions or options or ways forward which are reductionist. For
me, it is the kind of thinking that arrives at one vision statement for an
organization of 100 people instead of a multi-faceted vision that is
inclusive and brings everyone along.
So via elearning post <http://www.elearningpost.com/archives/007124.asp>,
today I came across this paper (http://www.touchstone.com/tr/wp/wicked.html)
that looks at how wicked problems are solved by non-linear processes:
"The natural pattern of human problem solving appears chaotic on the
surface, but it is the chaos of an earthquake or the breaking of an ocean
wave. It reveals deeper forces and flows that have their own order and
pattern. The non-linear pattern of activity that expert designers follow
gives us fresh insight into what happens when we work on a complex problem.
It reveals that in normal problem-solving behaviour, we may seem to wander
about, making only halting progress toward the solution. This non-linear
process is not a defect, not a sign of stupidity or lack of training, but
rather the mark of a natural learning process. It suggests that humans are
oriented more toward learning (a process that leaves us changed) than toward
problem solving (a process focused on changing our surroundings)."
Designers who work this way, in the experiment discussed in this paper
exhibit the following strategies:
They would start by trying to understand the problem, but would immediately
jump to formulating potential solutions. Then they would go back to refining
their understanding of the problem. Rather than being orderly and linear,
the line plotting the course of their thinking looked more like a
seismograph for a major earthquake... We call this pattern both chaotic, for
obvious reasons, and opportunity-driven, because in each moment the
designers are seeking the best opportunity to progress toward a solution.
I note two things about this quote. First, the fact that designers working
on a wicked problem are engaged in an iterative relationship with the
definition of the problem itself. Second, the pattern is
"opportunity-driven" meaning that exposure to new ideas at any point in the
process can contribute to breakthroughs.
This chaotic strategy is exactly the argument for Open Space Technology. We
need people working in these ways to solve these problems, OST provides the
space in a very short period of time to exercise the strategies that
contribute to solving wicked problems. In fact, the time constraints in Open
Space (1.5 hour conversations over a day or two) mean that there ISN'T time
to engage in linear thinking, and this may be why OST creates the conditions
for people to access the depth and resourcefulness that is needed to move
forward on this tough issues.
Chris
--
CHRIS CORRIGAN
Consultation - Facilitation
Open Space Technology
Weblog: http://www.chriscorrigan.com/parkinglot
Site: http://www.chriscorrigan.com
*
*
==========================================================
OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
------------------------------
To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options,
view the archives of oslist at listserv.boisestate.edu:
http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html
To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs:
http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.openspacetech.org/pipermail/oslist-openspacetech.org/attachments/20050502/dcb01157/attachment-0007.htm>
More information about the OSList
mailing list