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Many of the concerns of intelligent architecture fit into the category of wicked problems, that is, problems whose resolution falls outside the current problem-solving capacity of the society that produced them. Wicked problems involve a diverse range of interests, defy a single definition, challenge the society that has produced them, and can have...
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Context 1
... answer is to draw on the full use of the seven ways of understanding of which our minds are capable (Brown and Harris 2014). Each individual's collective thinking on an issue starts and ends with internalised questions, first to re-examine existing introspective understandings and last to consolidate a reflective understanding of the whole (Figure 2). In between the two forms of internal understanding, those seeking a resolution ask five different kinds of externally directed questions, in order to understand the physical, social, ethical, aes- thetic and sympathetic dimensions of the issue. ...
Context 2
... thinking is a multifaceted approach where each of the seven ways of understanding is both a whole in itself, and part of the whole of that individual's understanding. Figure 2 rep- resents the way in which the individual collective thinker starts with internal questions which introspectively challenge preconceived ideas and assumptions. This involves consideration of the bias imposed by previous specialist training and whether the single goal of objectivity has framed their expectation of the topic and excluded the other ways of knowing. ...
Citations
... To characterise epistemic practices in post-normal science that may be relevant for higher science education, I draw on theoretical and empirical knowledge development in inquiries into wicked problems and their implementation in education. Substantial works include Brown (Brown, 2015;Brown et al., 2010;Hocking et al., 2016), Block (Block et al., 2018(Block et al., , 2019(Block et al., , 2022, and Head (Head, 2019(Head, , 2022Head & Alford, 2015). Akin to a host of other scholars in this field, they seem to agree that a collective, reflexive, and transdisciplinary approach is paramount to a productive, dignified, and meaningful inquiry into wicked problems (Colucci-Gray et al., 2013;Kate et al., 2019;Kønig et al., 2017;Lehtonen et al., 2019;McCune et al., 2021;Veltman et al., 2019). ...
Wicked problems have been characterised by their high epistemo-logical and axiological complexities. These are the kinds of problems that may invade our classrooms because many of them concern many stakeholders, including our students. Several approaches have been developed to address wicked problems in various contexts. However, little is known about how they may translate into educational research and practice. This paper proposes a conceptual framework in which wicked problems are analysed from their ontological , epistemological, and ethical commitments. Subsequently, they are framed within post-normal science, drawing on critical discourse in science studies and science education. Chief to the arguments is a focus on epistemic practices that are strongly anchored in but also extend from disciplinary science and engineering education. Implications for research and practice in higher science education are presented.
... The dilemmas here also present as a "wicked problem", itself a concept originally from the field of urban planning (Rittel & Webber, 1973) but equally applicable in other fields. As in a wicked problem, potential solutions are not readily obvious, they need to be multi-dimensional, and require long-term collaborations in an on-going attentive process (Hocking et al., 2016;Australian Public Service Commission, 2007). Similarly, this paper is not able to offer complete solutions. ...
COVID-19 has spread world-wide, and with multiple health, social, and economic ramifications. These present a formidable challenge for those belonging to vulnerable communities, such as those living in slums. There is now a growing literature urging attention to this challenge. However, few studies have examined the actual lived realities within these areas using direct, observational research, notwithstanding commentary elsewhere that such close attention is necessary to ensure effective action. This study took this approach in relation to a particular case-study, Kapuk Urban Village, in Jakarta, Indonesia. Drawing on an existing schema involving three spatial scales of slum areas (environs, settlement, and object), the research confirms how different built and socio-economic features can exacerbate vulnerability, and COVID-19 transmission. We also add to the body of knowledge by contributing a dimension of 'ground-level' research engagement. We conclude by discussing related ideas around ensuring community resilience and effective policy implementation, and recommend an "urban acupuncture" approach to encourage government regulations and actions better tailored to such communities.
... Problematization will narrow down the construction process based on one specific viewpoint [97]. In this case, beyond creating a network of 'alliance' through such a problematization process (i.e., starting with involving actors and ending with obligatory passage point(s) that are assigned with one actor), an ecological or holistic approach is required to create a network of 'allies' in which actors have more agency to make their own decisions [25,96]. ...
... In particular, participatory approaches in the domain of design are aimed at creating a more explorative and reflective mode of inquiry by involving a broader community of actors [104,113]. Through participatory sessions, designers utilize a variety of (participatory) tools and techniques in order to facilitate a critical discussion that ideally leads to the exchange of more meaning and values among actors [25,104,114]. The participatory notion of design, along with the creative use of tools and techniques, can create a unique condition for knowledge transformation that is similar to the core concept of 'boundary objects' [89,97]. ...
... These tools, along with design abilities (i.e., using creative techniques to frame socially accepted values), bring more clarity for intervention and change in a social context [33,127]. Considering that one essential step toward network construction is knowing fundamental values (which require obtaining knowledge from context), the use of such design abilites to unfold fundemental values has a certain benefit by increasing the feasibility of deliberation in a complex context [25,126]. ...
Controversies are an inseparable part of social systems which, if constructed properly, can create a unique condition for higher-order learning. In addition, design inquiry, as a process of thought and planning, is also a constructive process. This provokes the question of how to construct controversies from a designerly perspective in order to steer higher-order learning. This paper presents a theoretical contribution to the field of social system design by providing the first insights into design intervention to facilitate a network of allied construction. Through a systematic review of the concept of conflict and disagreement, the link between controversies and knowledge transmission is examined in order to highlight the benefit of controversies in a constructive way. Next to that, the essential steps for constructing a network of allies are proposed. These steps are compared with specific aspects of design in order to unfold the advantages of design for network construction. Finally, the paper wraps up with concluding remarks about the necessity of having a bridging step from theory to action in order to facilitate the construction of controversies in a real-life context.
... He also explicitly identifies the practitioners involved as co-designers, which means that participants engage in a co-development process, gaining an in-depth understanding of the effects of the design choices by evaluating several iterations of the design together, utilizing feedback. This involvement fosters the learning and commitment of the practitioners by collectively considering the problem and the solution [59]. In doing so, it links co-designing directly to relational coordination because the establishment of shared knowledge is a key consideration [23]. ...
Processes in inter-organizational projects tend to be complex to coordinate. Within these projects, stakeholders have to make decisions together, despite a limited awareness of the other parties’ interests and views. Frequently, coordination in inter-organizational projects is ineffective and inadequately addressed, despite the investment of considerable effort, which often results in delays and/or unwanted project outcomes. The purpose of this study is to investigate how a shared problem understanding for inter-organizational decision making can be achieved by means of sustainable coordination. In this study, CIMO logic was used to explore the context of the organizational change, followed by the application of design science research in order to develop an intervision process. The findings of this study are twofold. To manage the complex problem context, additional efforts were needed in order to create awareness of the team’s coordination activities. The application of the concept of co-designing resulted in a higher degree of sustainable relational coordination. The resulting intervision process aided the team in gaining a shared problem understanding of the decision making process in the inter-organizational project. The use of the co-designed intervision process can potentially be employed for other complex systematic problems, such as those occurring in the construction industry.
... Expanding the scope of dialogue for architectural education, a global multicultural focus can address environmental challenges too large for one design student, one university, or one nation to resolve in isolation. Afterall, Earth's climate and the environmental damage it causes solve "wicked problems" (Buchanan, 1992;Hocking et al., 2016) that sometimes lead to unintended consequences due their ill-defined, ill-structured, and interconnected. ...
Collaboration, dialogue, and creativity as instructional strategies for design education.
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... Participatory design is, however, challenging, time-consuming and potentially expensive, being generally inappropriate for a conceptual design stage. Some examples do exist of collective design at the conceptual design stage, with hundreds of motivated individuals working on a project [17], but this does not necessarily support design decision-making in response to visual perception. There is also, no clear or accepted way of formally investigating the relationship between visual stimuli of a building facade and human visual processing. ...
The design of a building façade has a significant impact on the way people respond to it physiologically and behaviourally. Few methods are available to assist an architect to understand such impacts during the design process. Thus, this paper examines the viability of using two computational methods to examine potential visual stimulus-sensation relationships in facade design. The first method, fractal analysis, is used to holistically measure the visual stimuli of a design. This paper describes both the box counting (density) and differential box counting (intensity) approaches to determining fractal dimension (D) in architecture. The second method, visual attention simulation, is used to explore pre-attentive processing and sensation in vision. Four measures—D-density (Dd), D-intensity (Di), heat map and gaze sequence—are used to provide quantitative and qualitative indicators of the ways people read different design options. Using two façade designs as examples, the results of this application reveal that the D values of a façade image have a relationship with the pre-attentive processing shown in heat map and gaze sequence simulations. The findings are framed as a methodological contribution to the field, but also to the disciplinary knowledge gap about the stimulus-sensation relationship and visual reasoning in design.
... Wicked resource problems ignore the boundaries that shape our public sphere and the responses to address them need to 'transcend these boundaries, including governmental, sectoral, jurisdictional, geographic, and even conceptual demarcations' (Emerson and Nabatchi, 2015:7). The fact that wicked problems cannot be addressed by a single organisation acting alone means that a collectively accepted solution through some form of collaboration is required (Parrott, 2017;Fischer et al., 2017;Hocking et al., 2016;Emerson and Nabatchi, 2015). The primary focus should be on problem formulation (or framing), based on discussions with stakeholders, to incorporate their perspectives (Mitroff and Linstone, 1993) and to ensure that all relevant variables are included in the analysis (Wassen et al., 2011). ...
In academic circles, international maritime boundaries have received renewed interest as a consequence of geopolitically charged events. As marine resources become scarcer, transboundary ecosystems that were previously looked upon as peripheral are increasing in importance. Over 200 maritime boundaries are as yet unresolved due largely to conflicting and entrenched legal or political positions or limited political will to break the impasse. Intractable conflicts that occur in these contexts are highly political, long-term, complex, dynamic and extremely resistant to change despite genuine efforts to resolve them. Whilst some borders have a legally common delimited line agreed by adjoining states through an international agreement, they can be fiercely contested by one side despite a formally agreed framework. In other border areas, when ownership of a territory is disputed, the absence of an agreement on ownership and a clearly defined boundary line creates potential for conflict. Examples of both of these scenarios within the marine environment were examined as in-depth case studies in this thesis. This study addressed the complexity associated with resolving conflicts in contested transboundary marine ecosystems and explored whether agreed maritime boundaries are essential, or whether some resource conflicts can be successfully managed through informal arrangements or resource sharing regimes in contested marine ecosystems.
A multi-perspective interdisciplinary meta-analytical framework and timeline mapping technique was applied in two diverse case studies from the Global North and Global South: Lough Foyle separating the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland and Palk Bay separating India and Sri Lanka. Primary and secondary data collection included extensive fieldwork in both study sites, desktop research, media content analyses, participatory GIS conflict hot-spot mapping and 67 semi-structured interviews with key informants representing government, industry, the research community and civil society. Trajectory of Change Timelines were developed for both case studies as a tool for the systematic analysis of the protracted conflicts through the identification of parallel historical and geopolitical transformations that have influenced the status quo. Based on the case study findings, a number of prominent contextual factors and uncertainties that drive resource conflicts in contested regions were identified; (i) the footprint of the past: the legacy of colonialism and arbitrarily drawn boundaries; (ii) coastal border regions: the paradox of spatial proximity to neighbouring States and peripherality from the seats of political power; (iii) strategy or apathy: the consequences of political inaction; (iv) the limitations of LOSC and existing theories of environmental governance; (v) the challenges of moving away from traditional approaches based on political boundaries towards integrated ecosystem-based governance.
Transboundary environmental governance in these settings is inherently a political process, ultimately determined by the broader historical and geopolitical context, and often subject to apathy or strategy by neighbouring coastal states. Resource conflicts arising from contested marine ecosystems pose insights into a level of complexity and uncertainty in real-world scenarios that fail to align with conventional principles or theoretical best practice frameworks. Political leadership is critical in addressing transboundary issues through cooperative approaches with neighbouring jurisdictions. Conceptual or theoretical best practice frameworks for environmental governance are immaterial if political leaders are not willing to come to the table and agree on pathways to break the impasse. The following evidence-based insights for future governance options of contested marine ecosystems were formulated within the context of current geopolitical realities: breaking the political deadlock by re- framing the issue; ‘agreeing to agree’ by reaching a bilateral agreement supported and implemented by both Governments on a mutually acceptable boundary line; or ‘agreeing to disagree’ on boundary delimitation but cooperating through a joint development scheme.
... We live in a world united by Infotech, global flows of people, ideas and goods which is a fertile ground for collective thinking, learning and strong collaboration at national, international and global level. According to Hocking et al. 2016) collective thinking (individualintrospective, biophysical-observations, social-narratives, ethical-principles, aesthetic-senses, sympatheticfeelings, reflective-synergistic understanding) is a multifaceted approach where each of seven ways of understanding is both a whole in itself, and a part of the whole of the individual's understanding. Examining wicked problems from the seven ways of understanding collective thinking is a method of getting a comprehensive understanding of problems as well as getting better ways of tackling them. ...
... Examining wicked problems from the seven ways of understanding collective thinking is a method of getting a comprehensive understanding of problems as well as getting better ways of tackling them. Collective mind (see table 1) based on collective thinking and learning and action involves individual collective mind and community collective mind (Hocking et al. 2016). Collective action involves participation in groups, organizations and social movements that have shared goals and it is fundamental for identity formation through common experience and mutual interactions. ...
Despite the intensive globalization and an attractive idea of human cosmopolitism the world is still divided into rival nations and religions, with confronting ethics and many war conflicts across the globe producing and perpetuating huge mental health problems. Radicalism, malignant nationalism, pathological religiosity and violent extremism and terrorism are important issues from the public and global mental health perspective. Public and global mental health research can inform preventive strategies and interventions against malignant nationalism, pathological religiosity and violent extremism. Healthy spirituality, sound religiosity and normal nationalism may contribute significantly to public and global mental health and promotion of empathic civilization. The aim of this paper is to address, stress and support mutual understanding and creative cooperation between religions and nations in promotion of public and global mental health, research, patient care and education.
... Wicked problem thinking is evolving apparently aligned in the literature with the increasing recognition of complexity science. Scholars frame issues as wicked problems associating to multiactor networks and collaborative partnerships (Artmann, 2015;Dentoni and Bitzer, 2015;Frame, 2008;Hartmann, n.d.;Hocking et al., 2016;Perry, 2015;Tietjen and Jørgensen, 2016). We consider this concept fit well with the sustainability and sustainable development complexity discussed in the literature as above described, in accordance with authors that suggest that sustainability problems, in all of its manifestations, can be seen as wicked problems (Andersson and T€ ornberg, 2017; Waddock, 2013), which do not need to be taken as good or bad but just as complex problems with no unique or immediate solution (Peters, 2017). ...
Researchers and organizations have been restless in their efforts to explain sustainability and adopt models that enable more sustainable practices. The wide latitude of the sustainability concept, recognized in multiple contexts, motivated this research aimed at understanding meanings of underlying patterns and logics in the use of the terms ‘sustainability’ and ‘sustainable’. The purpose has been to find evidence that could support the argument of whether the apparent plurality of sustainability could be perhaps more a form of arbitrariness. A systematic search method was used to review a significant body of literature, using objective and subjective analysis, also intending to reduce arbitrariness and subjectivity in the research method. The research analysed the top published articles on sustainability, or sustainable-X (X for types of development), in relation to eight development sectors (Urban, Energy, Transports, Land use, Agriculture, Forest, Ocean, Supply chain) and five perspectives (Business, Corporate, Community, Science, Education). Content analyses was used to explore characteristics of sustainability in almost 1000 academic papers published in peer-reviewed journals between 2011 and 2018, and observations were categorized. This paper shares the main results of this research. The complexity of the concept is evident in the results achieved, revealing a significant plurality, but also dispersion in understandings and some arbitrariness in its use. Findings also reveal increasing signs of understanding sustainability and sustainable-X as a complex and integrative concept which cannot be oversimplified, however needs to be made as concrete and actionable as possible.
... The characteristics of a 'wicked' problem is that stakeholders cannot easily agree on the problem definition, and options for solutions are not clear beforehand (Rittel and Webber, 1973). To solve 'wicked' problems, a collectively accepted solution is required (Hocking et al., 2015). Therefore the main focus should be on the problem formulation, based on discussions with stakeholders, to incorporate their perspectives (Mitroff and Linstone, 1993;Shim et al., 2002) and to ensure that all relevant variables are included in the analysis (Shim et al., 2002;Wassen et al., 2011). ...
