Random Musings:

Methods For Resolvoing Wicked Problems - 3

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By Robert E. Horn (Stanford University and MacroVU, Inc.) and Robert Weber (Strategy Kinetics, LLC)

This is the third in a series of "blogicles" on how Mess Mapping™ and Resolution Mapping™ processes can be used to represent, analyze, evaluate Wicked Problems and then to choose actions that ameliorate the Wicked Problem at hand.

Organizing some form of working group—a management committee, task force, commission—is often a first step in addressing many social, organizational, and institutional problems whose essential nature is that of a Wicked Problem (equivalently, Social Mess).

Wicked Problems - Social Messes - 2

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By Robert E. Horn (Stanford University and MacroVU, Inc.) and Robert Weber (Strategy Kinetics, LLC)

This is the second in a series of “blogicles” on methods for resolving Wicked Problems. In the first installment, we noted the pioneering work of Rettel and Weber, who defined Wicked Problems mainly in the context of Urban Planning. Various contributors (e.g., Jeff Conklin) have extended their initial formulation in other directions. Here we focus on multi-system and multi-institution problems that Horn has been calling Social Messes. (For convenience, we use the terms Wicked Problems and Social Messes interchangeably.)

Tools For Resolving Wicked Problems: Mess Mapping and Resolution Mapping - 1

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By Robert E. Horn (Stanford University and MacroVU, Inc.) and Robert Weber (Strategy Kinetics, LLC) 

This is the first of a series of "blogicles" on how Mess Mapping and Resolution Mapping processes can be used to represent, analyze, evaluate Wicked Problems and then to choose actions that ameliorate the Wicked Problem at hand.

In 1973, Rittel and Webber published an article defining "Wicked Problems." Especially in the context of Urban Planning, they wrote that Wicked Problems have these defining characteristics: