Dear Terry,
Now we have shifted back from a specific discussion on the meaning of
legitimacy and the nature of stakeholders to the larger thread on the
nature of wicked problems.
Enjoyed your post. Must think. I will not attempt an answer before August.
I do offer a document that contains thousands of problems that seems
to be wicked, and seemingly lie outside the perception or reaction of
any one designer.
Check the problems in the Encyclopedia of World Problems and Human
Potential on the web site of the Union of International Associations.
http://www.uia.org/encyclopedia/volall.php
Whatever we choose to call them and however we define them in detail,
I assert that there are such things as wicked problems. These
problems meet the basic criteria defined in Rittel's articles. There
may be better or more sophisticated definitions, or definitions that
add layers of detail, but Rittel describes the general nature and
direction of the category of problem he labels wicked problems.
Without stating that there are any easy solutions or resolutions,
simply changing our view or vocabulary will not change the reality.
The world exhibits tough, intractable, difficult problems located in
the world itself, outside the construction or perception of any one
participant or observer.
Even though we have struggled with this concept for many years, it
seems to me that the concept is nevertheless useful. This is not a
case of slapping new paint on old shutters.
If you can show me how changing the designer's reaction will change
the nature of the difficult, recursive problems described in the
Encyclopedia, I might be ready to concede that the concept of wicked
problems is no longer significant. If you can show me a better
epistemology or ontology, please do.
So far, I see a world filled with the kinds of problems that fit
Rittel's label. It is likely that we can get a grip on some of them
through better understanding. Some of them may eliminate us before we
do.
Yours,
Ken
--
Prof. Ken Friedman
Institute for Communication, Culture, and Language
Norwegian School of Management
Oslo
Center for Design Research
Denmark's Design School
Copenhagen
+47 46.41.06.76 Tlf NSM
+47 33.40.10.95 Tlf Privat
email: [log in to unmask]
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