Month: November 2014

Re-thinking participation in prospective exercises – part two (including, for something completely different, discussion of the prospect of legalised doping in professional sport!)

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Sociological perspectives tend to focus on the social world, what constitutes it and its influence on individuals, etc, rather than focussing their analysis on individuals (as, say, psychology does). Crucial foci are social structures of various types, the development and reproduction of social roles (and associated role structures), etc, and how these and related processes … [Read more…]

Rhetoric Versus reality in the use of scenario-based techniques

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Scholars examining the increasing use of scenario-based techniques have recently argued that most existing writing on the use of these techniques fails to substantively address the potential pitfalls of such techniques. In this post I want to raise a specific issue: it has been argued that effectively conducting scenario planning “requires unbiased consideration of multiple … [Read more…]

Re-thinking why people and groups participate in ‘foresight’ exercises – some initial thoughts

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A few core purposes are typically emphasised in the literature on foresight exercises and methods, such as: improving decision-making under uncertainty and coping better with uncertainty; anticipating opportunities and threats, ideally before others do; and identifying a wider range of options and opportunities. Sometimes other desired benefits are discussed such as: catalysing action and/or change; … [Read more…]