Abstract
This paper presents a theoretical construct for assessing wicked problems as they occur in complex situations and defining problem context. The construct of understanding presents a way for assessing a problem as perceived by an observer. It is suggested that the paradigm of sole full analysis in a complex situation is not feasible when these two conditions are present and pervasive. It is suggested that a synoptic perspective (high level perspective) may be more useful to establish not only what is perceived as reducible and transient within a situation, but also to assess the individual that perceives the situation. To elaborate on the construct, fuzzy logic is suggested as a way to quantify the perception of irreducible and transient variables.
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Notes
- 1.
Refer to Rittel and Webber (1973) for the complete list and explanation of these characteristics.
- 2.
What can be known is associated in this case with epistemic uncertainty, and what cannot be known (and perhaps can be inferred) with aleatory uncertainty. In the reliability literature epistemic uncertainty and aleatory uncertainty are used within this context. The former can be overcome by adding more information while the latter cannot and different approaches may be needed to deal with it (Hora 1996; Durga et al. 2006).
- 3.
In this context, situational understandability is not to be confused with situation awareness (Endsley et al. 2003). Situation awareness was designed to address systemic problems in terms of reducible problems within a stable-state (Endsley et al. 2003). In addition, situation awareness is monotonic in nature, meaning that all the information that is collected of the system keeps on aggregating. Situational understandability as it is conceptualized is oriented towards dealing with complex situations addressing their transience and irreducible conditions in a nonmonotonic fashion, meaning that all info that is collected may increase or decrease the understanding of the situation.
- 4.
This representation assumes that the behavior is fundamentally better able to deal with intransient, reducible conditions.
- 5.
s is a statement or assertion that can be assigned the Boolean value of true or false.
- 6.
Padilla posits that not-understanding is a form of understanding in which a person says he/she does not understand. Understanding results from the proper matching of knowledge, worldview and problem. Not-understanding results from an improper matching. For further explanation on what ‘proper’ means, please refer to Padilla (2010).
- 7.
It is noted that Padilla uses a different problem categorization. While he acknowledges usages such as soft and hard or well-defined and ill-defined problems, he categorizes them as problems about structure and problems about behavior.
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Padilla, J.J. (2013). Understanding and Complex Situations. In: Kovacic, S., Sousa-Poza, A. (eds) Managing and Engineering in Complex Situations. Topics in Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality, vol 21. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-5515-4_4
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