thechallengesofintegrationand …€¦ · challenge$2:$lack$of$agreed$terminology$ •...

The Challenges of Integration and Implementation in Systems Approaches to Complex Problems: Would a New

Discipline Help?

Gabriele Bammer

Overview… •  Challenges and consequences

•  Discipline and “Big Science” project

•  Integration and Implementation Sciences (I2S)

•  A Plavour of the I2S Development Drive

•  Next steps

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Current state: Three challenges

•  Fragmented and marginalised networks

•  Lack of agreed terminology

•  Lack of appreciation of the scale of the task

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Challenge 1: Fragmented networks

Lack of links between systems and “inter”-‐disciplinary networks

Each with their own small conferences… (about 200 people)

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Fragmented networks… 2 Lots of useful concepts and methods

But no central compilations

Therefore hard to get: •  overall view of what is known •  access to an array of options

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Challenge 2: Lack of agreed terminology •  Limited uniPied systems concepts (http://i2s.anu.edu.au/projects/uniPied-‐systems-‐concepts)

•  Confusion between inter-‐, multi-‐, trans-‐, cross-‐disciplinary

•  Not to mention: post-‐normal science, systemic intervention, integrated assessment, sustainability science, team science, mode 2 and action research

•  Coverage of a wide range of practice (thousands of researchers)…

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Consequences 1.  Intellectually weak -‐ no agreed body of work -‐ no links between theory and practice -‐ dogma

2. Politically powerless and marginalised (academic decision making and research funding)

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Challenge 3: No appreciation of the scale of the task -‐ building an overarching intellectual framework -‐ developing better mechanisms to bring together

researchers using related methods on disparate problems

Needs… •  a discipline •  a “Big Science” project

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Why a discipline? •  Accepted way of organising and transmitting knowledge internationally

•  College of peers: professional associations, journals, conferences

•  Quality control •  Locus of power

But must avoid becoming self-‐referential Statistics as a model

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Why a “Big Science” project? Compile and classify: • existing concepts and methods • exemplar case studies • guides to other relevant knowledge

Develop the college of peers

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•  Next steps

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Disciplining Interdisciplinarity:

Integration and Implementation Sciences for Researching Complex Real-‐World

Problems

Integration and Implementation Sciences (I2S) = new discipline

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My focus

1.  Complex real-‐world problems eg inequality, organised crime, global climate change, rising health care costs…

2. Underpinned by a systems approach

3. Multiple methodological options -‐  no one “right” way

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Core ingredients… 1

•  Bring together expertise from different disciplines

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•  -‐ and stakeholders

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•  Take action (policy and practice change)

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•  Take action (policy and practice change)

•  BUT also consider unknowns

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Integration and Implementation Sciences (I2S): the organising framework

Three domains

5 Questions

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Three domains of I2S

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5-‐questions for systematic reporting and evaluation in I2S

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Five questions… Q1

1.  For what and for whom?

What is the research aiming to achieve and who is intended to benePit?

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2. Of what?

What is being dealt with: -‐  knowledge synthesis -‐  diverse unknowns -‐  provision of integrated research support for policy and practice change?

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3. How?

Methods for -‐  knowledge synthesis -‐  consideration of diverse unknowns -‐  provision of integrated research support -‐  by whom and when?

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4. Context?

What circumstances affect the research and the ability to implement the results

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5. Success?

What is the outcome: -‐ knowledge synthesis -‐ consideration of diverse unknowns and -‐ provision of integrated research support for policy and practice change?

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Five questions… merits

Planning (future) Description (present) Reporting (past)

Can be used in any order Key issue is that all used and all elements addressed

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Five questions… for Domain 1

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What’s the innovation? Flexible way to systematically approach report on and evaluate

research on complex problems

There is nothing else

Focus on options rather than prescription

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What’s next? Finding, compiling and classifying the options

= I2S Development Drive

Let me give you a Plavour…

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A Plavour of the I2S Development Drive

1.  Modelling methods 2.  A more comprehensive approach to

unknowns

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Models (thanks to Jen Badham)… 1

•  Different techniques suitable for different problems – different aspects of the system emphasised

•  No established classiPication •  Varying ease of interpretation – May limit stakeholder involvement

•  Different data needs – May limit feasibility

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Models… 2

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Uses of models

1.  Organise information 2.  Synthesise understandings 3.  Guide research or data collection 4.  Communicate 5.  Forecast 6.  Compare options

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Compilation of modelling methods… 1

1.  Final model Different partial view of the whole system (everything is connected to everything else)

2. Process -‐  Synthesis of different perspectives

-‐  IdentiPication of unknowns -‐  Planning for action 34


Five groupings: 1. Static diagrams 2. Dynamic subsystems 3. Dynamic individuals

Target system

4. Scenarios – outcome

5. Statistical – relationships, not system

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Five groupings: 1.  Static diagrams (strong dialogue components) • Concept mapping • Soft systems methodology • Lean systems • Social network analysis

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Static diagrams… 1

Picture of the system (model does more)

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Static diagrams… 2 Concept map

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Static diagrams… 3 Soft systems rich picture

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Static diagrams… 4 Lean system

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Static diagrams… 5 Social network

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Five groupings: 1. Static diagrams 2.  Dynamic subsystems • Causal loop diagrams • System dynamics

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Dynamic subsystems… 1 Causal loop diagrams

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Dynamic subsystems… 2 System dynamics models

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Five groupings: 1. Static diagrams 2. Dynamic subsystems 3.  Dynamic individuals • State transition • Discrete event simulation • Agent based

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Main Points

No way to get complete view of problem

Different systems view highlight different elements and relationships

Models help get handles on systems views

Few compilations

No agreed classiPication

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A Plavour of the I2S Development Drive

1.  Modelling methods 2.  A more comprehensive approach to

unknowns

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Unknowns

Less well developed (more than risk) Blind spot in western thought

General orientation: •  Unlimited unknowns and limited research

capacity •  Different ways of understanding unknowns

Mike Smithson

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Unlimited unknowns

•  Constant innovation and change

•  On-‐going research

•  Irreducible unknowns

•  Limited methods

•  BenePits of unknowns

And limited research capacity 49

Different ways of understanding unknowns… 1

Flavour only

•  Disciplines – synthesis needed!

•  Matrix

•  Typology

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STATISTICS - probability theory

Intelligence – gaps or overload

History – moral dimension

Music – essential for creativity

Art – certainty and uncertainty are a continuum, not opposites

Futures – unknown unknowns Complexity - irreducible

Religion – desirable vs fundamentalism

Complexity - irreducible

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Matrix

Known knowns Known unknowns (conscious ignorance)

Unknown knowns (tacit knowledge)

Unknown unknowns (meta-‐ignorance)

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Smithson’s Typology

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Different ways of managing unknowns… 1

Discipline-‐based training – focus on unknowns to reduce, banish the rest

Disciplinary excellence – pick productive unknowns (not dead end or trivial)

Systems-‐based focus (problem as a whole) – worry about what’s been banished

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Six strategies: 1. Reduce (Gain more knowledge and/or increase

constraints) 2. Banish (Set aside as “out of bounds” and therefore

not dealt with) 3. Accept (Construct decisions and actions that take

unknowns into account) eg strategic foresighting

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4. Exploit (Amplify; Generate or reinforce)

5. Surrender to (Relinquishment; Adopt a fatalistic or nihilistic stance)

6.  Deny (Treat as non-existent)

Can be adaptive or maladaptive

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Consequence of: •  Unknowns But also •  Boundary setting •  Systems •  Values •  Big picture context

Imperfection is inevitable

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•  Next steps

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Next steps... 1 Testing the ideas: a) commentaries Disciplining

Interdisciplinarity

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Next steps… 2 Testing the ideas: b) courses Disciplining

Interdisciplinarity

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Next steps… 3 A general resources compilation – website and newsletter

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New resource… Concepts for co-‐production of knowledge Enengel, Barbara; Muhar, Andreas; Penker, Marianne; Freyer, Bernhard; Drlik, Stephanie; and, Ritter, Florian. (2012).

Co-production of Knowledge in Transdisciplinary Doctoral Theses on Landscape Development – An Analysis of Actor Roles and Knowledge Types in Different Research Phases. Landscape and Urban Planning, 105, 1-2: 106-117.

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Next steps… 4 New projects:

Eg Making decisions when experts disagree

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For more on I2S

http://i2s.anu.edu.au

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