Embracing the Wildness! Affective Transformation of Wicked Problems

Abstract

Over the past decades, it has become increasingly clear that the instrumental effectiveness and specialized problem-solving approaches upon which we have built our welfare states, are poorly equipped to address the complex and wicked social problems that have become an inherent aspect of contemporary society. These problems differ from causal, simple problems, as they are intricately intertwined across functions and disciplines in a way that makes them hard, if not impossible, to solve. Hence, there is a need for a fundamental transformation and expansion of the scope of actions available within the public sector to address wicked problems.
This thesis draws upon the theoretical field of systems theory and affective studies to provide a comprehensive analysis of how a medium-sized municipality addresses the wicked problem of loneliness among elderly citizens. Using document analysis, qualitative interviews, and field research, I investigate how the municipality’s scope of action towards the problem is transformed through its participation in creative and aesthetic methods in a Local Sustainability Laboratory (Laboratorium til Lokal Bærekraft). I show how these methods sensitize the participants toward the affective dimension of the problem, enabling them to transcend the boundaries of a functionally structured problem-solving logic. I then identify three strategies that illustrate how the participants actualize the transformed scope of action in the functionally structured municipality, presenting an operational level of the transformation.
The main conclusion of the thesis is that the municipality’s approach is transformed from a functionally oriented perspective, to a potentializing one, continuously emerging and tending towards the inherent potentiality of the situation. This new logic views the problem from the perspective of the local community rather than the municipality, making it sensitive and affectively attuned to underlying potentials and creative actions.
The thesis also discusses the implication for organization, strategy, and leadership in the public sector if the potentializing logic is to be actualized (and re-actualized). It is also suggested that the thesis can be interpreted within the greater context of a paradigm shift, where the potentializing approach becomes a new normative way for the public sector to address wicked problems.