Dr. Engr. Md. Sakawat Ali

E-mail: sakawat_ali@yahoo.com

Complex problems are typically defined as those that include the ability to approach them from multiple, sometimes competing, perspectives and which may have multiple possible solutions. Complex problem solving is a collection of self-regulated psychological processes and activities necessary in dynamic environments to achieve ill-defined goals that cannot be reached by routine actions. Creative combinations of knowledge and a broad set of strategies are needed.

 

What is a complex problem example?

Examples include climate change, world poverty, the global financial crisis, child abuse, terrorism and drug abuse. Each of these examples of complex problems impact directly on individuals, families and communities and have implications for the lives of real people.

 

Why is complex problem solving important?

Problem-solving is important both to individuals and organizations because it enables us to exert control over our environment. Problem-solving gives us a mechanism for identifying these things, figuring out why they are broken and determining a course of action to fix them.

 

Steps of Complex Problem Solving:

1. Analyze the causes to the unwanted situation
2. Generate a set of alternative interventions to achieve end goal
3. Choose and implement the best alternative
4. Evaluate the best  solutions
5. Assesses  effectiveness
6. Implement necessary plan

Complex Problem Solving Skills is given below:

1. Active Listening
2. Fact Finding
3. Historical Analysis
4. Needs Identification
5. Data Gathering
6. Data Analysis
7. Causal Analysis
8. Process Analysis
9. Brainstorming
10. Creative Thinking
11.  Prediction
12. Forecasting
13. Project Planning
14. Project Design
15. Corroboration
16. Mediation
17. Prioritizing
18. Analysis
19. Teamwork
20. Test Development

 

Complex problems share a number of characteristics including:

1. The “solution” to the problem depends on how the problem is understood
2. The problem is not really understood until after it has been addressed
3. The problem cannot be completely solved
4. People involved can have very different world views and have radically different views about the causes of the problem and the best way to respond
5. Solutions to complex problems are not true or false, but good or bad, or better or worse
6. We cannot know beforehand what impact our interventions will have
7. Every complex problem is essentially unique
8. Cause and effect is unknown and unknowable
9. Every solution to a complex problem is a “one-shot operation,” and every attempt has unintended consequences
10. Every complex problem can be considered to be a symptom of another problem.

 

One of the challenges of complex problems is that in order to understand the problem, we need to attempt to solve it but, particularly at a global and national level, solutions are often expensive and have “lasting unintended consequences which are likely to spawn new wicked problems”.

 

Addressing complex problems

Generally literature on complex problems advocates collaborative approaches to addressing complex problems, including community engagement.

The Australian Public Service Commission suggests that responding to complex problems requires:

1. Holistic rather than partial or linear thinking
2. Innovative and flexible approaches
3. The ability to work across agency boundaries.
4. Effectively engaging stakeholders and citizens in understanding the problem and in identifying possible responses
5. A comprehensive focus and/or strategy
6. Tolerating uncertainty and accepting the need for a long-term focus.

Because complex problems are beyond the scope of any single organization to understand and respond to, there is a need to engage a range of stakeholders.

The key to effective approaches to tackling wicked problems is creating a shared understanding between the stakeholders about the problem, and shared commitment to the possible solutions. This does not necessarily mean that there is complete agreement about the nature of the problem, but that the stakeholders understand each other’s positions well enough to have intelligent dialogue about the different interpretations of the problem, and to exercise collective intelligence about how to solve it.

Community engagement is central to engaging stakeholders as it is important that the people who are impacted by complex problems are recognized as stakeholders. Too often, stakeholder engagement focuses primarily on agencies and service providers rather than people with lived experience, so community engagement is vital to ensure a broader base for consultation, planning and decision-making.

Understanding that working with families and communities often involves complex problems can help explain why we cannot provide clear evidence about what works, why we cannot be confident about what the most effective approach will be in a given and why we need to continually reflect on our work.

 

 

Key Words: Complex Problem