Administration & Society· 2013Q1· Review
Wicked Problems
- 1,465citations
- Q1SCImago
- 2013year
Short summary
This article synthesizes research on "wicked problems" to highlight their organizational and cognitive dimensions for public administration, identifying new approaches and challenges.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Key points
- Focuses on organizational and cognitive aspects of wicked problems in public administration.
- Identifies approaches from systems thinking, collaboration, and adaptive leadership.
- Highlights challenges in strategy, organizational design, people management, and performance measurement.
- Suggests provisional solutions can be developed for governance reform.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
The concept of “wicked problems” has attracted increasing focus in policy research, but the implications for public organizations have received less attention. This article examines the main organizational and cognitive dimensions emerging from the research literature on wicked problems. We identify several recent approaches to addressing problem complexity and stakeholder divergence based on the literatures on systems thinking, collaboration and coordination, and the adaptive leadership roles of public leaders and managers. We raise some challenges for public management in some key functional areas of government—strategy making, organizational design, people management, and performance measurement. We argue that provisional solutions can be developed, despite the difficulties of reforming governance processes to address wicked problems more effectively.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Administration & Society, 2013 · DOI ↗
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Field: Public Administration
Public AdministrationSocial Sciences