PULSE cube Paradigms and Theories for Creating Opportunities and Solving Problems

PULSE3

Theory for Practice and the Quest for

Better Decision-making

By

Dr. Richard Meissner

Water Governance Group

Natural Resources and the Environment

Council for Scientific and Industrial Research

Outline

• Rationale • Conceptualisation of theory • Theory’s purpose • Theory and practice • PULSE3

• Component #1: Paradigm assessment • Component #2: Ethos of scientific variation • Component #3: Theories for practice

• Theories and paradigms influence the way people perceive

reality and react to reality.

- A theory explains the relationship between phenomena through

the presentation of a number of simplifications that consist of

interrelated assumptions, definitions, ideas and proposals.

• Theories and paradigms are closely related to practice.

- Theories help us to organise and communicate the large volume

of data we are bombarded with on a daily basis.

• We all develop and use theories every time we assess an

issue or situation.

- Theories are part of the never ending cognitive processes by

which we observe, experience, think about, understand and act.

• There is an unwarranted negative perception and attitude

towards theories and their role in society.

- This blame rests on both theorists’ and practitioners’ shoulders.

- Theories are seen as irrelevant to policies and practices.

Rationale

Conceptualisation of Theory

• Theories are unable to directly manage the world’s messiness.

- Yet, theories can smooth the path towards better management in

the public and private sectors when better appreciated.

• Not only a disdain towards theory, but also a positive perception

towards one type of theory or paradigm.

- Rationalism put forward as the only legitimate paradigm.

• This is because theory is conceptualised in a narrow sense.

- Fundamental laws that explain, control and predict.

• This narrow conceptualisation may not explain a variety of

theory’s purpose.

- Theories can also explain social phenomena that do not follow

regular laws.

• The use of theory in the narrow confines of science is

restrictive. - We have to broaden our conceptualisation of theory, especially in

terms of it purpose.

• Theory is always for someone and for some purpose. - To assert power and influence.

• Theories have other purposes too, apart from explaining,

controlling and predicting.

- Outline questions about opportunities and problems.

- Anticipate answers.

- Improve understanding and decision-making.

• Interpretive and critical theories operate in the domain where

people interact.

- They deal with policy and practice.

• The rationalist view is therefore not the only view.

- Rationalism not strictly applicable on the social world.

• Concepts to describe social reality are not reality itself.

- Prediction falls by the way side.

• Prediction rests on a mistaken analogy in the social science

between social and physical phenomenon. - Relatively few actors.

- Complexity can make simple statistical comparisons misleading.

- Conceptions of phenomenon change over time.

Theory’s Purpose

• What does this tell us about the governance of natural

resources and practicalities like sustainable development?

- Use of theories in South Africa water resource management research and recommendations.

- Strategic issues management. - Environmental impact assessment.

- Catchment management agencies.

• Dominant theories can engrain certain notions in the minds of

scientists, practitioners and the general public.

- Adaptive management in catchment management strategies.

• A better appreciation of things rationalism has difficulty in

explaining is needed.

- Change due to fundamental social processes.

- Ambiguity/uncertainty.

- Paradox/contradiction.

• Interpretivist and critical theories are also needed to better our

understanding of events.

• Foundation of PULSE3.

Theory and practice

• People Understanding and Living in a Sustained Environment.

• Cube denotes three forces: thinking, shaping and change.

• PULSE3 analyses practices, plans, projects and programmes

on a paradigmatic level.

- Theory has a considerable impact on these and shapes how

practitioners see the world.

• PULSE3 recognises individuals, interest groups, scientists and

private companies as powerful actors.

• It has an interpretivist and critical agenda, but does not reject

rationalism.

• PULSE3 consists of three components.

- Paradigm assessment

- The ethos of scientific variation

- Repertoire of theories for practice

PULSE3

• Paradigm is used in the sense of a research tradition about

knowledge production.

• Paradigm binds the work of a group of theorists.

• Paradigms can also be described as a world view.

• Paradigms are not permanent features of the scientific

landscape.

• The difference between interpretivism and rationalism can

assist in the profiling of the underlying paradigm backing

research of projects, plans and programmes. Paradigm

Assessment.docx

• Value 0 = absent, 1 = present, 0.5 = both are present.

• Paradigm assessment can help in determining what is being

missed from the research or theory underpinning the action.

• A predominant rationalist paradigm can hold dire

consequences for the natural environment and also the

societies it sustains.

• The amount of time and resources spent on a rationalist

agenda can detract scientists from problems lurking in the

shadows impeding understanding and innovation.

Component #1: Paradigm Assessment

• If rationalism has blind spots, what is the alternative?

• Scientific variation that includes both social and natural sciences, different research methods in both disciplines.

• Rationale is to avoid paradigmatic compartmentalisation. - Arguing from one paradigm can become an obstacle

in understanding. - Scientific variation does not discard established

paradigms or traditions, but explores the substantive relationships and reveal the hidden connections between theories from opposite sides.

• Scientific variation is not complexity theory.

• Scientific variation is not transdisciplinarity.

• Scientific variation is not theoretical synthesis.

• Scientific variation has three pillars - Open-ended problem formulation.

- Middle-range causal account integrating complex interactions.

- Connecting scholarly debates with problems.

• Promise: not simplicity and confirmation bias.

Component #2: Ethos of Scientific

Variation

• To apply scientific variation one must have a repertoire of theories to choose from.

• This is to prevent PULSE3 from becoming a panacea 1. Agential power

2. Ambiguity theory of leadership

3. Complexity theory

4. Cultural theory of International Relations

5. Everyday international political economy

6. Feminisms

7. Hydro-social contract theory

8. Interactive governance theory (Governability)

9. Interest group corporatism

10.Interest group pluralism

11.Marxism

12.Modernity

13.Neo-liberalism (Liberal pluralism)

14.Neo-realism (Realism)

15.Normative commensalism

16.Political ecology or Green politics

17.Social constructivism

18.Strategic adaptive management or adaptive management

19.Theory of social learning and policy paradigms.

Component #3: Theories for Practice

Organisations and PULSE3 • US Army Corps of Engineers.

?

© CSIR 2009 www.csir.co.za

Thank you for listening

Richard Meissner (D.Phil)

Senior Researcher: Water Resource Governance Systems Research Group

CSIR - Natural Resources and the Environment Unit

PO Box 395

Room S210

Building 33

Pretoria

Meiring Naude Road

0001

Brummeria

Tel: 012 841 3696

Cell: 071 677 6262

Fax: 012 842 70311

E-mail: [email protected]