“Fall in love with the problem, not with the solution.”
I was reminded about this huge design cliché when reading Frame Innovation during the Covid-19 outbreak. The author of this totally non-cliché book is Kees Dorst, a professor of Design Innovation in Australia and The Netherlands.
In his book, Dorst describes how modern problems are open (no boundaries), complex (many elements and relationships), dynamic (change over time) and networked (across organizations).
That sounded a bit like the virus outbreak we are experiencing now, right? In any case, it’s a problem that everyone is now “in love with”.
For these modern problems, all we know is what the desired outcomes are according to Dorst. However, the elements (people, things) and their relations (connections) are unknown. Therefore, traditional problem-solving techniques (like the inductive or deductive reasoning) don’t work. Elements and patters of relations emerge through a process of what Dorst calls “design abduction”.
Phew, that was a lot of designer lingo.
Let’s use the example of contact-tracing for patients infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus to turn the abstract into the concrete.
The anticipated outcome is clear: avoiding a further spread of the Covid-19 disease by patients that were recently tested positive. On the what and how to reach this outcome, there a lot of vocal (and self-proclaimed) key opinion leaders, but there is no unanimity in the public debate.
So, let’ me be audacious and apply the key steps of the frame innovation process here and see where it brings me.
Archeology
The first step of frame innovation is to investigate the depth of the problem and look at any earlier attempts. In this case, one could study current practices for tracking tuberculosis or ebola. Or, one could investigate emerging technological solutions like contact-tracing apps or physical distancing wearables.
Paradox
At the core of really hard problems, there is paradox of two or more conflicting statements. Stating the paradox often demonstrates why the problem is hard to solve. Here I took a stab at the paradox with a few statements:
- “Because people that tested positive may have infected other people, the government wants to know who they had close contact with.”
- “Because people that tested positive feel stigmatized, they don’t want to share who they had close contact with.”
- “Because people that tested positive are concerned about their privacy, they don’t want to give the government insight in their whereabouts.”
- “Because people without symptoms don’t know if they are infected, they have no reason to ask for a test.”
- “Because newly infected yet untested people may not experience any symptoms, they need to isolate themselves.”
Context & Field
In the next two steps of the frame creation process, designers study the current practices of all key stakeholders/decision makers and then radically widen the context to a very wide intellectual, economical, cultural and social space, mapping power, interests, values and practices.
Oh wait, that would assume (1) a high degree of transparency and (2) a profound integrity for the res publica of those key stakeholders and decision makers. That would certainly be challenge in my country ?. Let me assume for the sake of this example that miracles can happen in Belgium.
Themes
The ever-widening concentric circles of context and field will point to the key themes in the paradox. These themes uncover the deeper factors that underlie needs, motivation and experiences of all players in this wider field.
In my example, public health, privacy and economy would be self-evident themes, but we could also look beyond the obvious and think of techno-optimism, de/centralization of power or citizenship.
Frames
When common themes emerge, we can turn to the central step of the frame innovation process: the reframing of the problem situation. Every frame is a new way of looking at the problem, generating new insights and ideas for all stakeholders.
In the case of contact-tracing, I noticed that our prime minister was making an appeal for citizenship, something that is not typically Belgian. (We are known for our creativity with rules, especially tax legislation.)
One example of a frame leading to this appeal could have been:
“If the problem of contact-tracing is approached as if it is a problem of failing altruistic behaviors, then citizenship could be a central theme in the government’s communication strategy.”
Here is another example:
“If the problem of contact-tracing is approached as if it is a problem of trust in the regional and federal authorities, local community representatives could participate in contact-tracing.
Futures
In the process, you create first dozens of possible frames before you seek realistic and viable solutions. This is the moment that design abduction takes place. The “what” and “how” are getting concrete.
For example, from now on all ruling Belgian politicians will call for citizenship and become role models themselves (i.e. no lockdown barbecues or parties anymore, just to name something).
I know, I know, this is a hypothetical example, but I hope that the attentive reader of this article can apply some layers of abstraction and understand the process I aim to illustrate.
Transformation & Integration
After a critical evaluation of what can be done on the short and long term, organizations participating in the frame creation process collaborate on implementation roadmap. In the ideal situation, the newly discovered frames are integrated in the way of working of those organizations beyond, meaning that they are applied beyond the original problem situation.
You can see me referencing the long-term during a crisis situation and you will understand the ironic catch where I got trapped into. Politicians and policy makers are improvising, and their furthest outlook is two weeks.
I do believe that the frame innovation process would be an ideal method for solving the complex, open, networked and dynamic problems that we are now dealing with. However, this requires all stakeholders to let go of their current thinking and to be open to embrace new frames. Will our politicians and policy makers ever be ready to do so? ?
