Solving complex problems requires understanding the context

In order to understand a complex problem situation, it is necessary to first develop a robust understanding of its context. This requires exploration of the context from various “zoom levels.”

At the core of the frame creation process is a complex movement of zooming out and zooming in: first, widening the scope from a consideration of the problem itself and setting it in its immediate context, the problem owner. And then proceeding to the wider context, considering the other players that have been involved in the problem situation before. This first zooming-out step explores the players and the actions they have taken in and around the problem situation (and tries to understand which actions they might be prepared to take in the future). Beyond that, we expand our horizon to the broader field. This expansion toward the wider field is a rather special phase because we are jumping from the study of the behavior patterns of stakeholders into the realm of speculative thought, reflecting on what parties might be involved in the future and building up an image of how these parties understand their reality. This jump into the world of speculative thought then allows us to ponder the possibilities that are sparked by the emergence of common themes. From these “universals” we can create new frames for the problem situation, leading to proposed actions that can be critically appraised.^[1]

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