One Team Where Worlds Collide: The Development of Transcoherence for Tackling Wicked Problems

This thesis is concerned with teams. In particular, multidisciplinary teams that are exploring complex public policy development in relation to problems identified as wicked; in that they resist existing solutions. The mix of expertise in these teams frequently leads to collisions of conceptual worlds among the team members. In addition, these conflicts may also occur along social faultlines that reflect an individual's membership in other collectives outside the team. The result can be an increase in discordance between team members and a fragmentation of effort, leading to poor team performance. This has been recognised in the literature as a major cause of project failure when addressing wicked problems. I address this phenomenon through the study of the lived experience of a specific heterogeneous team that were working on the wicked problem of reconceptualising access to justice for all Australians. I combined this data with theoretical frameworks from multiple disciplines. The findings contribute to the existing body of knowledge in the following ways: Increased understanding of a multidimensional problem My exploration of the rich and entangled nature of the lived experience in heterogeneous teams found a larger mix of conflicts than is usually described in any of the individual streams of literature. In addition, there seemed to be no single term in the literature that adequately described the complexity of the collisions that I observed. In response, I propose an umbrella term, incoherence, to incorporate the multiple terms used to describe the reaction to and result of these collisions. Whereas the disciplinary literature tends to identify social groupings that align with a discipline's academic history, data from my field work uncovers multiple groupings that should all be included as the basis for social faultlines. I therefore propose an umbrella term and concept which can incorporate any of the underlying social groups found in heterogeneous teams: collective coherence. Understanding of a potential desired future state There is agreement in the literature that team conflict should be resolved, but not on how this should be achieved. Instead, proposed solutions are fragmented and often contradictory. My thesis aligns these fragments through the introduction of a third umbrella term, transcoherence, defined in this study as: an individual's ability to consciously straddle different intellectual worlds, and a multidisciplinary group's capacity to reduce social faultlines and develop synergies. Understanding the changes required for heterogeneous teams to move from the current fragmentation to a coherent future state For a team to build a transcoherence capability requires a means of dealing with the sense of incoherence that comes from collisions of worlds. Incorporating learning theory from multiple disciplines, I developed a version of a triple loop learning model as a heuristic to demonstrate the multiple ways in which people respond to and manage incoherence. Each loop of steps starts from and returns to 'coherence in equilibrium', the state of rest in the system. The use of action research I designed the research to be interactive, multilayered, iterative, qualitative, and transdisciplinary. I chose an overarching bricolage methodology, combining multiple methods of data collection, both formal and informal. This was possible as I was embedded in the team for a year as the person tasked with the role of facilitating collaboration. This gave me an opportunity to assess the opportunities and limits of catalytic facilitation in participatory action research. By this I mean that processes in the project were not controlled solely by the head of the project, nor did they function spontaneously. Rather, I was asked to join the team as facilitator of the collaborative process, to act as a catalyst, increasing the potential of the interactions of the various experts connected to the research

Social exclusion in british tennis: A history of privilege and prejudice

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.This study focuses on the issue of social exclusion in British tennis. It commences with a critique of current LTA policy, presenting exclusion as static, ahistorical and underpinned by false dichotomies of age and social class. Aspects of Norbert Elias’s theoretical approach are employed throughout as an analytical framework. Initially, the roots of exclusion in British tennis are sought through historical analysis. Aspects of the Civilising Process help direct attention towards wider social processes to explain the prevalence of exclusion, particularly in tennis clubs. Cost was a crucial factor in determining early access, but as tennis became more accessible to lower classes, codes of behavioural etiquette helped demarcate members along status lines. Into the mid-20th century, the globalisation, professionalisation and commercialisation of tennis pushed the LTA to adopt a more performance-oriented outlook, but this has come to oppose the more relaxed culture of tennis clubs. Thus, a power struggle emerged between these two institutions, and, underpinned by thirty interviews with leading figures in British tennis as well as extensive documentary analysis, the third section documents these developments from the 1980s. Crucially, tennis clubs remain largely amateur and voluntary-run organisations, yet are important locations for the implementation of the LTA’s demanding talent development objectives. These recent developments are understood with the help of Elias’s Game Models theory. The fourth section presents findings from a ten-month ethnographic study of social exclusion in a tennis club; a micro-analysis of club member relations underpinned by Elias’s Established-Outsider Relations theory. Overall findings suggest that social exclusion in British tennis is far more complex, multi-faceted and historically-rooted than what current LTA discourse presents. Differences in age and class are less central, and instead preconceived notions of social status based on longevity of membership, adherence to behavioural norms and playing standard are powerful determinants of inclusion

Engineering a Better Future

This open access book examines how the social sciences can be integrated into the praxis of engineering and science, presenting unique perspectives on the interplay between engineering and social science. Motivated by the report by the Commission on Humanities and Social Sciences of the American Association of Arts and Sciences, which emphasizes the importance of social sciences and Humanities in technical fields, the essays and papers collected in this book were presented at the NSF-funded workshop ‘Engineering a Better Future: Interplay between Engineering, Social Sciences and Innovation’, which brought together a singular collection of people, topics and disciplines. The book is split into three parts: A. Meeting at the Middle: Challenges to educating at the boundaries covers experiments in combining engineering education and the social sciences; B. Engineers Shaping Human Affairs: Investigating the interaction between social sciences and engineering, including the cult of innovation, politics of engineering, engineering design and future of societies; and C. Engineering the Engineers: Investigates thinking about design with papers on the art and science of science and engineering practice

A ‘dyslexia – friendly’ school, but only for the ‘right sort’ of dyslexic: Responding to individual differences in a private school context

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Education and awarded by Brunel University.This research set out to examine the barriers to a secondary private school in implementing dyslexia-friendly practice and responding to different needs, through an in-depth case study of a girls’ school where this was an acknowledged aim. Data were collected through participant observation, interviews with staff, pupils and other key informants. Adolescent girls were chosen as the focus in relation to issues of self-esteem. Before looking at potential barriers, perspectives of pupils in three different private schools for girls were examined in order to investigate how significant practices designated as dyslexia friendly were in the experience of adolescent girls. This suggested that there was no significant difference in the practices and teaching strategies found helpful by dyslexic or non-dyslexic pupils. What was significant was the strength of reaction to teaching strategies that were perceived as patronising or critical, despite often being intended as helpful. Examinations of teachers’ beliefs about the nature of difficulties showed that even where there appeared to be an interventionist perspective, this was diluted in the case of pupils who did not fit the profile of the ‘right sort of dyslexic’ who would reflect well on staff and school. Three significant barriers to the development of more inclusive practice were identified: the culture of autonomy in the classroom and suspicion of collaborative work; a high level of dependence on ability grouping; lack of consensus over the role of the Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO). Significance of the findings in relation to the current dichotomy in the wider educational setting between league table pressures on one hand and inclusive ideology on the other is discussed and suggestions are made about areas for further investigation

Towards inclusion: influences of culture and internationalisation on personhood, educational access, policy and provision for students with autism in Ghana

This research explores the ways in which local knowledge, attitudes and beliefs surrounding disability influence the socially constructed experience of autism in Ghana. It further explores the impact of these beliefs on educational access, policy and provision as well as on inclusion in wider society for both children with autism and their families. It is argued throughout that conceptualisations of both autism and disability are subtly, and at times unconsciously, shaped by cultural influences as well as individual experiences. Using semi-structured interviews, participatory methods and text analysis, this thesis first examines internationally accepted diagnostic criteria for cultural relevancy and concludes that while 'autism'does indeed transcend cultural barriers, its presentation is nonetheless culturally bound. The presentation of each of autism's 'triad of impairments' is explored in Ghana, namely communication and socialisation impairments alongside a restricted range of interests and repetitive behaviour patterns. Significantly, the experience of autism demonstrated in this thesis, at both a personal and familial level, is linked to, and negotiated through, cultural belief systems. A relatively shared 'worldview', understood as the culturally mediated lens through which autism and impairment are understood and managed in Ghanaian society, is outlined. Traditional values, a deep sense of spirituality and communal kinship responsibilities are highlighted. Next, an exploration of causal attributions, valued and de-valued personhood traits and the expected role of an adult in society each highlights significant influences on the perception and management of autism in Ghana. Throughout, this thesis focuses on the impact of autism, as constructed and understood in urban Ghana, on the individual, one's kin and broader society. The second half of this thesis focuses on educational access, policy and provision with particular attention to Ghana's burgeoning inclusive education efforts. Conceptualisations of disability and difference, as negotiated through Ghanaian culture, norms and history are explored alongside the implications of these beliefs in designing educational provision for students with autism as well as the socio-political pressures to adhere to large scale international movements such as Education for All (EFA). In particular, tensions between local and international conceptualisations of 'disability' and 'inclusion' are highlighted and it is concluded that adoption of international declarations into local policy, and subsequently into local practice, needs to be better negotiated alongside culturally relevant systems and beliefs. International declarations, rooted in a social model of disability, are found to clash with local conceptualisations of disability rooted in an often intuitive understanding of disability consistent with an individual model. However, consistency with an individual model did not equate to biomedical understandings of disability, which was instead mediated through a lens of socialrelational causation and management more consistent with religious or cultural models of disability. It is concluded that acknowledging and respecting Ghanaian understandings of disability is a prerequisite to ensuring inclusion of children with autism, both in education and their community. Adoption of laudable rights based international declarations must also ensure adaptation to local culture and context. Conclusions and recommendations for synergy between advocacy for, and education of, students with autism in Ghana are proffered

Contextualising empowerment practice: negotiating the path to becoming using participatory video processes

Participation and empowerment are major drivers of social policy, but participatory projects often happen within contested territory. This research interrogates the assumed participation-empowerment link through the example of participatory video. Fieldwork unpacks the particular approach of Real Time, an established UK project provider. Disrupting representational framing, the emergent relational processes catalysed were explored in context, to address not whether participatory video can increase participants’ influence, but how and in what circumstances. This thesis therefore builds more nuanced understanding of empowerment practice as the negotiated (rhizomic) pathway between social possibility and limitation. Following Deleuze, a becoming ontology underpinned study of project actors’ experiences of the evolving group processes that occurred. An action research design incorporated both collaborative sense-making and disruptive gaze. Analysis draws on interpersonal and observational data gathered purposively from multiple perspectives in 11 Real Time projects between 2006 and 2008. Five were youth projects and six with adults, two were women-only and one men-only, two with learning-disabled adults and four aimed at minority-ethnic participants. Participatory video as facilitated empowerment practice led to new social becoming by opening conducive social spaces, mediating interactions, catalysing group action and re-positioning participants. Videoing as performance context had a structuring and intensifying function, but there were parallel risks such as inappropriate exposure when internal and external dialogical space was confused. A rhizomic map of Real Time’s non-linear practice territory identifies eight key practice balances, and incorporates process possibilities, linked tensions, and enabling and hindering factors at four main sequential stages. Communicative action through iteratively progressing video activities unfolded through predictable transitions to generate a diversifying progression from micro to mezzo level when supported. This thesis thus shows how participatory video is constituted afresh in each new context, with the universal and particular in ongoing dynamic interchange during the emergent empowerment journey

Advocates or corporates : constructions of clinical nursing practice in Australia with regards to the idealisation of advocacy and autonomy

Although the idealisation of nurses as advocates is popularised in nursing literature and supported within nursing frameworks, codes and standards, there has been little critical examination of these ideas within contemporary Australian healthcare settings and nursing practice. The Australian Healthcare system is a complicated system of interacting service providers and consumers. Institutions that regulate healthcare professionals and organisations normalise understandings of nursing and nursing practice, including conceptualisations of the importance of autonomy and advocacy and how each is to be supported and/or practised. This study used the perceptions of practising Registered Nurses (RNs) to examine the actualities of advocacy and support for autonomy as they are carried out within clinical practice, and to highlight, problematise and then analyse differences between the rhetoric and realities of practice. Firstly, a phenomenological lens, including an ethnographic model of observation, was used to thematically map and examine the RNs’ lived experience of their practice, paying particular attention to their conceptions of and responsibilities toward advocacy and autonomy. This thematic analysis brought to the fore a range of assumptions that, although clearly normative within nursing practice, are in evident tension with one other. These were then re-examined using a range of Michel Foucault’s concepts concerning the construction and maintenance of regimes of truth. Designed to unpack the operations of power and knowledge, and to make visible the techniques of disciplinarity and governmentality that inform and support them, an engagement of these concepts has allowed this thesis to critically examine the normative constructions and enactments of nursing practice with regards to ideas and practices concerning advocacy and autonomy. What this thesis provides is a detailed examination of the contrasting constructions of power and knowledge within nursing practice in relation to advocacy and autonomy, how and why these concepts have been operationalised within nursing practice, and how they could be re-visioned into the future.Doctor of Philosoph