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Community participation in problem-solving and decision-making: training module.

The first module in this three-part trainer's guidelines sets out the basic framework for problem-solving and decision-making, including a number of short, reflective tasks for the user. The second module focuses on leadership, and introduces some role-plays to give practice in the techniques of facilitating group problem-solving activities. The third module concentrates on the conflicts that are bound to occur in coping with the problems of human settlements projects, and contains sustained and elaborate simulation exercises.

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Most Common Problems in a Community

In our increasingly interconnected world, communities, both large and small, are encountering a myriad of challenges that test their resilience and unity. These challenges, diverse in nature, present opportunities for growth, innovation and strengthened community bonds. Embracing the spirit of the "We Need You Now More Than Ever" movement, understanding these common problems becomes more than an exercise in observation - it is a crucial step towards developing effective, inclusive solutions. This proactive approach is essential in building healthier, more vibrant communities where every member feels valued and empowered to contribute to the collective well-being. As we delve into the most common problems faced by communities globally, we also explore the ways in which community leaders can spearhead change, turning obstacles into stepping stones for a thriving communal future.

Understanding Community Challenges

Recognizing the uniqueness of each community is as important as understanding the commonalities in the challenges they face. These shared issues, which range from social and economic disparities to environmental concerns, create a common ground for collaboration and problem-solving.

This collaborative approach is not just about addressing the issues at hand but also about building a foundation for long-term resilience and prosperity. Through shared experiences and collective wisdom, communities can forge paths that are adaptable to their unique circumstances while benefiting from the lessons learned by others. In doing so, they create a tapestry of strategies and solutions that enrich the entire spectrum of community leadership and development.

Social Inequalities

Social inequality stands out as one of the most pressing issues confronting communities today. It manifests through disparities in income, education and access to vital resources, creating a divide that affects the fabric of community life. These inequalities often give rise to significant social problems such as poverty, homelessness and limited educational opportunities, which in turn can perpetuate a cycle of disadvantage across generations.

Healthcare Accessibility

Access to healthcare emerges as a significant challenge in many communities, cutting across various social and economic spectrums. Inadequate healthcare facilities, high costs and a general lack of health education are not just individual problems but collective community concerns. These factors contribute to widespread health issues and disparities, affecting the overall well-being of community members.

Addressing healthcare accessibility is a crucial step towards fostering healthier communities. It goes beyond treating illnesses - it's about preventive care, education and creating a supportive environment where every individual has the opportunity to lead a healthy life. Community leaders play a vital role in this endeavor, advocating for policies and initiatives that bridge the healthcare gap and striving to create a community where good health is a shared value and a common goal.

Environmental and Safety Concerns

Communities around the globe are increasingly grappling with environmental challenges and public safety concerns. These issues, ranging from pollution and climate change to crime and public health threats, pose significant risks to the well-being and safety of community members. Addressing these concerns is not just a matter of maintaining the status quo but is vital for ensuring the sustainable growth and safety of communities.

Similarly, public safety concerns, be they related to crime, infrastructure, or health emergencies, necessitate vigilant and coordinated efforts. This involves strengthening law enforcement, improving community infrastructure and fostering a culture of safety and preparedness.

Environmental Degradation

Environmental degradation represents a significant challenge for communities globally. Issues such as pollution, climate change and the loss of biodiversity not only harm the natural environment but also have profound effects on public health and local economies.

Tackling these challenges requires a commitment to sustainable practices and conservation efforts. By addressing environmental degradation, communities can ensure better health outcomes and a more stable economic future.

Public Safety and Crime

Public safety and crime are pressing concerns in many communities, with issues spanning from petty theft to more severe criminal activities. These problems not only disrupt the peace and security of community life but also profoundly affect the residents' sense of safety and well-being.

Addressing these concerns is vital for maintaining the quality of life within a community. Effective strategies include enhancing law enforcement, community policing and fostering an environment where residents are actively involved in safety initiatives. Such measures not only help in reducing crime rates but also in building trust and cooperation between the community and law enforcement agencies.

Infrastructure and Economic Challenges

The health of a community's infrastructure is inextricably linked to its economic vitality. Issues in these areas, such as outdated or inadequate infrastructure and economic instability, can significantly hinder community development and adversely affect the quality of life of its members.

Robust infrastructure, including transportation systems, utilities and digital connectivity, is essential for the efficient functioning of a community and the well-being of its residents. Concurrently, a stable and thriving local economy provides employment opportunities, supports local businesses and contributes to the overall prosperity of the community. Addressing challenges in infrastructure and economic sectors is therefore crucial for fostering sustainable community growth and enhancing the living standards of its members.

Poor Infrastructure

Numerous communities face the challenge of dealing with outdated or poorly maintained infrastructure. This encompasses essential aspects such as roads, public transport and utilities, which are fundamental to the daily functioning of a community. The implications of such poor infrastructure are far-reaching, leading to not just daily inconveniences but also posing serious health and safety risks to residents.

Inadequate infrastructure can disrupt everyday life, impede access to services and opportunities and limit economic growth. For instance, poorly maintained roads and insufficient public transport can make commuting difficult, affecting work and education access. Similarly, unreliable utilities like water and electricity can compromise living conditions and public health. Addressing these infrastructure issues is vital for ensuring the safety, well-being and prosperity of community members.

Economic Instability

Economic instability is a significant challenge that manifests through unemployment, underemployment and pervasive poverty. This instability impacts not just individual livelihoods but also the broader economic health and cohesion of the community.

Such economic conditions can lead to a cycle of hardship, where individuals and families struggle to meet basic needs, reducing their ability to contribute to and participate in the community. This, in turn, can lead to a decline in local businesses and services, further exacerbating economic difficulties. Addressing economic instability involves creating job opportunities, supporting local businesses and implementing social programs that provide a safety net for the most vulnerable, thereby stabilizing and revitalizing the community's economy.

Cultural and Educational Obstacles

Cultural differences and educational shortcomings present unique challenges within communities, impacting both the cohesion among community members and the personal growth opportunities available to individuals. The diversity of cultures, while enriching, can sometimes lead to misunderstandings or conflicts if not approached with understanding and respect. Similarly, disparities in educational quality and access can create divides, limiting the potential for individual development and collective progress.

Addressing these cultural and educational obstacles is crucial for fostering a harmonious and inclusive community environment. Promoting cultural awareness and sensitivity, along with ensuring equal access to quality education for all, are key steps in overcoming these challenges. By embracing and celebrating cultural diversity and prioritizing education, communities can build stronger bonds and provide a foundation for all members to realize their full potential.

Cultural Divides

Cultural divides, marked by misunderstandings and differences, can lead to social tensions that disrupt community cohesion. These divides often stem from a lack of understanding or appreciation of diverse cultural backgrounds, leading to a sense of alienation and disconnection among community members. Such tensions can undermine efforts to build inclusive and supportive environments, essential for the well-being and prosperity of any community.

Bridging these cultural divides involves fostering open dialogue, promoting cultural exchange and creating opportunities for shared experiences. By encouraging understanding and respect for diverse cultures, communities can overcome these challenges, enhancing social cohesion and building a foundation for mutual support and unity.

Educational Shortcomings

Educational shortcomings, manifesting as inadequate schooling systems and limited access to educational resources, pose significant barriers to the personal and professional development of residents, particularly youth. These challenges are not merely about academic performance but also about the broader prospects for future success and fulfillment.

Inadequate schools, often characterized by insufficient funding, lack of qualified teachers and poor facilities, hinder the learning experience and potential achievements of students. Furthermore, the scarcity of educational resources, such as books, technology and extracurricular programs, can limit students' exposure to broader learning opportunities and skill development. Addressing these educational shortcomings is vital for empowering residents, especially the youth, with the knowledge and skills necessary for their growth, enabling them to contribute effectively to their communities and society at large.

Understanding and addressing the myriad of common problems faced by communities is undoubtedly a complex undertaking, yet it is a crucial one for the well-being and advancement of society. This task demands a concerted and collective effort, involving not just community members and leaders but also the active participation of external stakeholders. Each group plays a vital role in identifying issues, devising strategies and implementing solutions.

By confronting these challenges head-on with a collaborative and inclusive approach, communities have the opportunity to grow stronger and more resilient. Such resilience is characterized not just by the ability to withstand adversity but also by the capacity to support and nurture every member, ensuring that all have the chance to thrive and contribute. The journey towards building these robust communities is continuous, requiring ongoing dedication, innovation and cooperation. However, the results - vibrant, supportive and empowered communities - are well worth the effort.

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Community-Powered Problem Solving

by Francis Gouillart and Douglas Billings

Summary .   

All companies—even those in entirely B2B, brick-and-mortar industries—are now in a Facebook-like business. Their leaders have to be community organizers who strive to engage the customers, suppliers, employees, partners, citizens, and regulators that make up their ecosystems. A good way to do that is to provide those stakeholders with the means to connect with the company—and with one another—and encourage them to constantly invent new ways to create value for their organizations and themselves.

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Teaching Community Dispute Resolution: Exercises to Facilitate Positive Change

By Lara SanPietro — on January 14th, 2021 / Teaching Negotiation

Community dispute resolution provides communities with a forum to address conflict, uncover and resolve the underlying issues, and thereby achieve positive change. Community dispute resolution provides an alternative to the judicial system and facilitates collaborative community relationships. Community dispute resolution processes can include training and educational activities, and may involve a mediator from within the community or one brought in from the outside. The Teaching Negotiation Resource Center (TNRC) has a variety of community dispute resolution exercises designed to teach participants how to navigate the issues, relationships, and processes involved in community dispute resolution.

Neighborhood Care, Inc. – Featured Community Dispute Resolution Simulation

This two-party, two-hour negotiation is between church and neighborhood representatives over the possible use of church facilities for services for the mentally challenged. Neighborhood Care, Inc. is a non-profit mental health organization that provides counseling and recreational health services to mentally challenged adults and teenagers. Neighborhood Care would like to rent space in a local church, and the church is interested. Local residents oppose the idea and plan on staging a protest at the next zoning hearing, when the church will seek a permit to operate the Neighborhood Care facility. The situation is also complicated by the fact that the church is located in a neighborhood with residents of a different religious faith. There is both a mediated and non-mediated version of this exercise. Major lessons include:

• This exercise illustrates how and why groups with competing interests or concerns can view the same situation in different ways.
• The difficulties facing mediators trying to gain entry into community disputes are illustrated, especially the problem of maintaining neutrality.
• The prospects for developing written agreements in community conflicts are presented. The difficulties of defining a “good” outcome in a community dispute are also highlighted.
• Review of the agreement reached in the real-life case highlights the problem of implementing informed negotiated agreements.

Download a free Neighborhood Care, Inc. Teacher’s Package preview copy to learn more.

Seoul Food in Urbana – Featured Community Dispute Resolution Simulation

This three-person, two-hour mediation involving representatives of local Korean and African-American communities is over racial tensions arising from an alleged shoplifting incident. Tensions between the African-American and Korean communities in economically depressed Urbana, where Koreans are the sole providers of groceries in the area, have been building for some time. Many African-American customers have long complained that the grocery store owners are unfriendly and unfairly accuse customers of stealing, while Korean store owners contend that many of their African-American customers use racial slurs and shoplift. A recent incident involving an elderly African-American woman and a Korean grocery store owner has caused tensions to explode into a massive boycott, led initially by the woman’s family, but gaining support throughout the community. The recently elected African-American mayor was initially neutral on the issue, but as the boycott grew, the mayor decided to intervene. Korean grocers do not wish to be driven out of business, and while African-Americans would prefer to support the establishment of African-American owned grocery stores, they have no convenient, immediate alternative to the existing Korean-American grocery stores. Legal representatives of the local African-American and Korean-American communities are meeting with the mayor’s Chief Aide for Urban Affairs in an effort to try to resolve the conflict. Major lessons of this simulation include:

• The effect of culture and ethnicity on partisan perception formation.
• The influence of race in complicating tensions between different communities.
• The use of negotiation instead of litigation as a means to seeking desired ends in a conflict.
• The role of politics and politicians in ethnic and racial conflicts.

To learn more about this simulation, download a free Seoul Food in Urbana Teacher’s Package preview copy.

Homelessness in Niceville – Featured Community Dispute Resolution Simulation

This six-person, two-hour, facilitated, integrative negotiation is among advocates for homeless people, community and business leaders, and a foundation regarding the allocation of a grant to alleviate local homelessness problems. Recent publicity in a prominent national newspaper about the town of Niceville’s expanding homeless population, has caused the Ledbetter Foundation to address the issue of homelessness with a one-time grant of $500,000. The simulation explores the role a facilitator can play in this type of community problem-solving effort. The stakeholders represent five different attitudes towards homelessness which are sometimes contrary, yet lend themselves to coalition building. It is up to the foundation representative to reconcile the parties’ philosophical differences to develop a satisfactory agreement. Major lessons of this simulation include:

• It is important to distinguish stated positions from underlying interests. In order to reach a successful conclusion each party must prioritize its desired outcomes and be willing to forgo some to achieve others.
• The facilitator must be able to keep the discussion focused on the “issues” and not allow disagreements among the parties to bog down the group.
• The group should take advantage of private discussions or caucuses. Though no two groups will agree on everything, coalition building will be helpful in building consensus.
• All interests should be fully represented in the discussions for as long as possible; however, the exercise requires only four of the five players (excluding the foundation representative) to reach agreement. It is up to the stakeholder to decide how flexible they will be in light of the fact that they run the risk of being excluded. The group as a whole must determine the advantages and disadvantages of excluding a stakeholder.

Download a free Homelessness in Niceville Teacher’s Package preview copy to learn more.

Development Dispute at Menehune Bay – Featured Community Dispute Resolution Simulation 

This six-party, two-hour, multi-issue, facilitated negotiation is a dispute over environmental issues, native rights, and commercial development interests in Hawaii. The Queen Malia Estate has entered into an agreement with the Elima Iki Development Company (EIDC) for the leasing of 500 acres of land around Menehune Bay in Hawaii. EIDC is planning a world-class resort for the site – including eight hotels, two golf courses, recreational clubs, and private condominium units. The project has support from the business and construction community on the island but faces opposition from environmental groups and local residents. The Mayor has remained fairly noncommittal about the project, and feels that a number of questions must be answered before he can decide on the proposal. He has invited designated representatives from the six groups most interested in the project to serve on a Special Advisory Committee, indicating that if five of the six groups can reach an agreement, he will go along with their recommendations. Major lessons of this simulation include:

• Successful facilitation of mediation of land use disputes involves attention to procedural concerns. The role of the neutral in establishing procedural guidelines should be clearly understood by all parties before substantive negotiation begins.
• It is difficult to ensure that all participants in a complex negotiation have a chance to be heard, and that the ideas expressed accumulate in a constructive fashion. One of the primary tasks of the facilitator or mediator is to ensure that an acceptable record of all discussions is kept.
• The facilitator or mediator is responsible for making sure that the group arrives at final decisions that resolve the issues at hand. It is often as difficult to get a group of disputants to agree on a process for deciding as it is to reach an agreement.
• Inventing new options is critical to finding a workable agreement in a complex public dispute. The line between facilitation and mediation begins to blur as the neutral facilitator takes a more active role in the invention of new options.

To learn more, download a free Development Dispute at Menehune Bay Teacher’s Package preview copy.

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Take your training to the next level with the TNRC

The  Teaching Negotiation Resource Center  offers a wide range of effective teaching materials, including

• Over 250 negotiation exercises and role-play simulations
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TNRC  negotiation exercises and teaching materials are designed for educational purposes. They are used in college classroom settings or corporate training settings; used by mediators and facilitators seeking to introduce their clients to a process or issue; and used by individuals who want to enhance their negotiation skills and knowledge.

Negotiation exercises and role-play simulations introduce participants to new negotiation and dispute resolution tools, techniques and strategies.  Our videos, books, case studies, and periodicals are also a helpful way of introducing students to key concepts while addressing the theory and practice of negotiation.

Check out all that the TNRC has in store >>

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Preparing for negotiation.

Understanding how to arrange the meeting space is a key aspect of preparing for negotiation. In this video, Professor Guhan Subramanian discusses a real world example of how seating arrangements can influence a negotiator’s success. This discussion was held at the 3 day executive education workshop for senior executives at the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School.

Guhan Subramanian is the Professor of Law and Business at the Harvard Law School and Professor of Business Law at the Harvard Business School.

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Community Problem Solving

What it means to be inclusive in problem solving.

Inclusivity is critical for effective problem solving. Whenever you are taking on a tough community problem, it's important to involve a variety of different stakeholders.

There is no doubt that our commitment to being inclusive brought many challenges and delays... nevertheless, this commitment to an inclusive process is undoubtedly what led to some of the greatest discoveries - innovative ideas that are different from the status quo.

— Grantee

Based on our grantees' experiences, it's important to thoughtfully consider how to include the following groups in problem-solving efforts:

Those most affected by the problem.

Especially those whose voices are typically left out of the conversation

Those who are needed to create change

Especially those in a position to implement (or impede) a solution

Other experts who can share the latest information on the problem or change current thinking

... By embracing this inclusive approach, we have not only been able to achieve authentic input from a wide variety of stakeholders, [but have] helped people feel valued and heard and have advanced the system change we're seeking...

More Insights Into Community Problem Solving

Insights from grantees.

What it Means to be Collaborative

Communication strategies.

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• Section 3. Defining and Analyzing the Problem

Chapter 17 Sections

• Section 1. An Introduction to the Problem-Solving Process
• Section 2. Thinking Critically
• Section 4. Analyzing Root Causes of Problems: The "But Why?" Technique
• Section 5. Addressing Social Determinants of Health and Development
• Section 6. Generating and Choosing Solutions
• Section 7. Putting Your Solution into Practice
• Main Section

The nature of problems

Clarifying the problem, deciding to solve the problem, analyzing the problem.

We've all had our share of problems - more than enough, if you come right down to it. So it's easy to think that this section, on defining and analyzing the problem, is unnecessary. "I know what the problem is," you think. "I just don't know what to do about it."

Not so fast! A poorly defined problem - or a problem whose nuances you don't completely understand - is much more difficult to solve than a problem you have clearly defined and analyzed. The way a problem is worded and understood has a huge impact on the number, quality, and type of proposed solutions.

In this section, we'll begin with the basics, focusing primarily on four things. First, we'll consider the nature of problems in general, and then, more specifically, on clarifying and defining the problem you are working on. Then, we'll talk about whether or not you really want to solve the problem, or whether you are better off leaving it alone. Finally, we'll talk about how to do an in-depth analysis of the problem.

So, what is a problem? It can be a lot of things. We know in our gut when there is a problem, whether or not we can easily put it into words. Maybe you feel uncomfortable in a given place, but you're not sure why. A problem might be just the feeling that something is wrong and should be corrected. You might feel some sense of distress, or of injustice.

Stated most simply, a problem is the difference between what is , and what might or should be . "No child should go to bed hungry, but one-quarter of all children do in this country," is a clear, potent problem statement. Another example might be, "Communication in our office is not very clear." In this instance, the explanation of "what might or should be" is simply alluded to.

As these problems illustrate, some problems are more serious than others; the problem of child hunger is a much more severe problem than the fact that the new youth center has no exercise equipment, although both are problems that can and should be addressed. Generally, problems that affect groups of people - children, teenage mothers, the mentally ill, the poor - can at least be addressed and in many cases lessened using the process outlined in this Chapter.

Although your organization may have chosen to tackle a seemingly insurmountable problem, the process you will use to solve it is not complex. It does, however, take time, both to formulate and to fully analyze the problem. Most people underestimate the work they need to do here and the time they'll need to spend. But this is the legwork, the foundation on which you'll lay effective solutions. This isn't the time to take shortcuts.

Three basic concepts make up the core of this chapter: clarifying, deciding, and analyzing. Let's look at each in turn.

If you are having a problem-solving meeting, then you already understand that something isn't quite right - or maybe it's bigger than that; you understand that something is very, very wrong. This is your beginning, and of course, it makes most sense to...

• Start with what you know . When group members walk through the door at the beginning of the meeting, what do they think about the situation? There are a variety of different ways to garner this information. People can be asked in advance to write down what they know about the problem. Or the facilitator can lead a brainstorming session to try to bring out the greatest number of ideas. Remember that a good facilitator will draw out everyone's opinions, not only those of the more vocal participants.
• Decide what information is missing . Information is the key to effective decision making. If you are fighting child hunger, do you know which children are hungry? When are they hungry - all the time, or especially at the end of the month, when the money has run out? If that's the case, your problem statement might be, "Children in our community are often hungry at the end of the month because their parents' paychecks are used up too early."

Compare this problem statement on child hunger to the one given in "The nature of problems" above. How might solutions for the two problems be different?

• Facts (15% of the children in our community don't get enough to eat.)
• Inference (A significant percentage of children in our community are probably malnourished/significantly underweight.)
• Speculation (Many of the hungry children probably live in the poorer neighborhoods in town.)
• Opinion (I think the reason children go hungry is because their parents spend all of their money on cigarettes.)

When you are gathering information, you will probably hear all four types of information, and all can be important. Speculation and opinion can be especially important in gauging public opinion. If public opinion on your issue is based on faulty assumptions, part of your solution strategy will probably include some sort of informational campaign.

For example, perhaps your coalition is campaigning against the death penalty, and you find that most people incorrectly believe that the death penalty deters violent crime. As part of your campaign, therefore, you will probably want to make it clear to the public that it simply isn't true.

Where and how do you find this information? It depends on what you want to know. You can review surveys, interviews, the library and the internet.

• Define the problem in terms of needs, and not solutions. If you define the problem in terms of possible solutions, you're closing the door to other, possibly more effective solutions. "Violent crime in our neighborhood is unacceptably high," offers space for many more possible solutions than, "We need more police patrols," or, "More citizens should have guns to protect themselves."
• Define the problem as one everyone shares; avoid assigning blame for the problem. This is particularly important if different people (or groups) with a history of bad relations need to be working together to solve the problem. Teachers may be frustrated with high truancy rates, but blaming students uniquely for problems at school is sure to alienate students from helping to solve the problem.

You can define the problem in several ways; The facilitator can write a problem statement on the board, and everyone can give feedback on it, until the statement has developed into something everyone is pleased with, or you can accept someone else's definition of the problem, or use it as a starting point, modifying it to fit your needs.

After you have defined the problem, ask if everyone understands the terminology being used. Define the key terms of your problem statement, even if you think everyone understands them.

The Hispanic Health Coalition, has come up with the problem statement "Teen pregnancy is a problem in our community." That seems pretty clear, doesn't it? But let's examine the word "community" for a moment. You may have one person who defines community as "the city you live in," a second who defines it as, "this neighborhood" and a third who considers "our community" to mean Hispanics.

At this point, you have already spent a fair amount of time on the problem at hand, and naturally, you want to see it taken care of. Before you go any further, however, it's important to look critically at the problem and decide if you really want to focus your efforts on it. You might decide that right now isn't the best time to try to fix it. Maybe your coalition has been weakened by bad press, and chance of success right now is slim. Or perhaps solving the problem right now would force you to neglect another important agency goal. Or perhaps this problem would be more appropriately handled by another existing agency or organization.

You and your group need to make a conscious choice that you really do want to attack the problem. Many different factors should be a part of your decision. These include:

Importance . In judging the importance of the issue, keep in mind the f easibility . Even if you have decided that the problem really is important, and worth solving, will you be able to solve it, or at least significantly improve the situation? The bottom line: Decide if the good you can do will be worth the effort it takes. Are you the best people to solve the problem? Is someone else better suited to the task?

For example, perhaps your organization is interested in youth issues, and you have recently come to understand that teens aren't participating in community events mostly because they don't know about them. A monthly newsletter, given out at the high schools, could take care of this fairly easily. Unfortunately, you don't have much publishing equipment. You do have an old computer and a desktop printer, and you could type something up, but it's really not your forte. A better solution might be to work to find writing, design and/or printing professionals who would donate their time and/or equipment to create a newsletter that is more exciting, and that students would be more likely to want to read.

Negative impacts . If you do succeed in bringing about the solution you are working on, what are the possible consequences? If you succeed in having safety measures implemented at a local factory, how much will it cost? Where will the factory get that money? Will they cut salaries, or lay off some of their workers?

Even if there are some unwanted results, you may well decide that the benefits outweigh the negatives. As when you're taking medication, you'll put up with the side effects to cure the disease. But be sure you go into the process with your eyes open to the real costs of solving the problem at hand.

Choosing among problems

You might have many obstacles you'd like to see removed. In fact, it's probably a pretty rare community group that doesn't have a laundry list of problems they would like to resolve, given enough time and resources. So how do you decide which to start with?

A simple suggestion might be to list all of the problems you are facing, and whether or not they meet the criteria listed above (importance, feasibility, et cetera). It's hard to assign numerical values for something like this, because for each situation, one of the criteria may strongly outweigh the others. However, just having all of the information in front of the group can help the actual decision making a much easier task.

Now that the group has defined the problem and agreed that they want to work towards a solution, it's time to thoroughly analyze the problem. You started to do this when you gathered information to define the problem, but now, it's time to pay more attention to details and make sure everyone fully understands the problem.

Answer all of the question words.

The facilitator can take group members through a process of understanding every aspect of the problem by answering the "question words" - what, why, who, when, and how much. This process might include the following types of questions:

What is the problem? You already have your problem statement, so this part is more or less done. But it's important to review your work at this point.

Why does the problem exist? There should be agreement among meeting participants as to why the problem exists to begin with. If there isn't, consider trying one of the following techniques.

• The "but why" technique. This simple exercise can be done easily with a large group, or even on your own. Write the problem statement, and ask participants, "Why does this problem exist?" Write down the answer given, and ask, "But why does (the answer) occur?"

"Children often fall asleep in class," But why? "Because they have no energy." But why? "Because they don't eat breakfast." But why?

Continue down the line until participants can comfortably agree on the root cause of the problem . Agreement is essential here; if people don't even agree about the source of the problem, an effective solution may well be out of reach.

• Start with the definition you penned above.
• Draw a line down the center of the paper. Or, if you are working with a large group of people who cannot easily see what you are writing, use two pieces.
• On the top of one sheet/side, write "Restraining Forces."
• On the other sheet/side, write, "Driving Forces."
• Under "Restraining Forces," list all of the reasons you can think of that keep the situation the same; why the status quo is the way it is. As with all brainstorming sessions, this should be a "free for all;" no idea is too "far out" to be suggested and written down.
• In the same manner, under "Driving Forces," list all of the forces that are pushing the situation to change.
• When all of the ideas have been written down, group members can edit them as they see fit and compile a list of the important factors that are causing the situation.

Clearly, these two exercises are meant for different times. The "but why" technique is most effective when the facilitator (or the group as a whole) decides that the problem hasn't been looked at deeply enough and that the group's understanding is somewhat superficial. The force field analysis, on the other hand, can be used when people are worried that important elements of the problem haven't been noticed -- that you're not looking at the whole picture.

Who is causing the problem, and who is affected by it? A simple brainstorming session is an excellent way to determine this.

When did the problem first occur, or when did it become significant? Is this a new problem or an old one? Knowing this can give you added understanding of why the problem is occurring now. Also, the longer a problem has existed, the more entrenched it has become, and the more difficult it will be to solve. People often get used to things the way they are and resist change, even when it's a change for the better.

How much , or to what extent, is this problem occurring? How many people are affected by the problem? How significant is it? Here, you should revisit the questions on importance you looked at when you were defining the problem. This serves as a brief refresher and gives you a complete analysis from which you can work.

If time permits, you might want to summarize your analysis on a single sheet of paper for participants before moving on to generating solutions, the next step in the process. That way, members will have something to refer back to during later stages in the work.

Also, after you have finished this analysis, the facilitator should ask for agreement from the group. Have people's perceptions of the problem changed significantly? At this point, check back and make sure that everyone still wants to work together to solve the problem.

The first step in any effective problem-solving process may be the most important. Take your time to develop a critical definition, and let this definition, and the analysis that follows, guide you through the process. You're now ready to go on to generating and choosing solutions, which are the next steps in the problem-solving process, and the focus of the following section.

Print Resources

Avery, M., Auvine, B., Streibel, B., & Weiss, L. (1981). A handbook for consensus decision making: Building united judgement . Cambridge, MA: Center for Conflict Resolution.

Dale, D., & Mitiguy, N. Planning, for a change: A citizen's guide to creative planning and program development .

Dashiell, K. (1990). Managing meetings for collaboration and consensus . Honolulu, HI: Neighborhood Justice Center of Honolulu, Inc.

Interaction Associates (1987). Facilitator institute . San Francisco, CA: Author.

Lawson, L., Donant, F., & Lawson, J. (1982). Lead on! The complete handbook for group leaders . San Luis Obispo, CA: Impact Publishers.

Meacham, W. (1980). Human development training manual . Austin, TX: Human Development Training.

Morrison, E. (1994). Leadership skills: Developing volunteers for organizational success . Tucson, AZ: Fisher Books.  

Problem 

“opening doors to the future”, community problem solving.

Community Problem Solving (CmPS),  encourages students to become agents of change and engages students in their communities. Students explore an existing problem in the school, community or region.

Students in both team and individual Community Problem Solving apply problem-solving strategies and skills to real-world problems. Community Problem Solving teams can be composed of as few as three or four students or as many as 100. Several schools might work together on a community project. For assessment, projects are grouped in categories such as civic and cultural issues, education, the environment, health concerns and human services. 

Community Problem Solving is a vehicle for both community service and service learning. After identifying and understanding the problem situation, teams and individuals use the FPS model to generate ideas, develop an action plan and implement the plan. Students develop and demonstrate teamwork skills and sef-confidence in this outcome-based component allowing them to implement a wide range of solutions presented to a real audience.

Community Problem Solving bridges the gap between school and the real world. At the 2008 International Conference (IC), NC FPS's State Champions, the RESPECTATORS from Smith Academy coached by Heather Lynch, took 6th place globally. The team noticed that many negative behaviors stem from respect issues among people; therefore, the RESPECTATORS chose to investigate the roots of disrespect and educate others to bring about positive changes in behaviors. They created presentations about friendship, fights, gossip, and respect for our sixth grade students. They researched, organized, and implemented a middle school Challenge Day to help all students demonstrate team building skills and encourage respect for other cultures. Through their activities, they changed how their school and community values respect towards others.

NC FPS's 6th grade CmPS team from Waddell Language Academy coached by Heather Lynch were our 2015 State Bowl champions and attended IC. They found that one-third of their day is impacted by distracted drivers. In response, the STOP TADing (Texting and Driving) project was created by TEAM DRIVE to educate drivers about the dangers of distracted driving. TEAM DRIVE created a website, social media accounts, YouTube channel and PSAs which played on national radio. They also participated in April’s Distracted Driving Awareness month and published video games for drivers to experience distracted driving risks firsthand. 

How to Identify the Real Problem in Your Community

There is a difference between problem defining and problem-solving, and most of us have a tendency to dive straight into the latter when we’re confronted with an issue. We recently spoke to Felicity Farmer about the complexity of community issues and how to identify the real problem at the heart of many moving parts.

Albert Einstein believed that defining a problem meticulously is the key to finding a good solution. He famously said, “If I had an hour to solve a problem I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and five minutes thinking about solutions.”

This is especially the case when we’re faced with complex community issues which don’t always have concrete rules or algorithms that define how things work. Communities are open systems and decision-makers run the very real risk of adding to (and even compounding) a community’s problems when they rush to solve them.

So, how can organizations that are trying to provide community solutions ensure that they have first identified the real problem at hand?

We posed the question to Felicity Farmer, who has created new ways of seeing complex problems for various communities and organizations throughout her expansive career. With a passion for meaningful inclusion and systems thinking in decision-making, she has served the community as a proactive Brisbane City Councillor, as well as a facilitator of policy and evidence-based engagement in the healthcare and infrastructure industries.

Why are the challenges that our communities face so complex?

We can see the overwhelming complexity of communities when our “solutions” of the past create even bigger unforeseen problems in the future. What is real for communities is always changing based on new evidence and evolving external landscapes, so we can’t always rely on what we think we know to make the best decisions today.

It’s arguable that as a society, compared to First Nations peoples around the world, we have lost the ability to truly grasp the big picture and how everything is related. For example, we have developed a habit of discounting the impact of lost biodiversity because we forget about our reliance on nature to exist. We may tend to think that humans are superior to animals because we wear clothes. In reality, animals have fur because they are uniquely adapted to and in tune with their environment.

As the widely read book Thinking Fast and Slow demonstrated, this natural survival tendency to jump and act without thinking more deeply tricks us all the time into thinking we are being rational when we are not. Iain McGilchrist argues in his book, The Master and the Emissary, that this tendency has become too dominant as our society has become overly “left-brained”, being overly reliant on what we think we have learned in the past to make quick decisions for the future, without taking sufficient notice of what’s real now.

To deal with the complexity of our communities and the interconnected world, we have to use slow thinking. While slowing down may seem counterintuitive, it is the antidote to action bias which leads us to skip problem identification in policy or decision-making. It can help us see past our habitual assumptions and mental shortcuts, observe the real problem and give insights enough time to percolate.

Once we’re brave enough to explore and offer psychological safety for people with different views outside the public discourse to speak up, we can open our eyes to see the big picture and realize we are all active players on the stage of history. Our spacious “right-brain” helps us see the whole community system rather than just the parts.

Why do you think it’s important for organizations to identify the real problem at hand before coming up with solutions?

The risk of not identifying the real problem at hand is that governments or companies discover that they are working on the wrong project too late. Action bias can lead us to assume that it’s better to do anything rather than nothing. However, wherever we are in the overall system, public or private, frontline or support, we always want to know that we are making the world a better place by working on the most needed problems. We don’t want our efforts to go to waste.

The book Megaprojects and Risk: An Anatomy of Ambition by Flyvbjerg, Bruzelius, and Rothengatter explores the experience of realizing your project should be cancelled after it has been initiated. “Path dependency” can kick in and make project decision-makers feel compelled to finish what they started even though the planned outcomes are no longer likely due to a misunderstood or changed environment. People can feel expenditure and reputation are too much at stake to stop.

I once worked with a local business precinct that didn’t know how to survive in the face of new competition from another shopping centre that had left their streets deserted. Their active local Chamber of Commerce had implemented a large investment in developing a new mall, but this initial solution had failed to attract people back. The group didn’t have a lightbulb moment until they identified all stakeholders, listened to the community. Only then did they realise they needed to form a precinct committee to include them in their decision-making on an ongoing basis, so they could have a better chance of understanding the root causes of problems.

Can you describe a time in which you were trying to solve a complex community problem and how you approached it?

I worked with a community that was concerned about a growing drug problem among high school students and to challenge our thinking, we invited someone from the outside who could help us explore the wider context of the problem. The doctor who was at the coalface of working with young people in prisons joined local community groups, including older people in our daytime engagement session.

We found ways to step back and see the wider context of the presenting problem and explore it from different perspectives. Working together resulted in a lightbulb moment for everyone present. They realized they needed to offer more for young people to do in the local area to help them feel respected and build their self-esteem. Then and there they came up with a name for a new local committee that would link community groups and initiatives to create more local activities. One example was a forum theatre, where a group of young people could play out situations in which they had perceived local bus drivers, teachers, or police officers as oppressors. This gave them an opportunity to explore different ways of responding to them, rather than as ‘troublemakers’, and those community stakeholders were invited to see the performance.

What problem identification techniques do you continue to use regularly?

In my Social Work degree and MBA, we were taught to practice double-loop thinking which is to question whether the presenting problem is the real problem.

This has come in handy and is how I came to the field of engagement. I was working in health policy development where I experienced early on what goes wrong without involving diverse perspectives from the start so that everyone is on board with the solutions and can even help drive implementation. Solutions imposed can fall flat or take much longer to implement.

Developing a listening orientation is an important part of this. I am sometimes surprised by how many are naturally reluctant to speak up or share their perspectives at all but know there are a multitude of reasons. So, we need to be proactive in creating psychologically safe spaces for different groups of people or personalities who are “hard-to-reach” so they will speak up. Online engagement tools are valuable in this regard as they enable even more people to participate and develop an understanding of the problem together.

At the same time, it can’t be overstated how challenging it can be for any type of group, including work groups, to go to others (whether they know them or not) to ask open-ended questions and really listen to better understand a challenge they are working on, especially if those stakeholders are perceived as aggressive.

Brené Brown writes about this as a new leadership capability, being to lead by role modelling that it’s ok to show vulnerability, that we may not know the answer upfront, or that we made a mistake at first and need external help. In fact, this role modelling is how we can be proactive in creating psychologically safe spaces. This dynamic applies equally to solving complex community challenges.

Over the past ten years, most Australian states have developed excellent guidelines on community participation, taking into account all of the above concerns based on IAP2 standards and some have followed through with widespread training of their public servants.

For example, Victoria recognises the role that trust plays in government capacity to problem solve successfully, and their Auditor-General conducts audits of community involvement in government decision-making across Local Councils and State Government, including central agencies.

How does rigorous problem identification change community outcomes?

Rigorous problem-identification pivots our focus to the root causes rather than just the presenting symptoms so that we can avoid band-aid solutions.

If we include correct problem identification as stage one of a project, then we are also more likely to move to solution development with a clear set of values and guiding principles. We can be clear why we’re there and with the foresight of diverse perspectives, we can shine a light on otherwise hidden unforeseen consequences and address them. In this way, we can help ensure the solution will be nested within the rest of the system and, in turn, its even wider system.

The earlier we involve other perspectives, such as community, the more effective and practical the solution will be and the more successful its implementation. Some states are reaching out earlier than ever and achieving more than the core goal. They ask local business and community stakeholders, “What other problems can we solve for your community while we’re here?” transforming the design of solutions for the better.

I am a firm believer that collective problem-solving changes communities forever and makes them more welcoming to major projects. As people share and listen to each other’s different perspectives as equal partners, new and enduring local connections are made that strengthen the community’s problem-identification and solving muscle for the future.

Start engaging with your community today.

Our expert team is available to show you how to get the most out of your online community engagement platform.

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