Jul 6, 2023

By Keith McCandless , Arvind Singhal, and Steven H. Cady

[Adapted from a new Encyclopedia of Interdisciplinarity and Transdisciplinarity to be published by Edward Elgar Publishing focusing on advances and diversity of theories, methods and practices]

Abstract

Liberating Structures (LS) is a repertoire of open source protocols and an innovative set of rules to guide routine interactions in board rooms, classrooms, and community forums. LS specifies how people are included and participate in ways that sets them free from unwitting patterns that exclude, stifle, and over-control. With deliberate irony, LS employs structural constraints to liberate. Codified in the early 2000s, LS consist of 10 principles and 33 practical methods versatile enough for anyone to use for a wide array of purposes and group processes. The transdisciplinary attributes of LS arise from its complexity science roots. The focus is on relationship patterns rather than individual behavior. LS makes it possible to work with complexity instead of engineering it away, and hence generates options where none existed. Every LS protocol in the repertoire has the same minimalistic “DNA” of five micro-structuring elements. LS use has spread across diverse organization types, social movements, and disciplines.

Keywords: complexity science, social innovation, inclusion and engagement, facilitation, action research, collaborative change

Keith McCandless·Following11 min read·Jul 6, 2023923By Keith McCandless , Arvind Singhal, and Steven H. Cady[Adapted from a new Encyclopedia of Interdisciplinarity and Transdisciplinarity to be published by Edward Elgar Publishing focusing on advances and diversity of theories, methods and practices]AbstractLiberating Structures (LS) is a repertoire of open source protocols and an innovative set of rules to guide routine interactions in board rooms, classrooms, and community forums. LS specifies how people are included and participate in ways that sets them free from unwitting patterns that exclude, stifle, and over-control. With deliberate irony, LS employs structural constraints to liberate. Codified in the early 2000s, LS consist of 10 principles and 33 practical methods versatile enough for anyone to use for a wide array of purposes and group processes. The transdisciplinary attributes of LS arise from its complexity science roots. The focus is on relationship patterns rather than individual behavior. LS makes it possible to work with complexity instead of engineering it away, and hence generates options where none existed. Every LS protocol in the repertoire has the same minimalistic “DNA” of five micro-structuring elements. LS use has spread across diverse organization types, social movements, and disciplines.Keywords: complexity science, social innovation, inclusion and engagement, facilitation, action research, collaborative change

The Deliberate Irony of Liberating Structures | by Keith McCandless | Medium

https://keithmccandless.medium.com/the-deliberate-irony-of-liberating-structures-9884360ff8b0