Utopian thinking and the collective mind: Beyond transdisciplinarity

•An inquiry into the emergence of a collective mind during transformational change.•Collective minds change divisions into dynamic relationships e.g. parts and wholes.•Collective thinking brings 2 plus 5 ways of knowing to resolving wicked problems.•The first two are inner introspection and outward...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Futures : the journal of policy, planning and futures studies planning and futures studies, 2015-01, Vol.65, p.209-216
Main Author: Brown, Valerie A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cognitive psychology
Collective knowledge
Collective mind
Collective thinking
Collectivism
Decision analysis
Ethics
Mode 2 knowledge
Reflective thinking
Studies
Sustainable development
Transdisciplinarity
Transformational change
Utopian thinking
Utopias
Ways of knowing
Wicked problems
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Summary:•An inquiry into the emergence of a collective mind during transformational change.•Collective minds change divisions into dynamic relationships e.g. parts and wholes.•Collective thinking brings 2 plus 5 ways of knowing to resolving wicked problems.•The first two are inner introspection and outward reflection on the whole.•The other five are physical, social, ethical, aesthetic and sympathetic knowing. The future is frequently presented as a forced choice between human sustainability and human extinction, utopia or dystopia. This paper examines a different option: to develop the full capacity of the human mind to remain open to all possibilities, guided by utopian thinking. An inquiry into the creative potential of the human mind finds that collective thinking from a collective mind goes beyond transdisciplinarity as currently constructed. In collective thinking, knowledge boundaries are reframed as dynamic inter-relationships, and due weight is given to each of personal, physical, social, ethical, aesthetic, sympathetic and reflective ways of knowing. In applying the collective mind in these times of transformational change, there is hope is for innovative solutions to seemingly intractable, aptly labelled wicked problems.
ISSN:0016-3287
1873-6378
DOI:10.1016/j.futures.2014.11.004