Futures Research Methods and Applications in Natural Resources

Futures research is a transdisciplinary field of inquiry that uses a variety of methods to explore possible, plausible, and preferable futures. The goal is to develop foresight-insight into how and why the future could be different than today-to improve policy, planning, and decision making. Scores...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Society & natural resources 2019-10, Vol.32 (10), p.1099-1113
Main Author: Bengston, David N.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Decision making
Futures
Futures research
Interdisciplinary aspects
methodological pluralism
methods
Mixed methods research
Natural resources
Research methodology
Research methods
Social scientists
strategic foresight
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Futures research is a transdisciplinary field of inquiry that uses a variety of methods to explore possible, plausible, and preferable futures. The goal is to develop foresight-insight into how and why the future could be different than today-to improve policy, planning, and decision making. Scores of futures research methods have been developed or adapted from other disciplines, beginning with pioneering work in the US military and RAND Corporation in the 1950s and 1960s. But many social scientists and natural resource professionals are unaware of these methods and most have never heard of futures research as a distinct field of study. This paper presents a framework for categorizing futures research methods, reviews selected methods, and provides examples of their application to natural resource and environmental issues.
ISSN:0894-1920
1521-0723
DOI:10.1080/08941920.2018.1547852