Taking a long view towards quality improvement: an intentional approach to solving wicked problems and improving student experience

Figures & data

Table 1. The ten properties of a wicked problem

1	There is no definitive formulation of a wicked problem.
2	Wicked problems have no stopping rule.
3	Solutions to wicked problems are not ‘true-or-false’ but ‘good-or-bad’.
4	There is no immediate and no ultimate test of a solution to a wicked problem.
5	Every solution to a wicked problem is a ‘one-shot operation’.
6	Wicked problems do not have an enumerable (or exhaustive describable) set of potential solutions.
7	Every wicked problem is essentially unique.
8	Every wicked problem can be considered to be a symptom of another problem.
9	The existence of discrepancy representing a wicked problem can be explained in numerous ways.
10	The planner has no right to be wrong.

Source: Rittel and Webber (1973, p. 161–66).

Figure 1. General model for wicked problem management (Hamshire et al., 2019).

Figure 2. Applying the model for wicked problem management to a concatenated research process.

Table 2. Projects included within the two strands of the concatenated research

Strand 1: Student experience research projects	Strand 2: Staff Perspectives research projects
HEA Funded Easystart Induction project (Hamshire & Cullen, 2014)	JISC Funded Supporting Responsive Curricula (SRC) (Bird et al., 2015)
HEE Funded Staying the Course student attrition project (Hamshire et al., 2012a, 2012b; Hamshire et al., 2013a, 2013b)	JISC funded TRAFFIC project (Forsyth & Cullen, 2016; Forsyth et al., 2015, 2024)
Man Met University funded Student narratives on their HE experiences (Hamshire et al., 2018; Hamshire & Wibberley, 2014)	Man Met University and University of Cape Town funded Staff narratives of first-generation students (Forsyth et al., 2022; Hamshire et al., 2021)
HEE Funded Predicting and Supporting Success (PASS) project (Harris et al., 2019; Jack et al., 2017, 2018)
Man Met University funded Inclusive Learning Communities (ILC) project – student experiences and staff perspectives (Gamote et al., 2022; Hamshire et al., 2023)

HEA = Higher Education Academy; HEE = Health Education England; JISC = Joint Information Systems Committee (renamed Jisc in 2012). Man Met University = Manchester Metropolitan University.

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