Global Journal of Science Frontier Research, H: Environment & Earth Science, Volume 22 Issue 5

thinking, our knowledge, and our problem-solving efforts, and therefore it allows us to define a problem usefully in context. Doing so opens up options. This integrated problem-oriented approach permits users to: The five perspectives follow. First is standpoint clarification , which is about you own perspective, assumptions, and viewing angle (see notes Clark 2002, pp. 111-126). Ideally, standpoint is about self- awareness in psychological, existential, professional, and social sense. It is about you being both a participant and an “anthropological” observer. x Goals are preferred outcomes—something what you want to achieve. x Trends are past and recent events relevant to goals. x Conditions are factors that shape those trends causes, motives, policies, etc. x Projections are probable future developments under various circumstances. x Alternatives are courses of action—what you can do to realize goals. In these terms, the logic of sound policy making is to choose the alternative that you expect (on the basis of trends, conditions, and projections) is the best means of realizing your goals. Fourth is the decision process , which directs your attention to the politics arising from conflicts among policies (see notes Clark 2002, pp. 56-84).The decision process is a means of reconciling conflicts and achieving consensus on policy and programs through politics. Politics are inevitable because people develop and promote different policies reflecting their special interests. This brings us to the fifth task that directs us to look at “basic premises.” ii. Basic Premises Fifth is about basic premises , or relationships among beliefs, worldviews, myths, paradigms, which directs your attention as a problem solver to the morality of policies. That is, whether they are morally justified within the community, given the cultural myth (myth is used in anthropological terms) (see notes Clark, 2002, pp. 21-23). Premises in cultures are accepted largely as a matter of faith (not reason) through socialization and acculturalization of young children and adolescences. The political myth serves to justify and explain the possession and use of power – whether or not its assumptions or premises are true. 42 x Doctrine is the part of the myth that sets forth the basic aims and expectations of the community. Authoritative statements of doctrine are often found in preambles to constitutions and other formal declarations. Myth is used here in the anthropological sense, the basic beliefs of individuals, communities, and cultures. In convention usage, myth means false belief. In our use, myth is what people see themselves to be (“who am I”), how they fit in, and an explanation of what and why their community does what it does. Myth has three components as we use it. x Formula is the part of the myth that prescribes the basic rules for progress according to the basic aims and expectations of the community. This is the basic law or constitution, which may or may not be written. x Miranda are the symbols to emulate and admire in the political myth. They include the heroes, flags, and anthems that are displayed on ceremonial occasions. Premises are continuously reaffirmed and redefined through use in the social and political discourse. Conflicts over policies, programs, and politics (the uses and abuses of power) can become so acute that they threaten to disrupt or destroy a political system. The various meanings are located in the minds of people, who occasionally and with various degrees of skill express what they mean through manipulation of signs and symbols. These five concepts and operations comprise integrated problem solving. They open up a functional view on convention (see notes for Clark 2002, pp. 123- 125). They are practically invaluable in application. 1 Global Journal of Science Frontier Research Volume XXII Issue V Year 2022 7 ( H ) Version I © 2022 Global Journals An Inquiry into “Convention”as a Problem and what we Might do About it? • Find the important pieces of information on a program or policy, in a maze of reports that is typically incomplete and distorted; • Identify what pieces are important but missing in those reports and actions; • Organize the pieces into a coherent picture of the problem and response under inquiry; • Evaluate that picture from rational, political, and moral standpoints; and • Construct a more educated perspective of the program or policy or a new program or policy of your own. Second is the problem orientation , which directs your attention to the rationality of the program or policy – and asks, whether it is reasonable enough? The problem orientation is a strategy for constructing a more rational policy (see notes for Clark 2002, pp. 85-110). The basic concepts involved in it are: Third is the social process (a mapping tool), which directs your attention to the people involved in any issue, their perspectives, and the context (see notes Clark 2002, pp. 32-55). It rests on the principle of contextuality (see notes Clark 2002, pp. 29-30). This principle recognizes that all things are interconnected and that the meaning of anything depends on its context. It is comprised of seven elements: participants, their perspectives – (identities, expectations, and demands), the situation, values involved, strategies in use, outcomes, and longer-term effects.