Narrative BaseCamp (Virtual)

Course details

Narrative BaseCamp participants will (a) explore the theory and principles underlying narrative practice (b) experience the effects of diverse narrative prompts, practices and tools and (c) experiment in small groups with creating and facilitating simple narrative prompts and processes.  This includes:

• Narrative in anthro-complexity – and its key, but often invisible role in human cognition, pattern seeking and recognition, and decision-making. Explore the differentiation of narrative approaches to many others, and the tensions and affordances this creates.
• Understand narrative’s power as (a) a form of communication, (b) a form of knowledge sharing and storage, and (c) a research tool.
• Deductive, inductive and abductive research and logic and how these different approaches link to the Cynefin framework in their bounded applicability, to ground our deep dive into abductive practices and the tools and methods to support them.
• Explore the organisational transformative methods that ground and enable narrative practice in communities or organisations, including Human Sensor Networks, Informal Networks and Entangled Trios.
• Interrogate the role of consultant/ facilitation of narrative work: this practice requires the application of complex facilitation principles and practice heuristics from project conceptualisation and design, not only within workshops.
• Experience the complex, rich insights and processes made possible by the blending of qualitative and quantitative data, and the implications for integrated, continuous, complex change processes.
• The vector theory of change and the implications for and relationship with narrative research – including how we integrate reflection and data-driven sense-making into community engagement and participation
• Experience and learn skills/ methods for elicitation of narrative materials, as well as some key approaches and things to bear in mind when signifying, processing and representing data back to the system without potentially problematic intermediation or interpretation.
• Get a sneak peek at the latest exciting developments and tools in the SenseMaker ecosystem, including interactive continuous feedback technology, GENBA-style dynamic collectors, and more…

Participants will leave with:

• A deepened understanding of the narrative methods and SenseMaker system, including the theory and practice principles to ground it
• An enhanced ability to sense and articulate the opportunities and benefits of narrative practice and SenseMaker to their systems, colleagues and clients
• One or more concepts for projects/probes to put this work into practice, in their unique context
• Practical experience in formulating prompting questions and eliciting narratives
• Experience and understanding of the family or ecosystem of Cynefin Co narrative methods. Note that certain methods require advanced training beyond the scope of this programme.