Toward a (Pragmatic) Science of Strategic Intervention: Design Propositions for Scenario Planning

An enduring problem confronting design science is the question of how to distil design principles and propositions in contexts where only limited evidence has accrued directly in connection with the design problem at hand. This article illustrates how researchers can address this challenge by recourse to well-established bodies of basic theory and research in the wider social and organizational sciences that suggest robust design options. Adopting this approach, we draw upon the insights of social identity theory, self/social categorization theory and the Five Factor Model of human personality from the field of personality and social psychology to distil a series of propositions to inform the design of scenario planning interventions, centred on team composition and the facilitation process. In so doing, our article exemplifies the benefits of adopting a pragmatic science approach to the design of processes that promote organizational change and development, thus adding to the growing design science movement.