Adair Daniels

A Method for the Madness Adair Daniels

Predicting the future accurately is incredibly difficult. The future is always changing, and there are an infinite number of possibilities. However, this does not mean that we can't make meaningful predictions. The Qualitative Futures Square is a tool to hone and direct an attempt to predict the future. Designed as a tool for a single researcher, it also shines when utilized as a tool to lead group brainstorming. A Method for the Madness: An Intro to Qualitative Futures Squares first provides a brief introduction to futures studies, an emerging field that boasts dignitaries such as Ray Kurzweil and Michio Kaku. Next, it covers the issue inherent in creating a "futures hypothesis," a tool from which to begin futures research, which unlike a standard hypothesis must address multiple possible futures. Then, the book launches into an exploration of the Qualitative Futures Square as a method of creating a futures hypothesis, as well as how its flexible and malleable nature provides an easy framework for a researcher to make cohesive, useful predictions for the future. While designed as a tool for forming futures hypotheses, it's equally useful for creating adaptive goals, especially in a business environment. With its built-in addressing of the probabilistic nature of the future, goals cemented utilizing the QFS already have answers for favorable/unfavorable changes.