Wicked Problems, Workable Solutions: Lessons from a Public Life

After five decades of studying how Americans respond to public issues, Daniel Yankelovich presents a strategy to nurture the greater public wisdom necessary for modern society to confront its most wicked problems. Having been an advisor to major corporations and influential media, business and government organizations, Yankelovich is a leading public opinion expert who has had a long career studying, questioning, and reporting on national issues, trends, and opinions. Stagnant incomes, blocked social mobility, political polarization, dysfunctional educational, criminal, and health care systems and global instability plague the welfare of not only the United States, but also the entire world. By instituting a few powerful innovations we can revolutionize today’s inattentive public into a thoughtful, action-oriented populous. Yankelovich shares the philosophical foundation of his successful career and revisits some of his breakthrough experiences, drawing insightful conclusions applicable to our current condition. Full of stories of how destinies can change when people abandon ingrained, unproductive thinking habits, Wicked Problems, Workable Solutions lays out a pragmatic design to reboot democracy and lead our society forward into a more promising future.

Table of Contents:
PART I: Elitism Versus Democracy 1. Introduction: America’s Wicked Problems 2. Retrofitting The Plumbing Of Democracy 3. A Plea For Adaptive Sanity 4. Four Wrong Turns 5. Why We Can’t Rely On Our Culture 6. Straight And Crooked Thinking 7. Caring and Stewardship 8. Elite Forms of Groupthink 9. From Martin Heidegger To Lloyd Blankfein 10.Transitioning to a Thoughtful Public - A Strategy PART II: Understanding the Public’s “Learning Curve” 11. An Accidental Profession 12. Starting My Own Firm 13. Part Science … 14. Part Circus … 15. Smart People; Dumb Mistakes 16. New Methods Of Conducting Research 17. Research Designed For Action 18. Never Present More Than One Idea At A Time 19. Tracking The Cultural Revolution 20. A Special Brand Of Rebellion 21. Who’s Afraid Of The “Generation Gap” 22. High-Risk Experiments Without A Net 23. America Tells Itself A New Story 24. The Yankelovich Monitor 25. Founding The Public Agenda 26. The Elitist Double Whammy 27. Missed Chances To Regain The Public Trust 28. Coming To Public Judgment 29. Losing the Battle With The News Media 30. How My Philosophy For Living Evolved PART III: My Philosophy For Living 31. Dinner With Quine 32. How Scientism Nearly Devoured Philosophy 33. My Wrong Map Problem 34. A Look At Existentialism 35. Finding A Better Framework 36. Applying Philosophy To Psychoanalysis 37. “Ego and Instinct” In Retrospect 38. The Mindset Of The Iron Cage: Prying It Open 39. Don’t Fight Human Nature! 40. Co-Evolution 41. Culture Is Inescapable… 42. Structuring Your Own Philosophy For Living 43. Some Philosophical Tweets to Live By

About the Author :
Daniel Yankelovich is chairman of Public Agenda (co-founded in 1975) and founder of the Yankelovich Center for Social Science Research at the University of California at San Diego. He was also founder of the New York Times/Yankelovich Poll and the business research firm, Yankelovich, Skelly and White.

Review :
[A]nyone who is working to create a more democratic and engaged society [should] read Wicked Problems, Workable Solutions. Dan is a true legend, and this book reminds us why he is one of the most insightful social scientists of our time. I’m honored to serve on the board of Public Agenda, and applaud Dan’s lifetime of work to improve our democracy and insure that the public’s voice has been heard. Daniel Yankelovich is one of the truly wise men of our time. His insights into the character of the American public are both profound and useful. Read this book and you will understand why. Fantastic. This is the most trenchant and incisive analysis of our country’s situation that I have ever read. Yankelovich cuts to the heart of what the problems are. I hope that we are, as the author says, “brave enough and smart enough” to find the workable problems. Certainly, this book is the critical first step to understanding what those problems are and moving forward from them. Daniel Yankelovich is one of the great students of American life. In this personable and engaging book he not only identifies some of the central "wicked problems" of contemporary American culture, but he also calls for and begins to articulate the change in our understanding of ourselves that we must undergo in order to solve them. In short, he calls for each of us to take up a distinctively American philosophy of living, one that is fit to the demands of a free and civically engaged democratic society. There is wisdom in this book. Wicked Problem, Workable Solutions reflects a lifetime of pragmatic and creative inquiry into how to help the public play its essential role in making our democracy work. Timely and wise, it shows a path forward amid the challenges of our troubled times. Distinguished social scientist Daniel Yankelovich applies the fascinating knowledge and wisdom gained from a lifetime of public opinion research to describe the unintended consequence of policies designed to secure the well-being of all Americans. His wise and clear-sighted analysis provides each of us with a personal guide to find the path to a more productive personal and national future. In Wicked Problems, Workable Solutions the truly legendary Daniel Yankelovich reminds us why he is one of the most insightful social scientists of our time. Part memoir and part road map, this book is must reading for anyone who thinks deeply about making a difference and leading a life of meaning.