Box 5.4 Workshop process: Force-field analysis Preparing content: Decide on the appropriate level of question(s) for analysis (e.g. a very broad question such as “What are the forces for and against market inclusion for small-scale producers?” versus a narrower question such as “What are the forces for and against small-scale producers’ ability to sell produce to a tight network of preferred suppliers?”). Since facts and figures are a key resource here, make sure that a resource person and/or resource materials are available for the workshop. Preparing for the workshop: Set up wall space or flipcharts with the question/goal centrally arranged (see examples). In the workshop: • Working preferably in small groups (maximum six people), identify key forces for and against the central goal (e.g. “market inclusion” in the broad case above and “sale to future tight networks of preferred suppliers” in the narrow case). • Write these on cards and arrange them on either side of the central goal. • Identify the most crucial three forces “for” and “against” change, or rank the whole set—note the rankings on the cards. Materials: Flipchart pads, coloured cards (preferably cut into arrow shapes with different colours for “for” and “against” forces), marker pens, adhesive to stick pages together and on the wall. Camera and/or computer to record the diagram(s). Time: Allow 1 hour.
Box 5.5 Workshop process: Cause-and-effect mapping Preparing content: Gather checklists of key institutional issues and other drivers to use to prompt participants. In the workshop: • Pin a card with the central problem (e.g. “Small farmers excluded from markets”) at the centre of the pinboard (or wall). • Identify the threats associated with this problem, either together as a group or individually, and write these on cards. • If there are a lot of cards, rank them in order to concentrate on the most important factors (these three steps are equivalent to force-field analysis). • Decide which of the cards (possibly all of them) show the threats that are the immediate causes of the central problem and pin these in a line on one side of the central card. • Work methodically through the set of threats to identify the underlying causes of each. Write each underlying cause on a card and pin into place to show chains of causality. • Since the various threats and underlying causes might interact and overlap, the diagram could get complicated, in which case it might help to use arrows to show the links and/or directions of causality. • Keep a category on one side of the developing problem tree for broader constraints that limit the possibilities for small-scale producers but cannot be influenced by any of the economic actors and policy actors involved. • Review the final layout and revise if necessary. • Record the diagram. Materials: Pinboard (or wall + adhesive), cards/post-its/paper scraps, pens, arrows (e.g. arrowshaped post-its, pre-cut cards, pieces of string or coloured wool). Camera, paper and/or computer to record the diagram(s). Time: Allow 1-2 hours if working in small groups on sub-sections of the overall issue of small-scale producer inclusion; longer for bigger questions and larger groups.
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METHODOLOGY IN PRACTICE: A STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE