Special Research Services

Impact Assessment

Research, Expertise and Consulting for Technology, Politics and Business

The future and its impacts can only be assessed in approximate terms. Planning decisions, however, must be made in the present. It only seems sensible to spotlight on what is most apparent: the way in which the possible consequences of our decisions are thought about, discussed and acted upon today.

Morphological impact assessment explores the psychological significance and working power of impact scenarios and future images in the present, in respect to their functions, their impact reach and consequences, as well as with the needed attention to backgrounds and interest conflicts.

For shaping the future in the present

For attitude towards life, attitudes and behavior in different target groups

For development and design of products, social issues or legislation

Research Agenda

Relevance of Impact Research

A mega issue today is what the impact of a measure of social significance will have in the future and what kind of live it will bring.

This encompasses climate change, technologies and digitalization, food and agriculture, robots or self-driving cars; but also, for example, the change in values in society or the development of social and care systems.

The dimensions of current changes and their related concerns shape peoples anticipations for the future – reflecting their experience, way of life and expectations. Importantly, what they experience, hope or fear is their psychologically “reality” – from this “reality” foundation “future” is being build up.

The extent to which this projected future is already taking place in the here and now is shown e.g. by the powerful excitement curves in social media. Here, something new is evolving in which you participate in daily life.

The present and future are moving closer together. Their dynamics become increasingly intertwined. “Future” is already disrupting current live – in particular through the invasive strength of modern technology.

How to measure the impact of something

For scientific technology assessment, the synthesis of combined expert perspectives – as state of the art on recent years – doesn’t lead to definitive predictions about the consequences of something in the future. This integrative approach is an essential building block of impact assessment, but is not specific and actionable enough.

The future impact of something cannot be reliably predicted and implemented accordingly. The fate of something only becomes apparent in retrospect. There are too many vague or unpredictable factors, especially in the combined effect.

More likely, what was kind of expected tends to happen more often by taking its course of action, whether consciously or not. A kind of self-fulfilling prophecy – one follows what one believes will happen and thus helps this anticipated future on its way.

Technology impact assessment in particular is increasingly turning its direction to deriving future impacts from how we perceive this “future” today. It is our relationships with the far-reaching future that set the course today for tomorrow. From a small scale on extending to corporate directions and legislative bills.

Immersion into psychology

Unconscious motivations and

images of future impacts

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“Torment agenda” impacts inflation

Today it seems to be all about impacts: the impacts of Corona, the New Normal, the impacts of climate change, new technologies, the impacts of our behavior and use of products and services.

It almost feels like getting surrounded by consequences, every day anew. Consequences that have occurred, that were suspected and expected, intended or unintended. Separating actions from consequences – practiced for decades – is catching up with society.

“Paranoia” and the rather uncanny impression that hings are haunting us

Sigmund Freud described the uncanny as the once “secret”, the “homely”, familiar and later “repressed”. Familiar and taken-for-granted habits of life turn in retrospect into a kind of “haunting” of “non mindfulness” living, as a kind of irreversible cascade of negative consequences.

Putting actions to the test of their consequences

Traditionally, getting confronted with the consequences of life was only after the fact. This is what the many images of the Last Judgment stand for, where sorting out and damnation or heaven are the quintessence of their way of life.

Now it’s up to us to “weighing” and deciding in advance, today – scaling and questioning action in respect to its consequences.

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Impact research in the age of psychology

Morphological Assessment explores:

The images people draw of their future and the future consequences of the world they live in, the decisions they make and the omissions they make.

Images of impact consequences on the future situation of products, technologies, services, social issues or laws.

The resulting expectations and strategies for dealing with them (expectation management).

On this basis, we develop image programs and scenarios facilitating a constructive approach to the tasks and problems, but also the longings, of contemporary society, involving as many stakeholders as feasible.

Bridge to the future: Imaginative images and driving emotions become elements that enable and change communication processes, actions and production procedures alike.

Methodology and Experience

Our Expertise

Range of Research Areas
Mobility, food and agriculture,, energy and utilities, payment systems, education, common diseases, and international treatment routines of illness patterns.

Everyday Life & “Psychology of Objects”
Foundational studies of usage motivation, purchase, and usage of the wide variety of products constituting everyday life and its’ routines.

Ancillary and Impact Assessment Research
Long-standing projects on evaluation on: food information, health education, dietary habits, school system/school types, risk behavior, choice of transport, supply structures, etc.

Psychological case and pilot studies
Basic research as a matrix for quantification and segmentation studies. Evaluating and analytically processing quantitative and social listening studies.

German and global, international projects
Wide-range experience and know-how on an inetrnational level. Cultural comparisons sharpening the genuine country position.

Understanding the now of tomorrow. Morphology – Holistic psychological logic of change

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