Sensemaking of narratives: informing the capabilities development process

Abstract

This capstone project determines whether sensemaking of soldier narratives can inform the Department of Defense‘s (DOD) capability development process (CDP). Sensemaking is the process of creating awareness and understanding in situations of high complexity or uncertainty. The authors gathered service member narratives concerning their use of fielded equipment, which created metadata for both quantitative and qualitative research and analysis. This capstone compares results from sensemaking of narratives with results from the Warfighter Technology Tradespace Methodology (WTTM), a system designed for the rapid fielding of equipment for small forward operating bases (FOBs) and combat outposts (COPs). The capstone finds that 1) soldier narratives inform the fielding process by providing an additional layer of meaning and context, and 2) soldier narratives do not replace current feedback mechanisms; rather, they play a complementary role. This capstone finds that narratives as a feedback mechanism can be applied during operational testing of newly developed or fielded equipment for the DOD‘s CDP.