Problem structuring using computer-aided morphological analysis

General morphological analysis (GMA) is a method for structuring and investigating the total set of relationships contained in multi-dimensional, usually non-quantifiable, problem complexes. Pioneered by Fritz Zwicky at the California Institute of Technology in the 1930s and 40s, it relies on a constructed parameter space, linked by way of logical relationships, rather than on causal relationships and a hierarchal structure. During the past 10 years, GMA has been computerized and extended for structuring and analyzing complex policy spaces, developing futures scenarios and modelling strategy alternatives. This article gives a historical and theoretical background to GMA as a problem structuring method, compares it with a number of other “soft-OR” methods, and presents a recent application in structuring a complex policy issue. The issue involves the development of an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) system in Sweden.