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Glăveanu, V.; Dee, M.; Hasrizal, M.S.I.; Tofan, A.; Nolan, C. Possibility Studies: Foundations, Core Concepts, Applications. Encyclopedia. Available online: https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/59838 (accessed on 07 July 2026).
Glăveanu V, Dee M, Hasrizal MSI, Tofan A, Nolan C. Possibility Studies: Foundations, Core Concepts, Applications. Encyclopedia. Available at: https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/59838. Accessed July 07, 2026.
Glăveanu, Vlad, Maire Dee, Muhammad Saiful Islam Hasrizal, Andreea Tofan, Conor Nolan. "Possibility Studies: Foundations, Core Concepts, Applications" Encyclopedia, https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/59838 (accessed July 07, 2026).
Glăveanu, V., Dee, M., Hasrizal, M.S.I., Tofan, A., & Nolan, C. (2026, July 07). Possibility Studies: Foundations, Core Concepts, Applications. In Encyclopedia. https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/59838
Glăveanu, Vlad, et al. "Possibility Studies: Foundations, Core Concepts, Applications." Encyclopedia. Web. 07 July, 2026.
Peer Reviewed
Possibility Studies: Foundations, Core Concepts, Applications
This is a peer-reviewed entry published in Encyclopedia Journal, full entry can be found at 10.3390/encyclopedia6070144

Possibility Studies are an emerging interdisciplinary field concerned with how individuals, groups and societies engage with possibilities, including imagined futures, unrealised alternatives and transformative forms of action. Drawing on psychology, sociology, anthropology, philosophy, creativity research, futures studies and related disciplines, it examines how possibilities are perceived, constructed, negotiated, constrained and enacted within cultural, social and material contexts. Central topics include imagination, agency, anticipation, creativity, counterfactual thinking, hope and social transformation. What distinguishes Possibility Studies is their focus on possibility itself as an object of inquiry. Rather than concentrating on a single domain such as creativity, innovation, futures, identity or social change, the field investigates the conditions under which alternatives become imaginable, the factors that enable or constrain them, and the processes through which they are explored and realised. Possibility Studies therefore serve as a cross-disciplinary framework for understanding how people and societies engage with uncertainty, openness and the not-yet-realised dimensions of life. Although the term is relatively recent, the field builds on longer intellectual traditions concerned with imagination, becoming, human potential and the open-ended nature of social reality. It has gained increasing relevance in response to contemporary challenges such as ecological crisis, technological transformation and political uncertainty, all of which raise fundamental questions about alternative futures and the capacity to shape them.

Possibility Studies imagination agency creativity anticipation futures thinking possibility spaces social transformation
Human beings do not live only in relation to what presently exists. They also engage continuously with what could exist, what might emerge, what may never happen, and even what could have happened differently. Everyday life is shaped not only by current realities and past experiences, but also by imagination, anticipation, aspiration, hope and speculation. People plan futures, imagine alternatives, fear potential outcomes, revisit unrealised paths and attempt to transform existing conditions. This orientation toward the possible constitutes a central dimension of human experience and social life.
Possibility Studies have emerged as an interdisciplinary field concerned with understanding these processes. As an emerging field, however, their conceptual boundaries, distinctive contribution and methodological foundations remain the subject of ongoing discussion and debate. The field investigates how possibilities are perceived, created, negotiated, constrained and enacted across personal, collective and societal contexts. Scholars working within this area argue that human action is fundamentally shaped by orientations toward possibilities, whether these concern personal futures, collective transformations, imagined worlds or unrealised alternatives [1][2].
The growing interest in possibility across disciplines reflects broader historical and social developments. Rapid technological change, ecological crises, political instability, global uncertainty and accelerating social transformation have intensified concerns about the future and about humanity’s capacity to imagine alternatives. Under such conditions, questions surrounding possibility become especially significant. How do individuals and societies respond when established futures appear unstable? How are new forms of action imagined and developed? What enables or constrains people’s ability to perceive alternatives? Possibility Studies address such questions by examining the dynamic relationship between imagination, agency, culture and social transformation. For example, research on aspiration, identity and social marginalisation has shown that people often rely on imagination, narrative reconstruction and collective meaning-making to sustain a sense of agency under conditions of uncertainty, while access to possibilities remains strongly shaped by social and institutional constraints [3][4][5].
Importantly, the field does not treat possibilities as purely abstract or individual phenomena. Possibilities are understood as socially and culturally situated. What people perceive as possible is shaped by material conditions, institutional structures, historical experiences, cultural narratives, social relationships and access to resources. Different groups encounter different horizons of possibility depending on their social positions and lived realities [3][4]. Consequently, Possibility Studies are also concerned with power, inequality and exclusion, particularly regarding whose futures are recognised, supported or denied.
The field draws on a wide range of intellectual traditions. Contributions from sociocultural psychology emphasise imagination and development as socially mediated processes [6][7]. Pragmatist philosophy highlights the open-ended and emergent nature of human action [8][9]. Futures studies contribute methods for exploring alternative futures and anticipating social change, while creativity research examines how novelty and transformation emerge within cultural and collaborative contexts. Anthropology, sociology and narrative studies further contribute to understanding how people collectively construct meanings, aspirations and visions of the future.
Although Possibility Studies remain a relatively recent term, they increasingly function as a cross-disciplinary area of inquiry organised around the study of possibility itself. Their contribution lies not only in studying future-oriented thinking, but also in examining how possibilities emerge through interactions between individuals, communities, institutions and technologies.
Recent work within the field has explored topics including creativity, anticipation, ecological futures, education, innovation, identity, counterfactual thinking, participatory futures, social movements and collective imagination. Across these domains, a shared concern can be identified: understanding how human beings orient themselves toward alternative realities and how new forms of life, action and social organisation become imaginable and achievable.

References

  1. Glăveanu, V.P. The possible as a field of inquiry. Eur. J. Psychol. 2018, 14, 519–530.
  2. Glăveanu, V.P. Possibility studies: A manifesto. Possibility Stud. Soc. 2022, 1, 3–8.
  3. Appadurai, A. The Future as Cultural Fact: Essays on the Global Condition; Verso: London, UK, 2013.
  4. Meretoja, H. Expanding our sense of the possible: Ten theses for Possibility Studies. Possibility Stud. Soc. 2023, 1, 137–144.
  5. Cleve, R.A. Creative survival: Disclosure decisions for gay identified males through heuristic and arts-based inquiry. Possibility Stud. Soc. 2026, 4, 11–21.
  6. Vygotsky, L.S. Imagination and creativity in childhood. J. Russ. East Eur. Psychol. 2004, 42, 7–97.
  7. Bruner, J. Acts of Meaning; Harvard University Press: Cambridge, MA, USA, 1990.
  8. Dewey, J. Human Nature and Conduct; Henry Holt: New York, NY, USA, 1922.
  9. James, W. Pragmatism: A New Name for Some Old Ways of Thinking; Longmans, Green and Co.: New York, NY, USA, 1907.
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Subjects: Psychology
Contributors MDPI registered users' name will be linked to their SciProfiles pages. To register with us, please refer to https://encyclopedia.pub/register : Vlad Glăveanu , Maire Dee ,
Muhammad Saiful Islam Hasrizal
, Andreea Tofan ,
Conor Nolan
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Online Date: 07 Jul 2026
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