At a time when our society is looking at its future with a mixture of concern, hope and skepticism, social forecasting offers the tools to systematically and rigorously explore the possible futures that await us and that we ourselves contribute to create. The last fifty years have seen the progressive professionalization of future studies and social forecasting has provided results of great interest, with the parallel development of numerous and innovative methods of analysis useful to inform public debate and to contribute to policy formation processes. This volume intends to give an account of this interest and this variety, illustrating the theoretical bases, fields of application, disciplinary references and ethical implications. By availing itself of original contributions by Italian scholars, the book thus presents a broad and articulated picture of the theme of social forecasting, also offering an overview, albeit partial, of the research conducted in this field of knowledge in our country.
