The Future City Index: An Application of Computerized Text-Based Analysis to the Measurement of Community-Level Futures-Orientation

Abstract

Most of the data created and made available by today’s communication platforms are generated organically without regard to potential insights that could be gained by careful study making such platforms a valuable source of data that may prove to have more validity than self-reports. Word-frequency computerized text-based analysis has been employed to discover the characteristics, traits, and sentiments of populations. The Future City Index (FCI) is an application of this methodology that has implications and relevance for strategic foresight practitioners, policymakers, industry, and urban planners. Currently in development, the FCI ranks cities according to the frequency of meaningful futures-oriented language in daily word use within a determined geographic location.

Guest Editorial: On “Big Data, AI, and Futures Studies”

“…Finally, the article by McBride, Daniels and Hines (2020), “The Future City Index: An Application of Computerized Text-Based Analysis to the Measurement of Community- Level Futures-Orientation,” is a novel application of how data can be used to identify the future orientation of a city. The authors define future orientation as the degree to which one appears able to hold mental representation and evaluations of possible futures that may influence the selection of current action.…”