Force Field Analysis: The Basics and an Example
Change often sounds logical on paper. In practice, however, things are different. People have questions. Processes are stuck. Interests clash. And there is almost always resistance, sometimes vocal, sometimes silent. Force field analysis helps you to make that reality visible. You weigh the driving forces that push change forward against the inhibiting forces that hold it back. This allows you to see where the balance currently lies and where you can make a difference. For managers, this is a practical tool to better substantiate choices and focus on gaining support. For employees, it clarifies what is going on, why the change is necessary, and which concerns are being taken seriously.
In this article, you will discover what force field analysis is, where the model comes from, and how to apply it step by step. You will learn what types of forces you can collect, how to weigh them, and how to move from analysis to concrete actions. We will also show you which pitfalls to avoid so that you can use the tool realistically and effectively. Enjoy reading!
What is change? Kurt lewin’s Theory
In the last century, Kurt Lewin was best known for being the founder of social psychology. He proved that individuals not only have to deal with inner urges such as desires, motives, and expectations but also with pressure from their environment.
In his Change Management Model, he indicated that it is possible for individuals to be flexible and that they can change their behaviour. This does not happen overnight. Kurt Lewin identified three basic stages: the unfreezing stage, the change stage and the refreezing stage.
Change process
The first stage is about people becoming aware of their own behaviour and that they have to get rid of unwanted habits. Efforts should be made to transition from ‘unconscious wrong’ behaviour to ‘conscious wrong’ behaviour.
Only when individuals are aware of their ‘wrong ’behaviour it is possible to move to the second stage. In the move stage it is important for individuals to acquire the required appropriate knowledge, attitudes and skills. Efforts should be made to transition from ‘conscious wrong’ to ‘conscious right’ activities.
In the third and final stage the desired (new) behaviour cannot be a once-only occurrence but the aim is that this will become(and remain) a fixed part and pattern of their daily routine. The ideal is a continuous transition from ‘conscious good’ to ‘unconscious good’.
What is a Force Field Analysis? The explanation
Change is very difficult to accept for people and they would much rather see that everything remains ‘the same’. This also applies to companies and organizations where it is important to implement changes.
After all, inertia is tantamount to decline and in order to generate as little resistance as possible, Kurt Lewin developed the Force Field Analysis (FFA). This is a method in which a team or an organization can predict in advance what the expected resistance will be to the proposed change.
Change within an organization can be effected in different ways. For example a reorganization, the introduction of a new technology, introduction of new machines, adjustment of production or changes in work processes. Using FFA, it becomes clear what forces could possibly influence the change.
These might include resistant people, inoperative processes and structures, negative attitudes, habits, insufficient knowledge and skills. All these force may have an impact on the individual employee, a department or the entire organization.
Figure 1 – an example template of a Force Field Analysis
FFA is a powerful strategic instrument that is used to understand what is needed for change to take place in both a business and a personal environment. FFA makes clear what the possible obstacles are that could hinder change.
It enables an organization to become aware of the difficulties that may be involved in the envisaged change. By consulting thoroughly with each other, FFA ensures that teams will feel responsible. They will be better able to implement the change and to identify and eliminate any obstacles prematurely.
Types of forces in a force field analysis
In a force field analysis, all influences surrounding a change are brought together in a single overview. To keep that overview workable, it is useful to group forces into a number of fixed categories. This creates structure and prevents the discussion from getting bogged down in random comments.
The first category consists of substantive and process forces. These are factors related to systems, procedures, resources, and working methods. Think of existing processes that work well and can therefore inhibit change, or, conversely, an outdated system that necessitates renewal. Budget, time, available technology, and resources also fall into this group.
A second category is the human side. This concerns the behavior, attitude, beliefs, and skills of employees and managers. Examples include enthusiasm about the change, fear of losing control, distrust due to previous failed processes, or, conversely, trust in management. Knowledge level and willingness to learn also belong to this factor.
A third category concerns context and environment. These are forces that come from outside or from the organization’s history. Think of legislation and regulations, market developments, customer requirements, culture, and informal rules within the organization. History also plays a role here. Previous reorganizations or rounds of cutbacks, for example, can cause extra sensitivity or resistance to a new change step.
Organizing forces in this way makes a force field analysis more concrete. Teams can more quickly see where the main inhibiting forces lie and which stimulating forces are already present. This helps to make targeted choices: which processes need to be adjusted, which group of employees needs extra attention, and which contextual factors require a different approach or additional communication.
How to conduct a force field analysis in a team
A force field analysis works best when a team works on it together. This reveals different perspectives and creates support for the outcome. The steps below offer practical guidance.
Step 1. Formulate the current and desired situation
Briefly describe the current situation and the desired situation. Be as specific as possible. For example: currently, there is a lot of ad hoc consultation between departments, but a fixed consultation process with clear agreements is desired. These two sentences form the starting point for the analysis.
Step 2. Determine the subject and scope
Agree on exactly what the analysis will cover. Is it about a single project, a department, or an organization-wide change? The more focused the scope, the more useful the outcome will be.
Step 3. Gather all the strengths in the team
First, have the team individually write down the strengths that hinder the change and the strengths that help it. Then collect these on a board or digital overview. Do not make any selections at this point. Everything that is mentioned can be put on the list first.
Step 4. Classify forces as hindering or facilitating
Divide all the points mentioned into two groups. Hindering factors are forces that slow down or block change. Facilitating factors are forces that support and reinforce change. This creates an initial picture of resistance and support in the force field.
Step 5. Group forces into categories
Bundle related forces into clear clusters. These often involve substantive and process forces, people, and context or environment. For example, multiple comments about unclear procedures are placed in one cluster. Multiple comments about fear of job loss form another cluster. This increases clarity and reveals patterns.
Step 6. Assign a strength to each force
Have the team assess the strength of each force or cluster. This can be done using a scale of one to five, for example. A high score means a strong influence on the change. This helps to see which forces currently dominate the balance.
Step 7. Choose points of action
Decide together which hindering forces and which facilitating forces will receive attention first. Focus on forces that are both strong and influenceable. Hindering forces need to be weakened or removed. Facilitating forces need to be strengthened and better utilized.
Step 8. Translate the analysis into an action plan
Record which actions will be taken, who is responsible, and within what timeframe. Refer explicitly to the forces from the analysis. This will clarify how the force field analysis has led to concrete follow-up steps.
In this way, the force field analysis becomes not just a picture, but a tool for jointly understanding what is going on and making targeted choices in approaching change.
An example of a force field analysis
An organization wants to switch from email and separate files to a central digital collaboration platform. In practice, it appears that employees are making little use of the new system. Management perceives this as disappointing adoption and decides to conduct a force field analysis.
The current situation is described as: everyone mainly works with their own folders and email. The desired situation is: a large part of the collaboration takes place via the new platform, with shared documents and transparent file creation.
In a session with employees and managers, all forces are first gathered. Hindering factors include: lack of time to learn the new system, previous experiences with failed IT projects, unclear instructions, and the belief that “email is faster.” Facilitating factors include: improved information retrieval, less duplication of work, management support, and a few enthusiastic early adopters who are already actively using the system.
These forces are then clustered. This creates a cluster around skills (insufficient training), a cluster around culture and history (distrust due to previous projects), and a cluster around processes (old working methods have not been adapted). The influence of each cluster is assessed. The analysis shows that the lack of time and support, and the absence of adapted working agreements, are particularly strong inhibiting forces.
Based on this, an action plan is drawn up. A short, practical training program is built into the working day, team leaders explicitly agree on how and when the platform will be used, and in the first few months, successes are made visible in team meetings. At the same time, the role of pioneers is utilized: they become the point of contact for practical questions. The force field analysis thus directly guided concrete interventions to really get the change going.
Limitations and pitfalls of force field analysis
Despite its practical value, force field analysis has clear limitations. First and foremost, it is a subjective tool. The outcome depends heavily on who is at the table, how openly people dare to speak, and what examples are mentioned. What one person experiences as a strong inhibiting force may be considered less significant by another.
In addition, the analysis is always a snapshot. Forces surrounding a change can shift quickly. A new management decision, a reorganization, a disappointing result, or, conversely, a success can change the force field in a short period of time. Without periodic updates, the overview becomes outdated and its usefulness diminishes.
Another pitfall is that the analysis remains stuck in description. This results in a nice diagram with arrows and factors, but no clear link is made to choices and actions. The value of the method lies precisely in the next step: which inhibiting forces are weakened, which facilitating forces are strengthened, and who takes on which task.
Finally, there is a risk that mainly forces within the team’s sphere of influence will be identified. External factors such as legislation, market pressure, or organization-wide choices are then underestimated. A good force field analysis therefore requires the explicit inclusion of both internal and external factors and the linking of the outcome to a realistic change plan.
Recommended books and articles on force field analysis
These books and articles clearly explain what force field analysis means and where it comes from. They clarify how to recognize driving and inhibiting forces and apply them in change processes, giving you a better understanding of which interventions work and why.
- Burnes, B. (2020). Managing Change. Harlow, UK: Pearson. → Provides a detailed description of Kurt Lewin’s theory of change and the role of force field analysis in understanding driving and inhibiting forces during change processes.
- Cameron, E., & Green, M. (2019). Making Sense of Change Management (5e editie). London, UK: Kogan Page. → Provides a practical and theoretical framework for change management models, including force field analysis, with numerous case studies and applications.
- Cummings, T. G., & Worley, C. G. (2014). Organizational development and change. Cengage Learning. → Treats force field analysis as a core tool in change management processes and relates the model to organizational behavior and strategic interventions.
- French, W. L., & Bell, C. H., Jr. (1999). Organizational Development. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. → Combines force field analysis with organizational development and demonstrates how the tool is used for diagnosis and intervention in change processes.
- Hiatt, J. (2006). ADKAR: A model for change in business, government and our community. Prosci Research. → Describes a complementary change model and demonstrates the role of force field analysis in understanding personal and organizational change.
- Harrison, R. (1993). Diagnosing organizations: Methods, models, and processes. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 6*(2), 23–42. → Places force field analysis within a set of diagnostic models and clarifies when and how this model is best used.
- Kotter, J. P. (1996). Leading Change. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Review Press. → Well-known change management work that includes force field analysis as an essential tool for identifying stakeholders and resistance.
- Kotter, J. P., & Schlesinger, L. A. (2008). Choosing strategies for change. Harvard Business Review, 86(7/8), 130–139. → Presents strategic options for change management and explains how force field analysis provides insights for choosing the right strategy.
- Lewin, K. (1947). Frontiers in group dynamics. Human Relations, 1(2), 5–41. → Classic source on social change and the basis of force field analysis as a method for understanding and guiding behavioral change.
- Palmer, I., Dunford, R., & Akin, G. (2009). Managing organizational change: A multiple perspectives approach. McGraw-Hill. → Explains multiple change management perspectives and links force field analysis to other analytical techniques in order to understand systematic change.
How to cite this article:
Mulder, P. (2017). Force Field Analysis (Lewin). Retrieved [insert date] from Toolshero: https://www.toolshero.com/decision-making/force-field-analysis/
Original publication date: 05/03/2017 | Last update: 01/05/2026
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