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May 7 - May 12, 2018
Systems thinking means looking at the big picture first, then digging in deeper to examine its parts and focusing on the relationships between them.
Systems thinking allows behavior that is already present
within the structure of a system to be suppressed or released as we study and understand systems and problems.
“Systems thinking is the art and science of making reliable inferences about behavior by developing an increasingly deep understanding of underlying structure.”[ii]
system is a group of things that are interconnected and demonstrate their own behavior pattern over time. Systems are usually the cause of their own behavior. Even when outside forces act on a system, it reacts in a way that is consistent with the character of the system. If the same outside forces were to act on a different system, there would likely be a different outcome.
Systems thinking helps us look at the world in a new way because it encourages us to look at events and patterns by focusing on the connection and relationship between a system’s parts, instead of only looking at the individual parts in isolation.
Systems thinking is a paradigm shift from our more traditional thinking patterns because we have been taught to look at things rationally, and to try to look for clear cause and effect connections. We are now used to trying to study things in small, digestible pieces, and to attempting to solve problems as quickly as possible by taking control of situations around us. Quite often, we focus on external sources as the cause of all of our problems instead of looking internally at our systems to see what improvements can be made.
up to 95% of our population is unable to think in systems. They focus on searching for a simple cause and effect connection when it comes to solving problems. The difficulty lies in that it simply won’t give a complete and accurate view of the problem, and it is ineffective in solving systemic issues.
It is impossible to know the behavior of a system just by knowing the parts that make up that system. We have to dig deeper to understand the relationships between those parts and the impact they have on the system as a whole. That is a central tenant of systems thinking, and one we should never ignore.
Removing a leader from power without addressing and changing the system that was in place during their rule will only mean that the same patterns will continue to repeat themselves, and a very similar leader will step into fill the position.
Systems are made up of three parts: elements, interconnections, and a function or a purpose. The word “function” is used when talking about a non-human system, and the word “purpose” is used for human systems.[iv]
We figure out the purpose or function of a system from the way it behaves, not from our expectations or the purpose the system says it has.
Systems almost always continue on, maintaining their identity and changing only slowly and slightly, even when significant numbers of their elements are changed, as long as the interconnections and purpose remain strong.
Changing the interconnections of a system is quite different. If the interconnections change, the system will be impacted significantly. It may no longer be recognizable, even if the elements remain in place.
Linear Thinking
When we focus on just one small part without taking into account how it is connected to a larger system, it is possible that our solutions may create unintended consequences that are not always beneficial.
Event-Oriented Thinking[v]
In this thinking model, an event is something that happened or is going to happen. Every event is believed to have a cause, and if we change the cause, the event will also be changed.
Event-oriented thinking is the foundation for our logic. If we do A, then B will happen. This type of thinking is quick, easy to apply, and easily understood.
Event-oriented thinking is ineffective in dealing with complex problems or systems. As our society has changed over time, event-oriented thinking has not evolved along with it. The problems we are faced with today often require a deeper understanding than event-oriented thinking allows. Events can have more than one cause, and each cause can have multiple causes as well. If we don’t take these more complex relationships into account, we can also mistakenly miss the unintended consequences that may result when we begin to alter systems. That is beyond the scope of event-oriented thinking.
Lateral Thinking[vi]
Lateral thinking strives to generate new and innovative ideas in a way that we can easily repeat over time. Lateral thinking is beneficial when you are trying to get beyond thinking of problems as having one set solution and want to expand your thinking beyond the patterns you have typically thought in. It is particularly helpful in brainstorming sessions and when the desired outcome is invention or innovation.
The disadvantage with lateral thinking is that a clear objective and ending point may not be identified. This type of thinking lacks some of the structure and goals that other types of thinking capitalize on. The nature of lateral thinking is that no idea is discouraged, so all ideas are initially given the same weight, even if they are inappropriate. This may cost you precious time or get the problem-solving process off track.
Critical Thinking[vii]
Critical thinking is effective when you are trying to find logical connections between ideas. Critical thinkers don’t accept things at face value; they dig deeper to be sure that there is rational thought and solid reasoning behind any information they are presented with before they accept it as true. It is highly beneficial when a systematic approach to solving a problem is needed.
This type of thinking is very helpful in many ways. It may just need to be monitored to make sure that it isn’t taken to an extreme. Healthy skepticism and a questioning of points of view is an important life skill, as long as the skepticism and questioning of authority is with good reason and backed up by facts.
Systems Thinking
There are different levels of systems thinking
maturity:
Level 0 — Unawareness[viii]
Level 1 — Shallow Awareness[ix]
Level 2 – Deep Awareness[x]
Level 3 — Novice[xi]
Level 4 — Expert[xii]
Level 5 — Guru[xiii]
If moving beyond shallow awareness of systems thinking is your goal, start by studying the book The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization by Peter Senge.
Business Dynamics: Systems Thinking and Modeling for a Complex World by John Sterman.
The first step in moving away from linear thinking to systems thinking is to decide if something is actually the problem or simply a symptom of something deeper. Linear thinking is usually concerned with focusing on symptoms. It tends to stay on the surface to examine behaviors instead of digging deeper to find the true problem before correcting the symptoms.[xiv]
How can you tell if something is the real problem or just a symptom of something bigger? Here are eight clues,
1.The size of the problem doesn’t fit the amount of time and energy you are spending on it. If the issue seems smaller than the effort you are putting into addressing it, chances are it is simply a symptom and not the true problem.
2.People have the power to solve the problem, but choose not to. If they would rather spend their time complaining as opposed to fixing the situation, you are likely dealing with a symptom of a bigger problem.
3.You have tried to solve the problem repeatedly and haven’t been successful — if you keep trying to solve a problem, but it changes into a related issue or keeps turning up again like a bad penny — the odds are good that you haven’t uncovered the real problem yet.
4.There is an emotional barrier that stands in the way of solving the problem. If there are some things that people in an organization seem unwilling to address or even talk about, they are acting as an obstacle to imagination and innovation, and won’t get solved until you break through the true problem.
5.If the problem has a pattern and seems to be predictable, it is probably a symptom of something more.
6.If a problem is kept around, an organization may subconsciously like it, and it may give them some comfort in being able to focus on it instead of getting to the real problem and fixing it permanently.
7.If an organization seems stressed out and anxious, it is quite likely that only symptoms are being focused on and the real problems are not being addressed. People may be afraid to speak their minds about the true nature of their concerns.
8.Just as you “solve” one problem, another one pops up in its place. If an organization is more focused on finding a cause and effect connection and fixing it quickly as in linear thinking, you may find that it becomes like playing whack-a-mole. New related issues will keep popping up as symptoms until the deeper problem is addressed.[xv]
Ten Enemies of Systems Thinking
there are ten statements — red flags — that linear thinking may cause and which act as obstacles to systems thinking.
1. “Let’s fix it quick!”[xvii] There is nothing inherently wrong with wanting to get a problem fixed as soon as possible, and systems thinking doesn’t require you to be slow in responding to problems, but jumping into a “solution” without fully understanding the problem is never positive in systems thinking.
