What is systems thinking?

We live in a complex world and systems thinking is a way of looking at this complexity in its entirety. Complex meaning complicated in structure and interconnected parts that makes up the whole which is often difficult to analyze or understand. Hence, we need tools to navigate and understand this complexity. But we often rely on linear causal explanations, like A causes B and results in C, as they are easy to comprehend. In the last few centuries, science has followed the path of breaking matter down into smaller and smaller bits in the pursuit of understanding. But this approach has only worked to an extent in enhancing our knowledge of how complex systems work. Perhaps, it limits us from understanding the whole system.

We also know that while solutions “deal with” the problems, they also may create new waves of problems or result in unintended consequences. Many of these unintended and negative consequences occur because the effects of interventions or actions are distant in time. That is, they occur long after the action, so they are difficult to anticipate or visualize. For example, the stop and frisk policy implemented in NYC was intended to stop the crime before it happens. But it unleashed the mayhem of racial bias and racial profiling of innocent civilians. The program started in 2002, but it was not until 2008 that the evidence of misconduct and racial bias first came to light.

If we have tools that help us understand the complexity and look at problems holistically (that see the whole picture rather than small parts — remember the zoom lens of the camera), we could improve our understanding of the unintended consequences of policies and actions and create more effective solutions for the problems. Systems thinking is one such tool for understanding and grappling with complexity.

Systems thinking: Way of looking

Systems thinking has its roots in systems theory. Systems theory argues that we live in a world that is comprised of systems arranged in a hierarchy of subsystems. Moreover, these subsystems are in mutual interactions with each other and the behavior of the system depends on all the interactions among all the parts. For example, societies contain groups, groups contain individuals, individuals are comprised of organs, organs are made up of cells, cells are made up of molecules, molecules of atoms, and so on. For a human body to function properly, the organs or its subsystems (digestive, nervous, cardiovascular, immune, reproductive, etc.) should function in coordination with each other. Similarly, for a society to function properly, all the institutions need to function with each other.

This way of looking at the connectedness between parts enables us to see the bigger picture, where problems, solutions, intended and unintended consequences are all seen as part of the whole system. Donella Meadows defines a system as “an interconnected set of elements that is coherently organized in a way that achieves something.” (p. 11) A football team is a system with elements such as the players, coach, field, and ball; and organizational elements such as the rules and regulations of the game, all designed to achieve a goal. Organizations, institutions, trees, schools, the human body, city, nation, earth, solar system, etc. are all examples of systems.

Here is an example of a systems map created using systems thinking and traditional linear causal thinking. As we can see, systems thinking provides a much better way of understanding the problems of a city. It makes the tacit connections explicit. It helps us understand the interconnections better. It also helps us in identifying the leverage point (a point of effective intervention). That is, as long as the sanitary facilities of the city are better prepared and can keep the bacteria/area under control, the city will function properly. Once this balance is overturned, things can quickly go out of control.

System Thinking — Traditional vs Systems thinking

Peter Senge in his book The fifth discipline, explains this wonderfully. “Systems thinking is a conceptual framework, a body of knowledge and tools that has been developed over the past fifty years, to make the full patterns clearer, and to help us see how to change them effectively.” (p. 7). At its core, systems thinking is a way of seeing and thinking about the world we live in, in a connected way. Or Systems thinking is a discipline for seeing the “structures” that underlie complex situations.

In school we learn about the water cycle. Peter Senge provides a similar wonderful example of systems thinking. When we see black clouds coming together, the sky darkens, the winds start smelling different, we know that it is going to rain. In the same way, we know that the water will get into the stormwater drainage systems and will be taken further away from the city to a water recycling or purifying plant. He notes, that even though all these events are distant in time and space, we can see the connections and interrelations between the sub-systems, and the cause-effect relationships between them. This understanding is the result of our ability to see the whole cycle. Practicing this kind of thinking to see the whole is called systems thinking.