Systems Thinking - Systems Thinking Methodologies
What is Systems
Thinking? | Why
Use Systems Thinking Techniques? | What
is a System?
Systems Thinkiing Methodologies | Systems
Thinking Applications
Systems Thinking Methodologies
Systems thinking uses a variety of techniques that may be divided into:
Hard systems - involving simulations, often using computers and the techniques of operations research. Useful for problems that can justifiably be quantified. However it cannot easily take into account unquantifiable variables (opinions, culture, politics, etc), and may treat people as being passive, rather than having complex motivations.
Soft systems - Used to tackle systems that cannot easily be quantified,
especially those involving people interacting with each other or with "systems".
Useful for understanding motivations, viewpoints, and interactions but,
naturally, it doesn't give quantified answers. Soft systems is a field
that the academic Peter Checkland has done much to develop.
Evolutionary systems - the development of Evolutionary Systems Design
by Bela H. Banathy integrates critical systems inquiry and soft systems
methodologies to create a meta-methodology applicable to the design of
complex social systems. These systems, similar to dynamic systems are
understood as open, complex systems, but further accounts for their potential
capacity to evolve over time. Banathy uniquely integrated the multidisciplinary
perspectives of systems research (including chaos, complexity, cybernetics),
cultural anthropology, evolutionary theory, and others.
From Wikipedia.