Systems thinking treats issues as interconnected, not isolated. It examines how parts of a system connect. This approach looks beyond isolated events or issues.
Government often encounters problems that are intertwined. Conventional approaches can overlook important connections. With this approach, the broader context is clearer.
It helps governments trace problems to their roots. Better solutions can result from this understanding. It reduces the risk of surprise consequences.
It promotes working together in government. It breaks down silos in government organizations. Coordination among departments is enhanced.
It raises the quality of government decisions. Predictions about outcomes are easier. Long-lasting policies are more likely.
Many governments are beginning to use systems thinking in policy making. Adaptability is encouraged through systems thinking. Challenging policy issues benefit from this approach.
Changing needs are easier to meet. This approach values lessons from the past. Systems thinking creates adaptable policies.
Policies withstand shocks with systems thinking. Risks are managed proactively. It encourages future-oriented policies.
Continuous feedback is encouraged. Government can adapt policies as needed. Improvement is continuous with systems thinking.
All stages benefit from this approach. Systems thinking is helpful in every phase. It ensures enduring policy impact.
Systems thinking also supports public engagement. Systems thinking bridges government and citizens. Inclusive policies are created.
Governments can use systems thinking to break old patterns. Systems thinking prevents recurring issues. Learning becomes central to government.
Hard-to-solve problems are managed. It encourages creative and flexible solutions. Major problems are managed better.
It unites varied opinions. It values input from a range of stakeholders. Government decisions are improved.
Training supports systems thinking. Governments help staff learn. This prepares staff to address today’s complex challenges.
It helps stretch government resources. Effective measures are selected. Money is spent efficiently.
Results are measured effectively. It supports measurable objectives. This makes policy outcomes easier to track.
Government becomes more transparent. Public conversations are encouraged. This builds trust in government policies.
Government policy is improved by systems thinking. Policy becomes more resilient and effective. It should be used throughout government.
from complexity to capability: in this blog post, kristian hudson, yharc implementation specialist's recent podcast conversation with professor harvey maylor explores how embracing uncertainty and the interconnectedness of real-world systems – core tenets of complexity science – can revolutionise implementation science. we dive into practical applications and how to shift systems towards better outcomes.
explore the idea of systems thinking as a new model for government; a new way of doing, certainly, but also a new way of thinking and being.
nihr sphr phd student ke zhou discusses her phd research about how systems approaches can be used to help tackle complex public policy issues. in social welfare and public health, we often aim to address challenging policy problems across many issues, disciplines, and, most importantly, governance departments. to successfully tackle complex questions, a variety of […]
in recent years, there has been a marked rise in the use of systems thinking approaches in uk policy making institutions, especially in environmental domains. to better understand practice
by catherine hobbs why does public policy go wrong? how can researchers who are systems thinkers begin to create the conditions in which those involved in public policy may flourish within their po…
| in praise of systems thinking: what are “systems thinking” and “system dynamics”?
cross-industry support for a new systems thinking report will help the built environment sector to deliver joined-up approaches with better results for people, places and planet, says mott macdonald’s global cities lead and fellow, clare wildfire.
new ideas for improving policy making cannot mask the shortfall in funding that many public services are facing.
decisions in one realm have ripple effects in others. public programs need to reflect that reality.
under national or state-based legislation, local governments are commonly required to prepare municipal health and wellbeing plans. yet, the issues these plans aim to address are often complex, and programmatic planning approaches traditionally used by practitioners struggle to engage with such complexity as they assume these issues can be ‘solved’ in isolation. systems thinking is increasingly being used as an approach to deal with those struggles more effectively, yet little is known about whether local governments and other stakeholders think systems approaches are feasible and acceptable in practice. this study tested a systems thinking approach to gauge if it could better address complex place-based health and wellbeing issues, such as to reduce noncommunicable diseases. guided by a systems change framework, the approach comprised a facilitated systemic inquiry and rich picture process involving diverse stakeholders in a remote municipality in the australian state of tasmania. among the participants there was broad support for the systems approach tested and they thought it was effective for increasing systems thinking capacity, collaboratively revealing systemic issues, and identifying opportunities to address those issues. they valued the rich picture because it created shared understandings of local issues. the findings suggest more is needed from macro-level policy to support place-based stakeholders to undertake systems approaches in practice, which could result in more sustainable and effective systems change required to improve health and wellbeing outcomes. the findings have implications for theory, research, and practice across interdisciplinary fields concerned with placed-based systems change, especially in rural and remote municipalities.
a bit of a wander
the cecan 2024 conference ‘looking back and looking forward: closing the loop from evaluation to policy making’ considered the questions ‘what is the role of systems thinking in evaluation? is it the answer to wicked problems?’ in one of its breakout sessions.
by pete barbrook-johnson, co-author of systems mapping: how to build and use causal models of systems.
browsing the daily news headlines might lead one to conclude that we live in an era ruled by populism, fear, and misinformation. in reality, over the past…
by catherine hobbs and gerald midgley systems leadership involves organisations, including governments, collaborating to address complex issues and achieve necessary systemic transformations. so, i…
last month we had a really interesting ibspn seminar on applications of systemic thinking to behaviour change. using a systems lens to explore behavioural challenges in policy development can lead to impactful and holistic policy solutions.
it
join our online event to explore the basics of systems thinking and why it
background there is increasing interest in using systems thinking to tackle ‘wicked’ policy problems in preventive health, but this can be challenging for policy-makers because the literature is amorphous and often highly theoretical. little is known about how best to support health policy-makers to gain skills in understanding and applying systems thinking for policy action. methods in-depth interviews were conducted with 18 policy-makers who are participating in an australian research collaboration that uses a systems approach. our aim was to explore factors that support policy-makers to use systems approaches, and to identify any impacts of systems thinking on policy thinking or action, including the pathways through which these impacts occurred. results all 18 policy-makers agreed that systems thinking has merit but some questioned its practical policy utility. a small minority were confused about what systems thinking is or which approaches were being used in the collaboration. the majority were engaged with systems thinking and this group identified concrete impacts on their work. they reported using systems-focused research, ideas, tools and resources in policy work that were contributing to the development of practical methodologies for policy design, scaling up, implementation and evaluation; and to new prevention narratives. importantly, systems thinking was helping some policy-makers to reconceptualise health problems and contexts, goals, potential policy solutions and methods. in short, they were changing how they think about preventive health. conclusion these results show that researchers and policy-makers can put systems thinking into action as part of a research collaboration, and that this can result in discernible impacts on policy processes. in this case, action-oriented collaboration and capacity development over a 5-year period facilitated mutual learning and practical application. this indicates that policy-makers can get substantial applied value from systems thinking when they are involved in extended co-production processes that target policy impact and are supported by responsive capacity strategies.
this post forms one part of the policy analysis in 750 words series overview and connects to previous posts on complexity. the first 750 words tick along nicely, then there is a picture of a cat ha…
“the covid-19 pandemic has shown what governments can do when faced with an existential threat……”
this blog launches “systemic” – a game that simulates how policy-making systems function and possible shifts that can be made to improve policy outcomes. systemic has been inspired by the world of board games, and was co-created by policy lab
systems thinking for better social policy: a case study in financial wellbeing
by catherine hobbs and gerald midgley. originally published on the integration and implementation in
systems thinking is a core skill in public health and health promotion and helps professionals develop policies and initiatives that are aware of and prepared for unintended consequences. although there is no universal definition of a system it can generally be regarded as a group of interacting, interrelated and interdependent components that form a complex and unified whole (the systems thinker, 2018). all systems have elements or components that make up the system, a relationship between the elements or components and a pattern of the system as whole.
background systems thinking is an approach that views systems with a holistic lens, focusing on how components of systems are interconnected. specifically, the application of systems thinking has proven to be beneficial when applied to health systems. although there is plenty of theory surrounding systems thinking, there is a gap between the theoretical use of systems thinking and its actual application to tackle health challenges. this study aimed to create a framework to expose systems thinking characteristics in the design and implementation of actions to improve health.methods a systematised literature review was conducted and a taxonomy of systems thinking objectives was adapted to develop the new ‘systems thinking for health actions’ (stha) framework. the applicability of the framework was tested using the covid-19 response in pakistan as a case study.results the framework identifies six key characteristics of systems thinking: (1) recognising and understanding interconnections and system structure, (2) identifying and understanding feedback, (3) identifying leverage points, (4) understanding dynamic behaviour, (5) using mental models to suggest possible solutions to a problem and (6) creating simulation models to test policies. the stha framework proved beneficial in identifying systems thinking characteristics in the covid-19 national health response in pakistan.conclusion the proposed framework can provide support for those aiming to applying systems thinking while developing and implementing health actions. we also envision this framework as a retrospective tool that can help assess if systems thinking was applied in health actions.
systems thinking has seen growing popularity in current times. with world events such as the covid-19 pandemic, the ukraine war, the macro-economic uncertainty in the developed world, and the climate emergency, governments, industries, nonprofits, and education institutions have come to realize that
systems thinking, a holistic approach to problem-solving, offers a powerful lens to navigate today’s interconnected world,
systems thinking is a mental framework that helps us to become better problem solvers. it takes a systemic approach to solving complex issues.
systems thinking very much has a role to play across all government priorities.
systems thinking provides new ways of seeing the world, focusing attention on the relationship between elements in complex systems and the spaces inbetween. haynes study shows that many policy-makers valued systems thinking as a new way to approach ...
engineering expertise meets policymaking practice - explore raeng programmes like policy fellowships and system approaches in government that bring systems thinking to government challenges