Integrating critical thinking and systems thinking: from premises to causal loops

Cavana, Robert Y.; Mares, Edwin D.

doi:10.1002/sdr.294

Cited by 80 publications

(58 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…Simpler methods include causal loop methods that are a qualitative way of analysing complex systems to identify feedback mechanisms (e.g. Cavana and Mares, 2004). The interesting thing about feedback mechanisms is that they are likely to exist at a wide range of spatial scales and that their effect may differ vastly from what one would expect intuitively.…”

Section: Feedbacksmentioning

confidence: 99%

At what scales do climate variability and land cover change impact on flooding and low flows?

Blöschl

Ardoin‐Bardin

Bonell

et al. 2007

Hydrological Processes

348

255

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Section: Feedbacksmentioning

confidence: 99%

At what scales do climate variability and land cover change impact on flooding and low flows?

Blöschl

Ardoin‐Bardin

Bonell

et al. 2007

Hydrological Processes

348

255

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“…Other work on the New Zealand Customs Service "Demonstrating Value" project involved critical thinking, outcome hierarchies, fault tree analysis, statistical thinking, activity-based costing and value chain analysis. Aspects that involved integrating critical thinking and systems thinking into the policy development process have been outlined by Cavana and Mares (2004). 6.…”

Section: For Example See This Portion Of the Generic Policy Developmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Demonstrating the utility of system dynamics for public policy analysis in New Zealand: the case of excise tax policy on tobacco

Cavana

Clifford²

2006

System Dynamics Review

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This paper summarises a system dynamics pilot study analysing the relationship of New Zealand Customs Service (NZCS) outputs to desired government outcomes, in relation to the collection of tobacco excise duties and cigarette smoking in New Zealand. The study was done to demonstrate the utility of system dynamics in answering some questions of a type common in the New Zealand public sector during policy development and review. Group model-building workshops addressed the organising question: "How does price influence the use and consequences of tobacco in New Zealand?" A prototype system dynamics simulation model using the ithink dynamic simulation software was developed, consisting of seven sectors: NZCS air and marine sector; duty-paid cigarette imports; duty-free cigarettes; New Zealand tobacco manufacturing sector; NZCS duty collection (from air passengers); New Zealand tobacco products market; and a health sector. The model simulates values of the model variables on an annual basis from 2000 to 2010. Policy experiments with the model include examining the effects of changes in excise duties. The model can be further developed to examine tobacco-related public policy issues in New Zealand and complement modelling done in other countries.

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“…Specifically, this comprehension should relate to the influence of social-economic systems on ecological domains, because of their interrelatedness and interdependence (Gunderson and Holling, 2002;Walker and Salt, 2006), as well as acknowledging that human beings are members of these complex wholes (i.e. system membership) (Stave, 2002;Cavana and Mares, 2004).A prominent construct within the environmental psychology and sociology literature called the New Ecological Paradigm (NEP) (Dunlap et al, 2000) would permit an assessment of the aforementioned contentions. Specifically, the NEP taps into an understanding of the reciprocal influence between social, economic, and ecological systems and the extent to which human beings see themselves as members of these CASs and should thus relate positively to systems thinking.…”

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confidence: 99%

The Relationship between Systems Thinking and the New Ecological Paradigm

Davis

Stroink

2015

Syst. Res

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The goal of the present research was to examine the relationship between the cognitive paradigm systems thinking and an ecologically informed worldview, specifically the New Ecological Paradigm. One hundred and fifteen psychology undergraduate students completed an online questionnaire assessing systems thinking, ecological worldview, environmental value-orientation, connectivity to nature, and environmental behaviors. Results demonstrated that systems thinkers possess a stronger ecological worldview and sense of connectivity with nature, harbour biospheric environmental values, and engage in more pro-environmental behaviors than those scoring low on systems thinking. Furthermore, it was found that systems thinking both uniquely predicted and was predicted by the New Ecological Paradigm. Moreover, results demonstrated that systems thinkers are better able to acknowledge 'system membership' and possess a greater understanding of the characteristics of complex ecological systems and their mutual influence on social-economic domains. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.Keywords systems thinking; cognitive paradigm; complex adaptive system; environmental worldview; New Ecological ParadigmThe traditional approach to resolving environmental dilemmas is in need of reform. These predicaments are complex and affect not only the ecological spheres of society but also implicate social and economic domains as well (Holland, 1995;Walker and Salt, 2006;Folke et al., 2010). It has been argued that the traditional, mechanistic way of thinking is inadequate to accurately perceive the multifaceted, fluid, and emergent nature of complex social, ecological, and economic phenomena (Goerner, 2007;Wulun, 2007;Moore and Westley, 2011;Meyfroidt, 2013). To tackle these challenges a new perceptual framework has been proposed; one that may facilitate the capacity to acknowledge the emergent and unpredictable characteristics of complex systems. This construct has been termed systems thinking (Checkland, 1981;Richmond, 1993;Maani and Maharaj, 2004; Randle and Stroink, 2012). What Is Systems Thinking?Systems thinking is a trans-disciplinary construct that has been promoted as a means of being able to better comprehend and mitigate complex social-ecological dilemmas (Bosh et al., 2007;Fazey, 2010). It arose concurrently with complexity theory, quantum physics, and general systems theory during the mid-20th century and has been argued to be essential for perceiving and understanding the behavior of complex adaptive systems (CASs) (Fazey, 2010;Moore and Westley, 2011;Henning and Chen, 2012).A CAS is a collection of individual nodes (i.e. agents and elements) that self-organize and exchange information amongst each other locally to produce spontaneous and emergent global outcomes (Holland, 1995;Cilliers, 1998;Gunderson and Holling, 2002;Edson, 2012). CASs are dynamic, fluid, comprised of positive and negative feedback loops, have no central authority, and are inseparably entwined with, and contained within, other CASs. Because of the constant ...

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Integrating critical thinking and systems thinking: from premises to causal loops

Cited by 80 publications

References 11 publications

At what scales do climate variability and land cover change impact on flooding and low flows?

At what scales do climate variability and land cover change impact on flooding and low flows?

Demonstrating the utility of system dynamics for public policy analysis in New Zealand: the case of excise tax policy on tobacco

The Relationship between Systems Thinking and the New Ecological Paradigm

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