Abstract
Competence in systems thinking is implicitly assumed among the population of engineers and managers - in fact, most technical people will self-identify as systems thinkers. But systems thinking competencies are not as prevalent as these assertions might lead one to assume. Controlled experiments show that systems thinking performance, even among highly educated people, is poor. This paper provides a set of systems thinking competencies and demonstrates how these are not as common as advertised. We also discuss how these competencies can be measured. Our main thesis is that systems thinking is not a natural act because evolution has favored mechanisms tuned to dealing with immediate surface features of problems. We discuss the implications of this philosophy and provide recommendations for closing the gap between the demand and supply of systems thinking.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | 2010 IEEE International Systems Conference Proceedings, SysCon 2010 |
| Pages | 184-189 |
| Number of pages | 6 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2010 |
| Externally published | Yes |
| Event | 4th International Systems Conference, SysCon 2010 - San Diego, CA, United States Duration: Apr 5 2010 → Apr 8 2010 |
Other
| Other | 4th International Systems Conference, SysCon 2010 |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| City | San Diego, CA |
| Period | 4/5/10 → 4/8/10 |
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Keywords
- Systems engineering competencies
- Systems thinking
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Hardware and Architecture
- Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Cite this
When systems thinking is not a natural act. / Valerdi, Ricardo; Rouse, William B.
2010 IEEE International Systems Conference Proceedings, SysCon 2010. 2010. p. 184-189 5482446.Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution
}
TY - GEN
T1 - When systems thinking is not a natural act
AU - Valerdi, Ricardo
AU - Rouse, William B.
PY - 2010
Y1 - 2010
N2 - Competence in systems thinking is implicitly assumed among the population of engineers and managers - in fact, most technical people will self-identify as systems thinkers. But systems thinking competencies are not as prevalent as these assertions might lead one to assume. Controlled experiments show that systems thinking performance, even among highly educated people, is poor. This paper provides a set of systems thinking competencies and demonstrates how these are not as common as advertised. We also discuss how these competencies can be measured. Our main thesis is that systems thinking is not a natural act because evolution has favored mechanisms tuned to dealing with immediate surface features of problems. We discuss the implications of this philosophy and provide recommendations for closing the gap between the demand and supply of systems thinking.
AB - Competence in systems thinking is implicitly assumed among the population of engineers and managers - in fact, most technical people will self-identify as systems thinkers. But systems thinking competencies are not as prevalent as these assertions might lead one to assume. Controlled experiments show that systems thinking performance, even among highly educated people, is poor. This paper provides a set of systems thinking competencies and demonstrates how these are not as common as advertised. We also discuss how these competencies can be measured. Our main thesis is that systems thinking is not a natural act because evolution has favored mechanisms tuned to dealing with immediate surface features of problems. We discuss the implications of this philosophy and provide recommendations for closing the gap between the demand and supply of systems thinking.
KW - Systems engineering competencies
KW - Systems thinking
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=77954445613&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=77954445613&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1109/SYSTEMS.2010.5482446
DO - 10.1109/SYSTEMS.2010.5482446
M3 - Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:77954445613
SN - 9781424458837
SP - 184
EP - 189
BT - 2010 IEEE International Systems Conference Proceedings, SysCon 2010
ER -