Systems thinking/system dynamics: Let's just get on with it

TLDR

The world faces many crisis‑level problems, and the system dynamics community offers powerful tools—whether called systems thinking or system dynamics—to address them. The authors aim to clarify the core essence of system dynamics and investigate why it is difficult for people to grasp, in order to improve its dissemination. They find that ineffective sharing stems from a lack of appreciation for system dynamics’ essence, which has been diluted and hampers dissemination.

Abstract

Abstract The world has many problems. Many of these problems are approaching crisis proportions. The system dynamics community has something very powerful to contribute to addressing these problems—whether we call that something systems thinking or system dynamics. We have not been very effective in sharing what we have to offer because we have failed to truly appreciate the essence of system dynamics. As a result, we have both consciously and unwittingly diluted this essence, and in the process made more difficult the task of disseminating what we have to offer. We need to better understand and appreciate the essence of our field and then focus our energies on the real task at hand: figuring out why this essence seems to be so difficult for people to grasp, and then fixing that.