Systems Thinking
The Theory of Systems Thinking, 2018
The concept of systems thinking has been difficult for most people to comprehend. Both terms “system” and “thinking” often bring different understanding to people. The common associations with systems are computer systems and management control systems. The primary objective is to reflect on the paradigms or philosophical enquiry and the application of systems and systems thinking, acknowledging the value of critical thinking in Information System.
The primary objective of the paper is to define what system thinking is about and reflects on paradigms and the applications of systems and system thinking, acknowledging the value of critical thinking in Information Systems. The concept of system thinking in 1987 was credited to Barry Richmond, a well-known person in the area of systems thinking and systems dynamics. One of the leaders in the field, Senge (1990) defined systems thinking as a discipline for seeing wholes and a framework for seeing interrelationships rather than things, for seeing patterns of change rather than static snapshots. According to Senge, there are people who handle complex systems and work in an intuitive domain, which our educational systems fail to acknowledge.
The definition of systems thinking provided by Senge did not take into consideration the purpose of system thinking making the understanding of the concept difficult. However, the fact that Senge emphasized on the systems thinking as a discipline and framework, pointing to its nature as a system, evokes a specific deeper meaning of the concept. The theory of system thinking has greatly influenced how we understand and change organizations (Carter, 2005). According to the author, systems thinking “is a way of helping a person to view systems from a broad perspective that includes seeing overall structures, patterns and cycles in systems, rather than seeing only specific events in the system”.
The application of the system theory is referred to as system analysis and of which system thinking forms a major component. When you view a system in a broad perspective, it helps you to identify the major causes of issues in the organization in order to know the best way to address the issues. The broad view or perspective can help consultants to identify solutions to tackle the various problems in the system provided the consultant focus on the whole system. When touching on the concept of system thinking, it is equally important to acknowledge the value of critical thinking in IS. One basic criticism levelled at IT education is the fact that by the time you are ready to apply the skills, they might be out of date. The question then is; what is the essence of learning a technological skill when in the next few years it becomes outdated?
The question raised is one of the basic concepts around which critical thinking in IT is based. In order to move with the pace at which technology changes, it is important to carefully consider how we design and build our systems, learn about the technology of today and its relation to the business world. To have this information will put us in a better or advanced position to better respond to the changing world intelligently. In summary, when touching the concept of critical thinking, it is important to pinpoint certain cognitive skills. A typical example of these skills is one explained by Facione
