Systems Thinking Course

Systems Thinking: Critical Perspectives on Complex Problems

Course Code: PHIL/SOCI/MGMT 3450
Credits: 3
Prerequisites: One course in logic, statistics, or research methods
Duration: 14 weeks (3 hours per week: 2 hours lecture, 1 hour seminar/lab)

Course Description

In an interconnected world facing climate change, social inequality, technological disruption, and global health challenges, traditional linear thinking often falls short. This course develops systems thinking as a critical framework for understanding and addressing "wicked problems" - complex, interconnected challenges that resist simple solutions. Students will learn to see patterns, relationships, and unintended consequences that shape everything from organizational behavior to global systems.

Through interactive simulations, real-world case studies, and collaborative modeling exercises, students develop the intellectual tools needed to navigate complexity, challenge assumptions, and design interventions that work with rather than against system dynamics. The course culminates in a capstone project where teams apply systems thinking to analyze and propose solutions for contemporary global challenges.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:

Analyze Complex Systems: Identify stocks, flows, feedback loops, and system structures in social, economic, and environmental contexts
Recognize Systems Patterns: Diagnose classic systems archetypes and predict their behavioral patterns across different domains
Think Holistically: Shift perspective from events and symptoms to underlying structures and mental models that drive system behavior
Design Systems Interventions: Identify high-leverage points for creating sustainable change in complex systems
Challenge Linear Thinking: Critique reductionist approaches and advocate for systemic solutions to multifaceted problems
Communicate Systems Insights: Create compelling visual models and narratives that help others understand complex system dynamics

Course Structure and Schedule

Unit 1: Foundations of Systems Thinking (Weeks 1-4)

Week 1: Why Systems Thinking Matters

From Linear to Systems Perspective

Topics: * The limits of linear thinking in addressing complex problems * Introduction to "wicked problems" and their characteristics * Systems thinking as a critical thinking discipline * Historical development: From general systems theory to contemporary applications

Case Study: The Opioid Crisis as a Systems Problem * Mapping the interconnected factors contributing to addiction epidemics * Why individual-focused solutions often fail * Introduction to causal loop diagramming

Assignment: Personal Systems Autobiography - Identify a recurring problem in your life and explore it through a systems lens

Week 2: The Architecture of Systems

Stocks, Flows, and Feedback Loops

Topics: * Basic systems vocabulary: stocks, flows, connectors * Reinforcing vs. balancing feedback loops * Delays and their impact on system behavior * Introduction to causal loop diagrams

Interactive Simulation: Population Dynamics Simulation * Hands-on modeling of birth rates, death rates, and population growth * Exploring exponential growth and carrying capacity

Lab Activity: Building Your First Causal Loop Diagram * Small groups model a campus issue (parking, housing, course registration)

Week 3: Mental Models and Paradigms

The Hidden Drivers of System Behavior

Topics: * How mental models shape what we see and don't see * Paradigms as the deepest level of systems structure * Challenging assumptions and expanding perspectives * The role of worldviews in creating system problems

Case Study: Fast Fashion and Sustainable Consumption * Exploring the mental models that drive consumer behavior * How "fast fashion" thinking creates environmental and social problems * Alternative paradigms for thinking about clothing and consumption

Reflection Exercise: Identifying Your Mental Models * Self-assessment of personal paradigms about success, relationships, and social responsibility

Week 4: Systems Leverage and Intervention Points

Where Small Changes Create Big Impact

Topics: * Donella Meadows' hierarchy of leverage points * Why changing parameters often fails while changing paradigms succeeds * Identifying high-leverage interventions in complex systems * The paradox of systems leverage: hardest to change = highest impact

Case Study: Educational Reform Through a Systems Lens * Why school reform initiatives often fail despite good intentions * Examining leverage points from standardized testing (parameters) to learning philosophy (paradigms)

Group Project Launch: Teams form and begin selecting their capstone problem area

Unit 2: Systems Archetypes and Pattern Recognition (Weeks 5-8)

Week 5: "Fixes That Fail" Archetype

When Solutions Become Problems

Topics: * The structure and behavior of "Fixes That Fail" * Quick fixes vs. fundamental solutions * Unintended consequences and policy resistance * The role of delays in masking system dysfunction

Case Studies: * Primary: Social Media Content Moderation - How algorithmic fixes often amplify the problems they're meant to solve - The reinforcing loop between restriction and creative workarounds * Secondary: Urban Traffic and Highway Expansion - Why adding more lanes increases rather than reduces congestion

Simulation: Fixes That Fail in Personal Finance * Interactive model showing how quick financial fixes create longer-term problems

Week 6: "Limits to Growth" Archetype

When Success Hits Constraints

Topics: * Exponential growth meeting finite resources * Overshoot and collapse vs. sustainable equilibrium * Carrying capacity in different contexts * The tragedy of the commons as a limits archetype

Case Studies: * Primary: Social Media Platform Growth and User Attention - How platforms compete for finite user attention and time - The attention economy and its systemic effects on mental health and democracy * Secondary: Startup Growth and Organizational Culture - How rapid scaling can undermine the culture that enabled initial success

Activity: Modeling Your University's Growth Challenges * Teams identify and model growth constraints facing the university system

Week 7: "Success to the Successful" Archetype

How Advantages Compound

Topics: * Winner-take-all dynamics and positive feedback loops * The Matthew Effect: "To him who has, more will be given" * Resource allocation and competitive advantage * Breaking cycles of accumulated advantage/disadvantage

Case Studies: * Primary: College Admissions and Social Mobility - How standardized testing, extracurricular activities, and college counseling create reinforcing loops - The role of legacy admissions and donor preferences - Alternative approaches: test-optional policies and holistic admissions * Secondary: Technology Platform Dominance - Network effects and winner-take-all markets in social media and e-commerce

Debate Activity: Affirmative Action Through a Systems Lens * Structured debate examining different approaches to addressing "Success to the Successful" dynamics in higher education

Week 8: "Shifting the Burden" Archetype

Dependency and the Atrophy of Capability

Topics: * Quick fixes vs. fundamental capability building * Addiction dynamics in organizations and individuals * The erosion of problem-solving capacity * Breaking dependency cycles

Case Studies: * Primary: Student Debt and Higher Education Financing - How easy credit creates dependency and enables cost inflation - The shifting burden from public investment to private debt - International comparisons: Different approaches to higher education funding * Secondary: Gig Economy and Worker Security - How platform-based work shifts risks from employers to workers - The erosion of traditional employment benefits and protections

Mid-Term Assessment: Systems Analysis Portfolio * Students submit analysis of three different systems problems using different archetypes

Unit 3: Applied Systems Thinking (Weeks 9-11)

Week 9: Environmental and Climate Systems

Thinking Systemically About Global Challenges

Topics: * Climate change as the ultimate systems challenge * Interconnections between environmental, economic, and social systems * Feedback loops in climate systems * The challenge of collective action on global problems

Case Studies: * Primary: Carbon Emissions and Economic Growth - The growth paradigm and its environmental constraints - Circular economy models and systems alternatives - Policy interventions and their unintended consequences * Secondary: Food Systems and Sustainability - Industrial agriculture, health, and environmental impacts - Local food movements and their systems effects

Simulation: Climate Policy Simulation * Role-playing exercise modeling different stakeholder perspectives on climate policy

Understanding Systemic Oppression and Change

Topics: * How inequality self-reinforces through multiple system levels * Intersectionality as systems thinking * Individual vs. systemic approaches to social justice * The role of institutions in perpetuating or disrupting inequality

Case Studies: * Primary: Criminal Justice System and Recidivism - How the system designed to reduce crime often perpetuates it - School-to-prison pipeline as interlocking systems - Restorative justice as systems intervention * Secondary: Housing Policy and Neighborhood Effects - How housing policy creates and maintains segregation - Gentrification as a systems phenomenon

Community Engagement Project: Partner with local organizations to map community challenges through a systems lens

Week 11: Technology and Digital Society Systems

Unintended Consequences of Innovation

Topics: * Technology as a systems force: intended and unintended effects * Digital divides and network effects * AI and algorithmic bias as systems problems * Platform capitalism and its systemic effects

Case Studies: * Primary: Social Media and Democratic Discourse - How engagement algorithms affect public conversation and political polarization - Echo chambers and filter bubbles as emergent system properties - Platform governance and its challenges * Secondary: Gig Economy Platforms and Labor Relations - How digital platforms reshape work relationships and urban systems - Network effects and winner-take-all dynamics

Workshop: Designing Ethical Technology Systems * Teams design technology solutions that account for systemic effects and unintended consequences

Unit 4: Capstone Project and Synthesis (Weeks 12-14)

Week 12: Capstone Project Workshop I

Problem Definition and Systems Analysis

Project Teams Present: * Problem selection and stakeholder analysis * Initial systems mapping and archetype identification * Research methodology and data sources * Preliminary findings and insights

Peer Review Process: * Structured feedback sessions using systems thinking criteria * Faculty and guest expert consultation * Refinement of project scope and approach

Possible Capstone Topics: * Mental health support systems on college campuses * Sustainable transportation in urban environments * Food insecurity and campus food systems * Student debt and college affordability * Social media's impact on youth development * Local economic development and gentrification * Climate adaptation in coastal communities * Digital privacy and surveillance systems

Week 13: Capstone Project Workshop II

Intervention Design and Testing

Teams Present: * Completed systems analysis with visual models * Identification of leverage points and intervention strategies * Consideration of unintended consequences and system responses * Implementation recommendations and pilot testing approaches

Guest Speakers: * Practitioners working on complex social problems * Alumni who have applied systems thinking in their careers * Community partners who can provide real-world perspective

Activities: * Systems intervention design workshop * Stakeholder feedback sessions * Policy memo writing workshop

Week 14: Final Presentations and Course Synthesis

Communicating Systems Insights

Final Presentations: * 15-minute team presentations of capstone projects * Q&A sessions with faculty, guests, and community partners * Peer evaluation using systems thinking assessment criteria

Course Synthesis: * Reflection on learning journey and mindset shifts * Discussion of systems thinking applications in different career paths * Planning for continued systems thinking development * Course evaluation and feedback

Assessment Methods

Participation and Engagement (20%) * Active participation in discussions and simulations * Quality of questions and insights shared * Peer collaboration and feedback

Systems Analysis Assignments (25%) * Weekly reflection papers applying systems concepts to current events * Mid-term systems analysis portfolio * Causal loop diagrams and systems maps

Case Study Analyses (20%) * Written analyses of complex problems using systems frameworks * Identification of leverage points and intervention strategies * Critique of existing approaches using systems lens

Capstone Project (35%) * Team-based analysis of a complex, real-world problem * Systems mapping, archetype identification, and leverage point analysis * Final presentation and written report * Peer evaluation and self-reflection components

Required Materials

Textbooks: * Meadows, Donella. Thinking in Systems: A Primer * Kim, Daniel H. Systems Archetypes I: Diagnosing Systemic Issues and Designing High-Leverage Interventions

Digital Resources: * Online systems thinking simulation tools * Access to current affairs databases for case study research * Collaborative mapping and diagramming software

Course Packet: * Case studies, articles, and supplementary readings * Systems thinking templates and worksheets * Assessment rubrics and peer evaluation forms

Course Policies

Collaboration Encouraged: This course emphasizes collaborative learning and systems perspective-taking. Students are encouraged to work together on understanding complex problems while maintaining individual accountability for assignments.

Current Events Integration: Students are expected to follow current events and bring contemporary examples to class discussions. The course content will be adjusted to incorporate significant events and their systems implications.

Multiple Perspectives: Given the complexity of systems problems, students will be exposed to diverse viewpoints and encouraged to consider multiple stakeholder perspectives in their analyses.

This course prepares students to be thoughtful, systems-aware citizens and professionals capable of addressing the complex challenges of the 21st century. By developing systems thinking skills, students gain tools for lifelong learning and effective action in an interconnected world.