Response to paper 'Systems Thinking' by D. Cabrera et al.: Systems thinking from a critical systems perspective

Reynolds, Martin (2008). Response to paper 'Systems Thinking' by D. Cabrera et al.: Systems thinking from a critical systems perspective. Journal of Evaluation and Program Planning, 31(3) pp. 323–325.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2008.04.004

Abstract

Inviting further perspectives is both welcome and consistent with the rules on systems thinking presented in this significant and thoughtful paper, Systems Thinking, 'Perspective-taking' is the last of the four rules of DSRP following Distinction, Systems-making and identifying Relationships. To make my own summary in terms of DSRP: the authors make Distinction of systems thinking in ters of four fundamental patterns or rules; they then develop a System of systems thinking illustrating the Relationships within and between these patterns, circumscribed by a (subjective) Perspective on systems thinking as an emergent property of a cognitive process associated with conceptual thinking, inviting other perspectives is a further key attribute that significantly marks out systems thinking in terms of an ongoing conversation: a process, incidentally, that speaks appropriately to the concerns of formative (naturalistic) rather than summative (scientific) evaluation (Cuba & Lincoln, 1986). In this spirit, I use this space to begin a conversation from my own perspective.

After briefly making my Distinction of systems thinking, I then use this as a frame of reference - a System - to explore Relations with DSRP from a critical systems Perspective.

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