Lecture 5: Introduction to system thinking and problem analysis

Lecturer: Eng Goodson Masheka

Introduction to system thinking and problem
analysis
2
 Definition of Systems
3
 A System versus a Collection
4
 Basic Properties of a System
5
 Definitions of Systems Thinking
6
7
Making Decisions in such a Complex
Web of Interactions
Current Issues In the Media

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Interconnectedness

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Operating in “Silos”

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 Operating in “Silos”

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 Operating in “Silos”

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 Operating in “Silos”

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Operating in “Silos”

By concentrating on the particular………

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 Operating in “Silos”

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 Unintended Consequences

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A New Way of Thinking

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Application of Systems Thinking

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Application of Systems Thinking

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Systems Thinking as an IWRM Tool
Systems Thinking to Support IWRM
 With most water issues, there is more to the problem than meets the
eye, and when their favored projects or programs were shot down,
many water authorities have learned lessons about understanding the
full situation.
 It is important to see the whole picture and not miss the forest while
looking at the trees, and
 this requires the manager to understand that three systems are at
work: the system to be managed, the management system to apply,
and the systemic interrelationships among the water system and
interdependent systems.
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Systems Thinking as an IWRM Tool
Systems Thinking to Support IWRM

To summarize,
IWRM involves:
•The system to be managed, such as a river basin system
•The management system, such as procedures and institutions to
decide about controls of the river basin system
•The related systems, such as the hydroelectric energy system or the
transportation system that is dependent on waterborne navigation

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Systems Thinking as an IWRM Tool
Systems Thinking to Support IWRM

 The greatest degree of integration occurs at the third level where water as a
connector is managed to enhance the related sectors.
 Knowledge of these systemic behaviors enables you to see the big picture or to size
up the situation by gaining insight into the interrelationships among different
system elements and the feedback that occurs when the systems interact.
 While past experience and intuition are useful to size up a situation, a more formal
approach can be based on the discipline of systems thinking, which facilitates the
holistic analysis of problems through use of organized thinking.
 The common concept of systems thinking is to provide a framework to deal with
complexity. It does not offer magic solutions, but it may reduce ambiguity by
applying sharp thinking to complex situations (Weinberg 2001 ).

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Systems Thinking as an IWRM Tool
Systems Thinking About Water Issues:
Example: As a basic example, consider a case where lack of an adequate wastewater
treatment system in a city is polluting irrigation water for downstream farmers and
causing illness and lack of farm income

Watershed with city–farm water quality conflicts

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Systems Thinking as an IWRM Tool
 At a high level, the system has two main subsystems, the city and the farm, and
each can be represented by the people involved or the human element.
 The overall system boundaries include both the city and the farm, and the flow
between them is polluted water.
 The pollution is caused by the lack of wastewater treatment by the city such that
untreated wastewater flows in the river and is the only water available for the
farmers to use.
 Because the water is polluted, it is of limited effectiveness and farm income is
low.
 Also, the people get sick due to the contaminants on their food, and this causes
further drops in farm income.
 The economy suffers due to lack of farm income, social impacts occur due to
sickness and poverty, and the environment suffers due to the water pollution.
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Systems Thinking as an IWRM Tool
 Set of definitions of systems terms to include:
• Element: any identifiable entity
• Pattern: Any relationship of two or more elements
• System: Any pattern whose elements are related in a sufficiently regular way to
justify attention
• Interaction: A situation where a change in one component induces a change in
another component

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Types of Problems to Be Analyzed
 Systems thinking can be especially useful to foster understanding of the underlying causes of
water conflicts, which occur often in IWRM
 Situations require analysis of both the systems to be managed and the management systems.
 The systems to be managed may involve physical, natural, and/or human components, and
the management systems involve people, resources, and procedures.
 Classification of systems problems involves many descriptors, but a simple approach
involves five:
i. The problem attributes,
ii. The scenario,
iii. The attributes of the system to be managed,
iv. The attributes of the management system, and
v. The process and phase of problem-solving.

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Types of Problems to Be Analyzed
Classification of systems problems

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Socio-Technical Couplings
 Most water problems (other than highly structured technical issues) have social and technical
components and can be conceptualized through paradigms such as the coupled natural-human
or social-technical systems.

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Tools of Systems Thinking

 It utilizes a number of tools based on graphics, models, computational

analysis, case studies, and others.

 These tools can help to explain complex scenarios of water

management where integrated approaches are needed.

 Four categories can be helpful in IWRM:

i. Systems identification,

ii. System diagrams,

iii. Process mapping, and

iv. Modeling.
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Tools of Systems Thinking
1. Systems Identification

 Systems identification is a term adopted within the decision science field to

explain how systems are configured.
 It often involves the use of statistical methods to build mathematical models
from observed data, but in IWRM, it takes on a broader context where
conceptual models are built by observing phenomena and determining the
system configuration and interactions.
 Identifying the system to be managed requires you to be specific about the level
of the problem.
 For example, is an urban water issue a citywide integrated supply problem, a
local network issue, or a specific pump station problem?

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Tools of Systems Thinking

 As an example of systems identification, let us return to the simple city–farm example

given previously. By analyzing it the way we did, the system was identified as the
coupled city–farm system; the inputs and outputs were by and on the humans involved,
and the flow between the subsystems was the polluted water.

2. System Diagrams

 System diagrams can be drawn in different ways but their purpose is to map out how a
system is built from its elements
 For example, a water supply system is built from a source of supply, a treatment plant,
and a distribution system. Each of these has sub elements, such as the main lines and
smaller pipes of a water distribution system. A system diagram will show how the
change in one element will reverberate and affect other elements, which may in turn
affect the original element

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Tools of Systems Thinking

 A simple depiction of a system is formed by a concept map or diagram, which

illustrates relationships among concepts or ideas. E.g. the water–energy nexus can
be illustrated as a concept map.

Basic example of a concept map

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Tools of Systems Thinking
Causal Loop Diagrams
 Diagram showing cause and effect.

Simple example of causal loops for water and

farm income

Simple example of causal loops for water and farm income

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Tools of Systems Thinking
3. Process Mapping
 Mapping is also used to illustrate how processes work.

A process diagram to illustrate steps in problem-solving

4. Modeling
 After the system concepts and diagrams are drawn, some systems can be modeled
quantitatively, e.g. hydrological modeling

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Tools of Systems Thinking
Problem-Solving Process

 Systems thinking is about explaining how a system works, but the problem- solving process
is inherent in it.
 The problem-solving process seems linear, but in fact it involves feedback and adjustments.

• Recognize the problem

• Identify the system(s) and levels involved
• Set goals for solution and determining how success is measured
• Identify the stakeholders and decision-makers
• Identify the management system and roles
• Determine the decision variables and uncontrollable variables
• Map the external problem environment
• Identify institutions and constraints (procedures, values, laws, cultures)
• Establish phases, steps, milestones, and information needs
• Assemble a toolbox of methods for the work
• Formulate alternative solutions and implementation strategies
• Assess advantages and disadvantages of alternative solutions, including impacts
• Report the information to decision-makers and stakeholders

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Discussion Questions
1. Give examples of how water systems involve individual components with
interdependencies and interconnections.
2. Think about how the concept of systems is used in different disciplinary fields, such as
mathematics, computer science, communications, ecology, psychology, and economics.
In your view, is the concept of systems thinking identical in these fields or different?
Explain your answer.
3. What is the difference between the management system and the system to be managed?
4. In the context of IWRM, what is a “scenario”?
5. Explain what comprises a coupled natural-human or socio-technical system.
6. What does systems identification mean in the context of systems thinking?
7. Formulate and illustrate an example of a concept map.
8. Formulate and illustrate a simple causal loop diagram.
9. Outline the steps in the standard “problem-solving process.”

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39

END OF THE PRESENTATION

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