This model is derived from the paper "Nobody Ever Gets Credit for Fixing Problems that Never Happened: Creating and Sustaining Process Improvement" by Nelson P. Repenning and John D Sterman. See Insight 752 for a causal loop version of this model.

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There is much we can learn from the development of qualitative relationships models though once we begin to ask questions like how long, how much, when, etc., a qualitative most is not likely to be of much use. The following video demonstrates how, in a very simple goal-seeking structure with delay, depending on the delay, it can be almost impossible to intuit the implications of the interactions with any level of accuracy. The difficulty arises essentially from operating with outdated data. See also Archetypes.

Consider the following "Sustaining the Forest" model intended to provide another example of how unexpected the behavior of a web of extended interactions can be.

The interaction of a population of Moose and Wolves.

This is the demo that was used in the Creating Mind Maps video.

Examples of reinforcing and balancing loops enhanced with images to maybe them more visually engaging.

The limits to growth structure is based on the basic growth structure. And, as should be obvious, nothing grows forever as growth requires resources. Those required resources become a limits to growth. See also Archetypes.

There are about fifteen known archetypes with an interesting set of relationships among them.

There is a new version of this model at

Frequently Recurring Structures

All you wanted to do was put a bird feeder in your yard to attract birds and make for a more pleasant morning. And...

Jackson's System of Systems Methodology (SOSM) framework presents a construct that enables one to begin to make sense of the broad array of approaches that claim to embrace the Systems Thinking paradigm.

Part 1 demonstrates Picture primitives and Links to create representations of interactions. These are made visually attractive because the Picture primitives are overlay'd with images.

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A Tragedy of the Commons situation exists whenever two or more activities, each, which in order to produce results, rely on a shared limited resource. Results for these activities continue to develop as long as their use of the limited resource doesn't exceed the resource limit. Once this limit is reached the results produced by each activity are limited to the level at which the resource is replenished. See also Archetypes.

Success to the successful archetype represents two reinforcing structures which may be in a delicate balance though as soon as one gains a small advantage the resource allocation favors the more successful and the result is then rapidly skewed in the direction of the more successful. See also Archetypes.

Analysis has served us well in developing the understanding of things, at least to a point. Though analysis will not allow us to answer the why questions about things. For that we need synthesis. One might consider analysis and synthesis two sides of a coin that one shouldn't attempt to separate.

Investigations into the relationships responsible for the success and failure of nations. This investigation was prompted after reading numerous references on the subject and perceiving that *Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty* by Acemoglu and Robinson seem to make a great deal of sense.

The Exponential Growth Archetype is a reinforcing structure which promotes exponential growth. This is one of the two foundation archetypes. The other being the goal seeking structure. See also Archetypes.

We often set out to solve a problem or accomplish some particular result and things seem to go as planned. As time progresses it seems that progress becomes more and more difficult, if not impossible, and things may actually become worse than when we started. When this happens it is typically a Fixes that Fail structure that's operating. See also Archetypes.

Video

This model is part of

And? Understanding Relationships & Their Implications.

This model is derived from the paper "Nobody Ever Gets Credit for Fixing Problems that Never Happened: Creating and Sustaining Process Improvement" by Nelson P. Repenning and John D Sterman. See Insight 9781 for a simulation of this model.

This model depicts the interactions of Aesop's Fable "The Boy Who Cried Wolf."

Bathtub model with max fill rate control added to account for the maximum rate water can enter via the faucet.

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Understanding relationships is the foundation of effective problem solving. Though relations exists on multiple levels.

Some people have found it easier to communicate interactions and their implications with Connection Circles rather than Causal Loop Diagrams.

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The goal seeking structure endeavors to bring a balance between a current state and a desired state. This is one of the two foundation archetypes. The other being the growth structure. See also Archetypes.

Depicts a behavior over time graph.