Systems Thinking and Decision Making
Kyoichi Kijima
Bandung Institute of Technology, Indonesia
This article (1) provides an overview of systems thinking, (2) argues the relevance of applying
systems thinking to decision making, and (3) concludes that systems thinking is not a bad idea
for decision making/problem solving.
1. Systems Thinking for understanding an object
Systems thinking is the attitude of recognizing an object as a system, “a set or arrangement ofthings so related or connected as to form a unity or organic whole”. It implies that the system isconstituted in the perception of the observer/researcher as a recognized image or model of theobject. Such systems thinking is originally proposed under the banner of dealing withcomplexity, with emphasis on the interconnectedness and interdependence (systemhood) ofdifferent elements (thinghood) within a system and how they influence each other.
To understand and describe an object, the approach constructs a model relevant to the object,focusing specifically on what we call systemic properties or systemicities such as(1) Emergent properties: It is the interactions or interdependencies among the elements thatgive rise to the system-specific properties of the system: The properties of a system cannot
necessarily be derived from the properties of its individual components (holism). The
properties of a system that cannot be reduced to the properties of its components are called
emergent properties.
(2) Complexity and Hierarchy: Systems thinking asserts that "it does not make sense to see
complexity as an internal and inherent property of an object", saying that "the complexity ofthe object is in the eye of the observer". The interaction between an "object" and a "person"
who perceives the object determines complexity by the difficulty of understanding or dealing
with it. H.A. Simon argues that "complexity always appears in the form of a hierarchy," i.e., acomplex system consists of several subsystems, each of which consists of its own subsystems,
and so on. In this context, the "Law of Requisite Hierarchies" discusses the relationship andbalance between complexity and hierarchy.
(3) Communication and control: The human activity system is an effective model for studying
systems that include and are composed of humans, such as societies and organizations. Themodel assumes that humans are not anonymous like molecules in the physical world but havetheir own individuality and create purposes and act autonomously according to their own
intentions. Systems thinking argues that to understand the object as an open human activity
system with a hierarchical structure, control or regulation/coordination is necessary to maintainthe hierarchy, and communication is indispensable for this purpose. The Viable Systems Model(VSM) is a normative five-layer model relevant to a viable and sustainable organization
inspired by analogy to living systems to discuss communication between the layers.
(4) Adaptation: Adaptation refers to the ability of a system to change its own structure,objectives, and assumptions in response to changes in the environment surrounding it. Alongwith negative feedback, the "Law of Requisite Varieties", one of the most important andwell-known principles in systems sciences, explains systems adaptation. This law asserts that
"only the (internal) diversity of the system can destroy the (external) diversity of theenvironment" with respect to the relationship between the system and its environment.
Panarchy model describes adaptation dynamically as the interaction of two seemingly mutuallycontradictory processes, stability and transformation. This model asserts that adaptation of any

type of system forms a continuous cycle of four phases: growth, conservation, release, andreorganization.
(5) Self-organization: In contrast to adaptation, self-organization means that the system createsa new order in place of the existing one, or that the system generates itself anew and gives
itself a direction. The concept argues for a change in the system's own structure or processes,
rather than basing the explanation of adaptation on environmental change.
(6) Ecosystem and sustainability/viability: An ecosystem is a system in which the elements
depend on each other for sustainability or viability to maintain their survival.
The concepts of panarchy, adaptation, and self-organization mentioned above are important
theoretical perspectives to explain the resilience of the entire ecosystem, not just the individual
elements that make up the system.
2. Systems Thinking for decision making
Decision-making is not simply choosing something "desirable" but is defined as aproblem-solving process that involves several stages such as: (1) understanding, describing,and defining the problem; (2) gathering information; (3) generating alternatives; (4) analyzing
options; (5) selecting an alternative, (6) implementing the decision and (7) evaluating theoutcome. As mentioned above, systems thinking is especially helpful for the first stage. The
process is, though, not linear and but takes a cyclical form by allowing for back and forth.
A basic approach of systems thinking to problem solving is adaptation, called the contingent
approach, which attempts to select and apply appropriate methodologies according to thecharacteristics of the problematic situation. Applied Systems Thinking (AST), a typicalcontingent approach, uses the "System of Systems Methodologies (SOSM)" framework tocharacterize a problem situation by (1) the complexity of the system related to the problem, (2)how the values and beliefs of the stakeholders involved in the problem are related, and (3) thedirection in which the solution to the problem situation aims to go. It suggests, for example,
that if the stakeholders in the situation have some kind of common understanding of theproblem and share a goal, then it would be appropriate to use an optimization approach toachieve that goal efficiently. If the stakeholders have conflicting understandings of the problem,
some soft systems approach would be helpful to accommodate them to achieve mutual
understanding and implement some actions.
According to the Law of Requisite Variety, the more complexity there exists in the problem,the more variety of the methods and methodologies should be available to the problem solver.
Since it implies that the problem solver needs to be familiar with a certain enoughmethodologies, it is, in practice, more feasible to amplify the methodological variety throughteams with a wide range of diverse members and advanced technology (diversity and inclusion
principle).
3. Systems thinking is not a bad idea for decision making/problem solving
Systems thinking is not a bad idea (W. Churchman) to adopt for decision making because: (1)systems thinking promotes a holistic understanding of complex problems and phenomena. (2)By considering the whole system and its dynamics, systems thinking can help identify the rootcauses of problems. It seems superior to traditional linear thinking, which often focuses on
symptoms rather than underlying causes. (3) Systems thinking allows for a more realistic andnuanced examination of the complexity and uncertainty observed in many situations.
This article was presented in Japanese at Japan Association for Philosophy of Science on June 16, 2024.