Summary
Many of today’s processes and methods for design thinking and UX design feel limited in a world where we use these approaches to solve complex problems. Systems thinking is a mindset and approach that helps designers and researchers broaden their lens and empowers them to increase their impact. Join us for this session with Sheryl Cababa, the author of Closing the Loop.
Key Insights
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Systems thinking integrates interconnectedness, causality, and wholeness to better understand complex problems.
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China's 2018 ban on plastic waste imports caused significant shifts in global plastic pollution dynamics.
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User-centered design often overlooks potential harm, systemic forces, and broader contexts in complex challenges.
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Infinite scroll is an example where ease of use conflicts with societal well-being.
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The One Laptop per Child initiative failed partly due to ignoring community and family context in design.
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Causal loop mapping reveals reinforcing or balancing feedback loops that drive systemic behavior.
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Simpler visualization tools like iceberg diagrams and fishbone diagrams may be more effective than complex systems maps for stakeholder communication.
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The futures wheel method helps anticipate unintended consequences and explore speculative outcomes.
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Considering incentives and potential radiating effects helps avoid the 'Cobra effect' of unintended consequences.
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Engaging multi-disciplinary stakeholders, including academic researchers, enriches systems thinking and decision-making.
Notable Quotes
"Optimizing something for ease of use does not mean best for us or Humanity."
"Today’s problems come from yesterday’s solutions."
"Temporary measures have a nasty habit of becoming lasting emergencies."
"A system is more than the sum of its parts; it may exhibit adaptive, dynamic, goal-seeking, self-preserving, and sometimes evolutionary behavior."
"Systems thinking asks us to look at systems as a whole rather than isolated parts."
"Designers should consider the systemic impact of their work beyond direct user benefits."
"Sometimes you can tell the story of root cause with only two or three causal loops."
"People who solved problems in one part of the system may not see the consequences in another part."
"Over-optimizing for what hasn't happened yet is rare; usually, organizations don’t do enough future impact analysis."
"A truly collaborative effort with diverse stakeholders is essential for effective systems thinking."
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