Thinking in Systems: A Primer
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- Create Date：2021-04-04 13:56:07
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Donella H. Meadows
- ISBN：1603580557
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Summary
Meadows’ Thinking in Systems， is a concise and crucial book offering insight for problem solving on scales ranging from the personal to the global。 Edited by the Sustainability Institute’s Diana Wright， this essential primer brings systems thinking out of the realm of computers and equations and into the tangible world， showing readers how to develop the systems-thinking skills that thought leaders across the globe consider critical for 21st-century life。
Some of the biggest problems facing the world—war， hunger， poverty， and environmental degradation—are essentially system failures。 They cannot be solved by fixing one piece in isolation from the others， because even seemingly minor details have enormous power to undermine the best efforts of too-narrow thinking。
While readers will learn the conceptual tools and methods of systems thinking， the heart of the book is grander than methodology。 Donella Meadows was known as much for nurturing positive outcomes as she was for delving into the science behind global dilemmas。 She reminds readers to pay attention to what is important， not just what is quantifiable， to stay humble， and to stay a learner。
In a world growing ever more complicated， crowded， and interdependent， Thinking in Systems helps readers avoid confusion and helplessness， the first step toward finding proactive and effective solutions。
Some of the biggest problems facing the world—war， hunger， poverty， and environmental degradation—are essentially system failures。 They cannot be solved by fixing one piece in isolation from the others， because even seemingly minor details have enormous power to undermine the best efforts of too-narrow thinking。
While readers will learn the conceptual tools and methods of systems thinking， the heart of the book is grander than methodology。 Donella Meadows was known as much for nurturing positive outcomes as she was for delving into the science behind global dilemmas。 She reminds readers to pay attention to what is important， not just what is quantifiable， to stay humble， and to stay a learner。
In a world growing ever more complicated， crowded， and interdependent， Thinking in Systems helps readers avoid confusion and helplessness， the first step toward finding proactive and effective solutions。
Reviews
Edward Xiao
，
Gives a great view into mental models and several important frameworks。
JiaJia Jin
，
The book can be distilled to the summary in the Appendix。 I admire the author's attempt to generalize the world into systems， but oftentimes it feels rigid， nuances lost， conclusions forced。 I don't disagree with the many system-level observations， but it's hard to appreciate them in a void; it feels like a less clear Econ textbook。 Well， maybe I'm just not a system thinker。 The book can be distilled to the summary in the Appendix。 I admire the author's attempt to generalize the world into systems， but oftentimes it feels rigid， nuances lost， conclusions forced。 I don't disagree with the many system-level observations， but it's hard to appreciate them in a void; it feels like a less clear Econ textbook。 Well， maybe I'm just not a system thinker。 。。。more
Pat Rolston
，
This is my first book dedicated exclusively to the academic discipline of systems。 It is very well presented with clear accommodation for the novice。 As systems are ubiquitous I had much to relate to from previous reading。 The author does a wonderful job clarifying the logic supporting a multitude of system concepts using tangible examples。 The ‘tragedy of the commons’ serves as one of the aforementioned concepts that is made crystal clear。 From public policy to public behaviors there are great This is my first book dedicated exclusively to the academic discipline of systems。 It is very well presented with clear accommodation for the novice。 As systems are ubiquitous I had much to relate to from previous reading。 The author does a wonderful job clarifying the logic supporting a multitude of system concepts using tangible examples。 The ‘tragedy of the commons’ serves as one of the aforementioned concepts that is made crystal clear。 From public policy to public behaviors there are great discussions explaining I the systems dynamic。 Once again the astonishing interconnected nature of all things emerges as an overarching principle with the added factor of system feedback loops。 The clarity systems thinking brings to approaching immensely complex subjects such as climate change， government policy， and human behaviors makes this a book well worth anyone’s time。 。。。more
Muhammad Ghifari
，
Donella did a really good job in explaining the fundamentals of system thinking without bringing any math or equations。 This book opens a new perspective on seeing the world as an interconnected system。 It also explain different kinds of system and how to effect them。
Benjamin
，
I don't know。 Systems thinking is everything and nothing。 It applies everywhere and nowhere。 There's a lot I like （see below）， but Meadows's hippy conclusions felt like a bit of a jump。A fascinating discussion occurs in Chapter 2， titled A Brief Visit to the Systems Zoo， where Meadows explores a very simple model for the supply of cars available on a car lot。 Delays （say， in delivery time to get cars from the factory）， result in cyclic behavior where the number of cars oscillates between undersh I don't know。 Systems thinking is everything and nothing。 It applies everywhere and nowhere。 There's a lot I like （see below）， but Meadows's hippy conclusions felt like a bit of a jump。A fascinating discussion occurs in Chapter 2， titled A Brief Visit to the Systems Zoo， where Meadows explores a very simple model for the supply of cars available on a car lot。 Delays （say， in delivery time to get cars from the factory）， result in cyclic behavior where the number of cars oscillates between undershooting and then overshooting demand。 The broader point is that economies are nothing but convoluted systems of loops on delays， hence naturally cyclic。 It'd be interesting to see the math underneath the model， but the argument is still convincing in a visceral sort of way。 She briefly returns to discuss delays in Chapter 6， titled Leverage Points， Places to Intervene in a System， by pointing out that a system with long delays （her example is projecting energy demand when building power plants）， cannot react quickly， and this can explain the poor performance of large centrally-planned systems （her two examples here are General Motors and the Soviet Union）。Another thought-provoking discussion takes place in Chapter 2， where Meadows explores different scenarios for exploiting a renewable stock。 This time the variable under discussion is the marginal cost of a unit of the capital needed to extract the resource （the specific example under discussion is ocean fishing， and so the variable is the cost of an additional boat）。 If this marginal cost is relatively high， you end up in an equilibrium （after an initial phase where the capital rises and the stock falls） where it is not cost effective to produce additional boats in pursuit of scarcer fish。 Bump the marginal cost down a bit， and you get an oscillatory equilibrium， where there is initially an incentive to build additional boats， overfishing occurs， it is no longer cost-effective to maintain the boats， enough of them are taken out of commission to allow the fish population to rebound， and the whole cycle repeats。 Finally， lower the marginal cost enough， and the incentives are to just keep building boats until the fish population is completely depleted and unable to ever recover。 Again， it would have been nice to see the math behind the graphs， but the idea is simple enough to be plausible。Chapter 4， Why Systems Surprise Us， has a very nice defense of understanding， as opposed to describing。 The silly example is building a model for future temperatures in a room based only on past temperatures。 One could do it， and it would be accurate in the short term， but if you wanted to change the temperature， the model would be worthless。 You need some understanding of the system beyond a empirical description of past behavior。In Chapter 5， titled System Traps。。。 and Opportunities， she argues that regulating your way out of the tragedy of the commons requires that the regulators are not uninformed or weak or corrupt。 There was no attempt to rank which of these three traits was worse， which is itself thought-provoking。In Chapter 6， she briefly argues that democracy is a self-balancing system， and that lobbying and advertising are both specifically aiming to mute the feedback systems so that it takes longer for the equilibrium to be reached and certain parties can benefit in the short term。 While this argument feels simplistic， is undeniably an interesting point to consider。Chapter 7 was kind of a mess。 It was refreshing to hear Meadows pick apart the weaknesses in the field， but most of the chapter devolved into feel-good， live-in-the-moment， soft life advice。 It might well be good advice， but it was out of place here。my favorite quote: "Purposes are deduced from behavior， not rhetoric or stated goals。" 。。。more
Tristan
，
As an engineer/mathematician， part one， explaining systems which takes more than a third is pretty boring and not information dense。 If you know how a thermostat operates you can skip this part。 Part two and three were way more interesting although sometimes I find the examples stupid。 E。g。 for the trap: drift to low performance the example is jogging。 However， the writer's jogging performance wasn't a drift at all but a one time thing。 As an engineer/mathematician， part one， explaining systems which takes more than a third is pretty boring and not information dense。 If you know how a thermostat operates you can skip this part。 Part two and three were way more interesting although sometimes I find the examples stupid。 E。g。 for the trap: drift to low performance the example is jogging。 However， the writer's jogging performance wasn't a drift at all but a one time thing。 。。。more
Kallin Nagelberg
，
What a great book， I'll have to write more about it sometime！ What a great book， I'll have to write more about it sometime！ 。。。more
Woody Rousseau
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I’m not sure how « Thinking In systems” ranks in terms of books about systems but the idea of systems is really incredible。 It allows seeing and modeling the complexity of the world with something else than flows。The most interesting learnings for me : defining a system， modeling its structure， understanding balancing and reinforcing feedback loops， looking at the evolution of a stock over time to understand mechanisms。 The book also includes the most effective ways to “control” a system which a I’m not sure how « Thinking In systems” ranks in terms of books about systems but the idea of systems is really incredible。 It allows seeing and modeling the complexity of the world with something else than flows。The most interesting learnings for me : defining a system， modeling its structure， understanding balancing and reinforcing feedback loops， looking at the evolution of a stock over time to understand mechanisms。 The book also includes the most effective ways to “control” a system which are game changers 。。。more
John
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An excellent introduction to the fundamentals of systems。 Check out some of her lectures for free on YouTube to supplement this material！
Liz Alexander
，
This was a great introduction to systems thinking， and I’m very glad it was chosen for our Engineering book club。The first half had some gaps and holes， some graphs that didn’t make sense or that could’ve been explained better。 I felt that some pieces were over-explained and others， under-explained。 （I kept finding myself wishing I could’ve been in one of Meadows’s classes 30 years ago to ask questions！）But the second half really brought everything together in a way that was both thorough and br This was a great introduction to systems thinking， and I’m very glad it was chosen for our Engineering book club。The first half had some gaps and holes， some graphs that didn’t make sense or that could’ve been explained better。 I felt that some pieces were over-explained and others， under-explained。 （I kept finding myself wishing I could’ve been in one of Meadows’s classes 30 years ago to ask questions！）But the second half really brought everything together in a way that was both thorough and broad。 So much of what Meadows covered is very easily transferable to everyday work and everyday life。 I loved that she covered “intervention points” into systems that on one end were pragmatic and tactical， and at the other end， idealistic and theoretical。Lots of highlighting in this one， and lots of good discussion with colleagues。 I’ll come back to it for sure。 。。。more
Manas
，
This book is actually two books put together: an overview of systems theory and author's personal left-liberal views。 The former is interesting and a useful framework to reason about systems， what make them work or fail。 The latter is a one-sided sermon on abortion rights， how big industry pollutes， ozone layer depletion， and other similar topics。 The author seemed to subtly indicate that any alternate viewpoints （e。g。， big businesses being overregulated） are examples of sub-optimal systems。 This book is actually two books put together: an overview of systems theory and author's personal left-liberal views。 The former is interesting and a useful framework to reason about systems， what make them work or fail。 The latter is a one-sided sermon on abortion rights， how big industry pollutes， ozone layer depletion， and other similar topics。 The author seemed to subtly indicate that any alternate viewpoints （e。g。， big businesses being overregulated） are examples of sub-optimal systems。 。。。more
Edward Kuruliouk
，
As a primer for systems theory， I think this book is excellent and Donella H。 Meadows does a great job at simplifying the complex and often counterintuitive mechanics of systems。 That being said and this being a primer， there is a lot of missing ground。 Taking a deep dive into （in my opinion） the more interesting aspects of Game Theory and Non-Linear Dynamics within complex systems is unfortunately beyond the scope of a book designed as introductory material。 However， Meadows provides a solid fo As a primer for systems theory， I think this book is excellent and Donella H。 Meadows does a great job at simplifying the complex and often counterintuitive mechanics of systems。 That being said and this being a primer， there is a lot of missing ground。 Taking a deep dive into （in my opinion） the more interesting aspects of Game Theory and Non-Linear Dynamics within complex systems is unfortunately beyond the scope of a book designed as introductory material。 However， Meadows provides a solid foundational framework for analyzing the world through systems theory。 I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in systems， complexity， or anyone wanting to add depth and greater insight to their perspective。 There is a tremendous amount of value in adapting the theory to your own mental framework as you journey through life。 。。。more
Niek
，
Three stars is a compromise， because this one is kind of hard to rate。 + This book will likely change how you view， approach， understand and try to solve problems， especially if you are unfamiliar with systems thinking+ This book will make it less likely you will underestimate the complexity of problems- The book is short， but still feels repetitive。- Related to my previous point。 The book lacks a certain depth and focus， and reads more like a syllabys than a book。 Which is not surprising given Three stars is a compromise， because this one is kind of hard to rate。 + This book will likely change how you view， approach， understand and try to solve problems， especially if you are unfamiliar with systems thinking+ This book will make it less likely you will underestimate the complexity of problems- The book is short， but still feels repetitive。- Related to my previous point。 The book lacks a certain depth and focus， and reads more like a syllabys than a book。 Which is not surprising given that Donella Meadows sadly died before turning it into a finished product。 In short， this is an important book， but not a perfect one。 。。。more
Shayne
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This treatment is merely qualitative， but its ideas are important。
Ashish Sharma
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I really loved reading this book。 Donella has explained systems thinking in a very simple and structured manner and I can't go back from here。 Highly recommended。 At the end of this， you'll take away a new perspective towards life， one where you won't obsess over "figuring out" complex systems but will dance with them！ I really loved reading this book。 Donella has explained systems thinking in a very simple and structured manner and I can't go back from here。 Highly recommended。 At the end of this， you'll take away a new perspective towards life， one where you won't obsess over "figuring out" complex systems but will dance with them！ 。。。more
Tom
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Applicable， relevant， timely and stimulating。 We are not powerless。 We develop over long periods of time through observation and action。 Framing your failures as data rather than lost time can relieve us of unnecessary stress and angst。 Find the feedback loops present in your own life and in the world around you。 Challenge yourself to cultivate the loops which are reinforcing positive outcomes and discourage the ones which cause anxiety， strife， or pain。 Systems that work are resilient enough to Applicable， relevant， timely and stimulating。 We are not powerless。 We develop over long periods of time through observation and action。 Framing your failures as data rather than lost time can relieve us of unnecessary stress and angst。 Find the feedback loops present in your own life and in the world around you。 Challenge yourself to cultivate the loops which are reinforcing positive outcomes and discourage the ones which cause anxiety， strife， or pain。 Systems that work are resilient enough to adapt to new ways of thinking and living; the same goes for the mental and physical health of you and those you surround yourself with。Phenomenal， must-read for any knowledge seeker。 Very much enjoyed this one。 For best results， mix in critical thinking and analysis of news surrounding the pivotal issues facing each and every one of us。 Think: climate change， war， famine， water supply chains， financial markets， personal relationships， etc。。。。First few chapters are a bit tedious and read like an introductory lecture but stick with it。 The book is relevant to an incredible diversity of topics each and every one of us encounter in our daily lives， from social issues to financial markets。 The last few chapters described and elaborated on a method of thinking that has been in the back of my mind for a long time。 One idea in particular stuck with me throughout the book。 There are two systems used to observe and process the world around us， our nervous system and our language capacity。 Sharing information is governed by these in a way that doesn't always seem totally obvious， especially to monolinguistic people。 Understanding that any language can't completely describe how one experiences reality is essential to realizing that misunderstandings can occur and how to overcome them。 Developing both our nervous system and vocabulary （in all languages） helps us to better communicate our observed reality and allows one to make better use of the world around us。 。。。more
Gabriel Strauss
，
This book is a classic of systems thinking that had been recommended to me by multiple people， and I’m glad I finally read it！ I found this particularly helpful for my work in digital health。 From the internal systems of running a successful organization （research， product， design， engineering， sales）， to the system that patients exist in （e。g。 an adolescent living within their family， school， and social support systems）， to the healthcare system itself （patients， payors and providers）， systems This book is a classic of systems thinking that had been recommended to me by multiple people， and I’m glad I finally read it！ I found this particularly helpful for my work in digital health。 From the internal systems of running a successful organization （research， product， design， engineering， sales）， to the system that patients exist in （e。g。 an adolescent living within their family， school， and social support systems）， to the healthcare system itself （patients， payors and providers）， systems are an integral part of almost every element of building a successful digital health intervention。While I’d highly recommend reading the book， here are good overviews of the two concepts that I found most valuable: * System traps: https://www。slideshare。net/jchyip/sys。。。* Leverage points: http://donellameadows。org/archives/le。。。 。。。more
Chloe Nguyễn Hoàng
，
"Living successfully in a world of systems requires more of us than our ability to calculate。 It reuires our full humanity - our rationality， our ability to sort out truth from falsehood， our intuition， our compassion， our vision， and our morality。" （Page 187， Living in a World of Systems） "Living successfully in a world of systems requires more of us than our ability to calculate。 It reuires our full humanity - our rationality， our ability to sort out truth from falsehood， our intuition， our compassion， our vision， and our morality。" （Page 187， Living in a World of Systems） 。。。more
Luiz Schiaveto
，
So abstract and powerful。 It provides a broader way to think and interpret the world。 Instead of focusing on every little thing， understand the whole system behind each behavior: what are the flows of information， the feedback chains， the purposes， how each element is related， etc。 I felt a lot of synergy with my job :）Personally， I liked a lot the concept of bounded rationality。 It was very helpful in order to try to understand better the world。
Darren Rajit
，
Required reading for anyone interested in unpacking wicket problems， and getting a low level and basic understanding of systems thinkingA high level and easy intro to the field of systems science and theory， Donella definitely has a point of view， and an ideological bent， one that i personally agree with， but even looking past that， this is an excellent primer on framing problems in the context of systems， feedback loops and leverage points， whilst also underlining our fallibility in trying to m Required reading for anyone interested in unpacking wicket problems， and getting a low level and basic understanding of systems thinkingA high level and easy intro to the field of systems science and theory， Donella definitely has a point of view， and an ideological bent， one that i personally agree with， but even looking past that， this is an excellent primer on framing problems in the context of systems， feedback loops and leverage points， whilst also underlining our fallibility in trying to model absolutely everything。 Especially helpful if you're trying to understand the tools available to you in policy。 。。。more
Antony Mayfield
，
It took me a while to read this short book because it is so densely packed with insight。 I was highlighting and taking notes all the way through。 You need to read this book。
Christina
，
A lot of fantastic information which would be so useful to so many people by building a new framework to see how the world operates in。
Jirka
，
Clear and concise intro to the systems thinking topic。 It does not go into much details but at the same time explains the area with some nice examples。 The final appendix also provides with handy wrap up of all main topics。
Matthew Jacobs
，
great overview of systems and how they work and how to begin thinking like a systems thinker。 However， I would loved more insight into how to begin thinking about how they are actually built to really understand their use。
Andrey
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Nice intro into systems thinking and theory for mere mortals。 I was always interested in system's theory， it is the only theory that tries to explain how simple mechanisms like value stocks and feedback loops produce incredibly complex behaviors - like a human organism， for instance。 It explains processes in stars， human bodies， societies and economies。 If you somehow manage to talk to an alien from another galaxy， perhaps their system's theory should be fairly similar and easy to compare :） The Nice intro into systems thinking and theory for mere mortals。 I was always interested in system's theory， it is the only theory that tries to explain how simple mechanisms like value stocks and feedback loops produce incredibly complex behaviors - like a human organism， for instance。 It explains processes in stars， human bodies， societies and economies。 If you somehow manage to talk to an alien from another galaxy， perhaps their system's theory should be fairly similar and easy to compare :） The book circulated "unofficially" in several universities until it was published after the author's death。 。。。more
Matthew Balshaw
，
I wish I could read 100 non fiction books such as this one。Systems thinking is a way to view the world with less frustration and pettiness。 It explains so many concepts and theories applicable to every possible field of study and line of work that there's nobody I can't recommend this to。 This book will introduce you to a way of thinking that is more likely to succeed at solving problems and make you more likely to have the impact you want on any situation。 This isn't going to radically change y I wish I could read 100 non fiction books such as this one。Systems thinking is a way to view the world with less frustration and pettiness。 It explains so many concepts and theories applicable to every possible field of study and line of work that there's nobody I can't recommend this to。 This book will introduce you to a way of thinking that is more likely to succeed at solving problems and make you more likely to have the impact you want on any situation。 This isn't going to radically change your life， but it's a quick introduction to a way of thinking that is a key to understanding the world。 It's not the only place you can get it， but I was very impressed by the way this book articulated it。 The format is as perfect as non fiction could be - or at least I can't imagine it any better。 They have a nice summary at the end （which you should read first！）。 Clear and logical sections。 Quotes which actually link to the topics and introduce the reader to other works that are related and potentially up next for reading deeper。 Most of all， the author uses excessively CLEAR language and links everything to real examples to completely explain the topic as well as possible。I do not find every specific example or theory accurate， but I have to agree that every example illustrates the points that the author is trying to make about systems thinking。I'd put this as one of my top general non fictions to read， up there with "Thinking fast and slow" and "The dictators handbook"。 。。。more
Mehdi
，
Enlightening 👌
Al
，
A classic It seems to be more relevant in 2021 than when it was written and across many disciplines -politics， health， economics， ecology， technology。
Dave
，
This collection of writings provides a basic understanding of systems thinking， starting from first principles。 It's referenced in a number of management and engineering books I've read， and references in blog posts are starting to appear more frequently。One thing to understand about systems thinking is that it's really， really hard to get right in complex systems， and especially when people form an integral component of the system。 This collection of writings provides a basic understanding of systems thinking， starting from first principles。 It's referenced in a number of management and engineering books I've read， and references in blog posts are starting to appear more frequently。One thing to understand about systems thinking is that it's really， really hard to get right in complex systems， and especially when people form an integral component of the system。 。。。more
Tarald Røste
，