Moving from Systems Modelling to Soft Systems Methodology to Enable a Critical Systems Thinking Stance to Address Complex Social Concerns

Shankar Sankaran ()
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Shankar Sankaran: University of Technology

Systemic Practice and Action Research, 2025, vol. 38, issue 4, No 2, 20 pages

Abstract: Abstract This article traces the evolution of a course teaching Systems Thinking to managers at an Australian University over fifteen years from a Soft Systems (SSM) Methodology perspective to adopt a Critical Systems Thinking (CST) stance to address societal issues. The course which started as a Systems Modelling Course was initially aimed at project managers. As it evolved to attract a more diverse cohort of students the problems addressed by the students also changed. The course then adopted a CST approach to address complex societal problems. This article traces the evolution of the course between 2009 and 2025 and uses three cases as examples of to show how societal concerns were addressed. The case studies include barriers for employment faced by people with disability; the growth of informal settlements or slums; and the crisis in affordable housing.

Keywords: Soft systems methodologies; Critical systems thinking; System of systems methodologies; Complex problems; Societal concerns; Higher education (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1007/s11213-025-09734-1

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