The Handbook of Systems Thinking

The Handbook of Systems Thinking Author(s) Derek Cabrera, Laura Cabrera, Gerald Midgley Publisher Routledge Pages 784 ISBN-13 978-1138737396 ISBN-10 1138737399 Year 2026 Link https://www.scienceopen.com/search#collection/4afbd5c3-ca08-405f-89cd-9f919db2c8e8

The Handbook of Systems Thinking by Derek Cabrera, Laura Cabrera and Gerald Midgley details the theory and practice of Systems Thinking in the areas of social systems, management, and policy. The contributing chapters from numerous authors show the diversity of the field, and this first chapter seeks to identify patterns in that diversity to demonstrate an underlying unity among the plurality of methods, approaches and interventions throughout the field.

About the Book

This Handbook presents Systems Thinking applied to management and policy. It shows both the diversity of the field and also patterns that unify this diversity. It offers a rich resource of approaches, theories, methodologies and methods to tackle complex ecological, social and organizational problems.

It is widely held that Systems Thinking has undergone three somewhat distinct "waves" (or paradigms) of development. The first wave, from the 1950s to the 1970s, focused primarily on using expert, quantitative systems modelling to produce ‘bigger picture’ analyses that could inform management and policy decision making. The second wave, in the 1970s and 1980s, argued for qualitative modelling in the context of participative practice. Then the third wave, from the 1980s to the 2000s, emphasised the need to take power relationships into account, consider the ethics of systems practice, and produce bespoke, mixed-method designs to maximize flexibility and responsiveness. These three waves gave rise to a rich diversity of approaches. Each chapter introduces state-of-the-art knowledge of a given approach, and also details one or more applications to management or policy. Then the book concludes with discussions of the first swellings of a fourth wave of systems thinking. This is about the universal patterns underpinning the rich diversity of systems approaches―or the ‘simple rules’ of systems thinking that, when combined together, make the variety of different approaches possible. This further adds to the enrichment of practice, and provides exciting new opportunities for developing the field.

This handbook will be of interest to researchers, academics and students in the fields of business and management, especially those focusing on systems thinking and its development and application to management and policy.