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Embracing complex social problems | Emerald Insight

Embracing complex social problems

Hamilton Coimbra Carvalho, Jose Afonso Mazzon

Journal of Social Marketing

ISSN: 2042-6763

Publication date: 18 September 2019 

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to expose the inadequacy of social marketing to tackle complex social problems, while proposing an expansion in the discipline’ conceptual repertoire. The goal is to incorporate complexity tools, in particular from the system dynamics field, and the promotion of mindware within a true transdisciplinary paradigm.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses literature review to support the proposed theoretical development. It also presents a short case study.

Findings

Most problems that plague our modern societies have a distinctive complex nature that is not amenable to traditional social marketing interventions. Social marketing has simplified the problem of bringing about societal change by thinking that upstream social actors can be influenced in the same way as downstream individuals. This paper shows that this is not the case while proposing a framework to close this gap.

Research limitations/implications

The proposed framework is a theoretical one. It depends on further refinements and actual application to wicked problems.

Practical implications

Complex social problems – or wicked problems – remain widespread in modern societies. Moreover, they are getting worse over time. The paper presents a proposal to redefine the limits of the social marketing discipline so it can be more useful to tackle such problems. Practical approaches such as measuring the success of mindware in the marketplace of ideas are implied in the proposed framework.

Social implications

The increase in complexity of social problems has not been accompanied by an evolution in the discipline of social marketing. The lack of proper conceptual tools has prevented the discipline from contributing to tackling these problems effectively. Some interventions may actually worsen the underlying problems, as illustrated in the paper.

Originality/value

This paper identifies two major gaps associated with the social marketing discipline, in particular the lack of complexity and systems thinking and the forsaking of ideas (mindware) as a legitimate goal of the discipline. This realization corroborates the claim that boundaries among disciplines are often artificial, hindering the proper understanding of complex social problems. In turn, only the use of adequate conceptual lenses makes it possible to devise interventions and programs that tackle actual causes (instead of symptoms) of complex social problems.

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Embracing complex social problems | Emerald Insight

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The Control Heuristic, 2nd edition (extended version)

The Control Heuristic, 2nd edition (extended version)

By  Luca Dellanna

“This book is like a magnificent suspension bridge, linking the science of the human brain to the practical craft of applying it in everyday life. I loved it.” – Rory Sutherland, Ogilvy’s Vice Chairman

“A SUPERB book […] by one of the profound thinkers in our field [behavioral economics].” – Michal G. Bartlett

“Luca’s book was so helpful to my work. Opened my eyes up to some more reasons why change is so hard.” – Chris Murman on the first edition

Reviews of Luca Dellanna’s previous books

“Absolutely brilliant.” – Alberto Pisanello

“A very thoughtful piece of writing, deep and wiring!” – David Krejca

“A thoughtfully written book in very straightforward language.” – A.L. Peevey

“Very good book. Read it in in two evenings. Great insights straight to the point (not the usual self-help babble). Highly recommended.”

“One of the best works I have read in that matter (I have read a few) and it’s surprising how realistically he depicts the condition.” – Manel Vilar (on Luca’s book on autism)

“So insightful with common sense applications of complexity and the ability to communicate clearly!!” – Bob Klapetzky

“A profound, useful and insightful book” – Lorenzo Dragani

The book

Why do you sometimes do things which are bad for you? Why are there some items on your to-do list that you keep procrastinating over and over? And what can you do about it?

Luca answers these questions and then some more, in what is probably the most comprehensive and densely-packed book you’ll ever read on human behavior. More importantly, Luca does not only provide answers, but also practical tips to get you to do what you set your mind to.

The book starts with observations of daily-life behavior. Then, it dissects our behavior from many lenses – neurology, risk management, evolution, complex systems – and distills the principles that guide human behavior, including the overarching one that gives the name to the book, “The Control Heuristic.” Luca then converts these principles into practical steps that he applied to his life, and that will help you fight resistance to change.

This is not your typical book telling stories about human behavior. Instead, it is a densely-packed analysis of human behavior from the perspectives that matter the most, and a set of practical, actionable rules guiding human behavior

The outline

Please click on the arrows at the sides of the cover image (at the top of this page) to explore the table of contents.

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The Control Heuristic, 2nd edition (extended version)

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How Sherlock Holmes would have handled Covid-19 | Apolitical

September 22, 2020

How Sherlock Holmes would have handled Covid-19

If we want to build back better, we need a systems thinking approach

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This article is written by Hodan Abdullahi, Head of Exploration UNDP Somalia Accelerator Lab and Najoua Soudi, Head of Solutions Mapping UNDP Morocco Accelerator Lab

It doesn’t take a system thinker to point out that the pandemic has impacted every aspect of people’s lives, but it does take a system thinker to make sense of the underlying complexity of these connections, that too often go unnoticed, misrepresented, or unconsidered.

As the pandemic wears on, we are fast approaching the wickedest global economic recession. In the span of weeks, countries had to make hard decisions and many complex tradeoffs. Tradeoffs between citizen’s health and their data privacy, between the pace of medical innovation and its safety and, perhaps even more poignant, between Covid and non-Covid-19 deaths.

• Want to write for us? Take a look at Apolitical’s guide for contributors

In our view, these choices made by policymakers everywhere often fall short of drawing upon a shared understanding of the new post-pandemic realities, let alone the new unintended effects and outcomes.

A systems thinking approach to the pandemic

Systems are, by definition, profoundly interconnected. To deal with systems effectively, we need new real-time and comprehensive ways of approaching them.

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How Sherlock Holmes would have handled Covid-19 | Apolitical

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LEARNING CHANGE • Adaptive Social Learning for Transition Times Registration, Multiple Dates | Eventbrite

LEARNING CHANGE • Adaptive Social Learning for Transition Times

by Anthropocene Transition Network IncFollowDonation

Event Information

Join free-flowing in-depth conversations between four leading change-makers Wednesdays: SEP 23 / OCT 21 / NOV 18 / DEC 16 •• 6-8 PM *

About this Event

• How do we embed collective learning as an essential part of whatever change processes we are involved with?
• How do we harvest that learning in ways that make it useful to other communities and movements?
• And how do we share those learnings across distributed networks?

Nora, Tyson, Amanda and Sam will participate in all sessions. They bring a wealth of knowledge and experience across diverse arenas of systemic change-making and collaborative learning in action. Yet each has a very distinct praxis. Together they will take a deep dive into some of the most challenging questions of a time of uncertainty and cascading environmental and social upheaval.

This series of online conversations offer a unique co-learning opportunity for those who understand the urgency of systemic change and want to deepen and refresh their own practice.

Each session will conclude with time for Q&A.

* NOTE: Times are shown in AEST (UTC+10) for September 23 and Australian Daylight Saving Time (UTC+11) for October 21, November 18 and December 16.

Our guests for all four sessions:

Registration is essential to received the Zoom login link the day before each session

••• IF YOU PLAN TO PARTICIPATE IN ALL FOUR SESSIONS YOU NEED ONLY REGISTER FOR THE FIRST ONE AND YOU WILL BE SENT THE LOGIN INFO EACH MONTH •••

ATN donations policy • Please read carefully

Anthropocene Transition Network Inc is a self-funded volunteer-run incorporated association. We depend on the generosity of our program participants, supporters and friends to cover our costs, develop new programs, and cross-subsidise the involvement of people who can only afford a modest contribution.

Our policy is to invite participants in all our programs to make the most generous donation they can afford within a recommended range. Our practice is guided by the principle of ‘Dana’, a Sanskrit word that connotes the merit of generosity, one of the most basic human virtues.

This is an entirely voluntary expression of your support proportional to your means. No one is ever turned away from ATN programs because of inability to contribute.

For this on-line series we recommend a donation in the range $40-$400 FOR THE WHOLE SERIES, but this is entirely your choice. It is also possible to register for individual sessions. No one will be turned away while places are available.

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LEARNING CHANGE • Adaptive Social Learning for Transition Times Registration, Multiple Dates | Eventbrite

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Webinar – Elinor Ostrom’s Governing the Commons: 30 Years Later – T2S

Webinar – Elinor Ostrom’s Governing the Commons: 30 Years Later

The Ostrom Workshop at Indiana University Bloomington presents an online symposium:

Elinor Ostrom’s Governing the Commons: 30 Years Later
Friday, October 2, 2020
9:00 – 12:30 (US, Indiana, Eastern Time Zone)

Join us in celebrating and reflecting on the impact and continuing relevance of Elinor Ostrom’s seminal and influential Governing the Commons (CUP). An opening panel with three short keynotes followed by four dynamic panels covering the impact of Governing the Commons on social-ecological systems thinking and practice, polycentric governance, the ‘new commons’, and environmental justice and policing studies.

Advance registration for this live webinar is required. Follow the link below for more information, including the programme agenda, and to register: https://ostromworkshop.indiana.edu/events/conference/gtc30.html
All events

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Webinar – Elinor Ostrom’s Governing the Commons: 30 Years Later – T2S

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Talkboctopus | Vermont Complex Systems Center at UVM

Talkboctopus:

A Virtual Complex Systems & Data Science Seminar Series

SIGN UP TO WATCH LECTURES LIVE

FALL 2020 & SPRING 2021 SPEAKERS

• October 28, 2020 – 12:00 PM ET (UTC -4)Elisa Omodei
  Who, where, why: non-traditional data and predictive analytics to map socio-economic vulnerabilities
• Date TBA, 2020 – 12:00 PM ET (UTC -4)Stefani Crabtree
• November 11, 2020 – 12:00 PM ET (UTC -4)Casey Fiesler
• November 18, 2020 – 12:00 PM ET (UTC -4)Guillermo García-Pérez
• December 9, 2020 – 12:00 PM ET (UTC -4)Karissa Sanbonmatsu
• January 20, 2021 – 12:00 PM ET (UTC -4)Timnit Gebru
• February 24, 2021 – 12:00 PM ET (UTC -4)Marie-Josée Fortin
  Ecological Networks in Dynamics Landscapes
• March 17, 2021 – 12:00 PM ET (UTC -4)M. Ángeles Serrano
• April 14, 2021 – 12:00 PM ET (UTC -4)Fernanda S. Valdovinos
• April 21, 2021 – 12:00 PM ET (UTC -4)Carlos Gershenson

PREVIOUS SPEAKERS

• LIST OF PREVIOUS SPEAKERS & ARCHIVE VIDEOS 
  • August 31, 2020 – 4:00 PM EDTDJ Patil, Chief Technology Officer, Devoted Health, Former U.S. Chief Data Scientist
  • July 8, 2020 – 12:00 PM EDTClio Andris, Spatial Social Network (SSN) Analysis: Social Networks in Geographic Space
  • June 9, 2020 – 12:00 PM EDTJosh Weitz – Modeling Shield Immunity: From Concept to Implementation

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Talkboctopus | Vermont Complex Systems Center at UVM

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Beyond the Tavistock and S-cubed legacy – Coevolving Innovations

Beyond the Tavistock and S-cubed legacy

 September 29, 2020  daviding 0 Comments

While it’s important to appreciate the systems thinking foundations laid down by the Tavistock Institute and U. Pennsylvania Social Systems Science (S³, called S-cubed) program, practically all of the original researchers are no longer with us.  Luminaries who have passed include Eric L. Trist (-1993), Fred E. Emery (-1997), and Russell L. Ackoff (-2009).  This does not mean that systems research has stopped.

One individual who participated in it all is David L. Hawk.

• In 1972, he started at U. Pennsylvania in the master’s program in Architecture and Urban Planning, then continuing to complete a Ph.D. in Social Systems Science in 1979.
• We were both at the 1998 meeting in Atlanta of the International Society for the Systems Sciences, and then were side-by-side disagreeing with everyone else at a roundtable at the 1999 Villanova meeting for “Russell L. Ackoff and the Advent of Systems Thinking“.
• After disappointment at the program at the ISSS Toronto 2000 meeting, four of us — DLH, Minna Takala, Ian D. Simmonds and myself — informally met as the Systemic Business Community.  We met around IBM Palisades and northern New Jersey.  This extended to a Symposium on Inter-Organizational Relations in Finland in 2003, and an IFSR Conversation in Austria in 2004.

We have been continuously been collaborators ever since.  DLH served as the thesis advisor for Aalto University on my Open Innovation Learning research.

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Beyond the Tavistock and S-cubed legacy – Coevolving Innovations

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SCiO NL – October 2020 meeting (virtual) | SCiO

Each month we either focus on a specific presentation or we work together on a case. This month there is a presentation on Sociocracy.

Note: The local time in the Netherlands for this meeting is 15:00 – 17:00 CET. Meetings are in Dutch, but with “visitors from abroad” we can easily switch to English.

Event Resources

Sociocracy: Better for Peers: governance is the new black

[SCiO-NL but presentation is in English]

In the world of New Work, Teal, Agile, Self-Organisation/Self-Management, Systems Thinking and Blockchain, talk about governance is the new black. Just try to remember how often you recently read about teams experimenting with new ways of collaborating and deciding together.

One example could be Zappos, a daughter company of Amazon, which got known for using a governance framework called Holacracy. Its implementation caused controversy with 18% of employees leaving the company while early adopters like Twitter completely abandoned Holacracy. Meanwhile blockchain platforms are experimenting with voting and reputation systems to make decisions, with long discussions in distributed governance network DGOV about the pros and cons of the designs.

The most recent online conference on organisational model Rendanheyi, hosted by the global appliances giant Haier, invited management thinkers Gary Hamel, who just published his book Humanocracy, and Bill Fischer; both of their interventions focused on the opportunities for a more human ecosystem design approach to business. Creating conditions for autonomy, speed and entrepreneurship were only some of the main speaking points for presenters and panelists, who also had another topic in common: the need for co-creation, based on equivalence and care.

So how do we design for governance which is based on equivalence and care? Sociocracy might be a design choice to look at.

These are some questions Vincent would like to address and discuss with you (and feel free to add more by sending an email to me@vincentvanderlubbe.com):

• Where did sociocracy come from?
• What was the purpose? What problem is it supposed to solve?
• How does it differ from other forms of governance?

• What is the core principle?
• What are core elements?
• What are the core values?

• What strands of sociocracy are there, what are the differences?
• How does Holacracy relate to sociocracy?

• Who is using sociocracy?
• What are some examples of practicing sociocracy?
• What doesn’t work so well?

• What are the best resources on sociocracy?
• Where can I start?

Vincent van der Lubbe

Our speaker for this session on sociocracy is Vincent van der Lubbe. After a career in financial services in an award winning network company he worked briefly for the systems thinking management consultancy Malik before venturing out on his own researching and improving practices for effective collaboration in organisations. He is also the Chair of Sociocracy for All, a non-profit membership organisation with the mission to make sociocracy accessible. For all, not just experts.

Speaker – Vincent van der Lubbe

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SCiO NL – October 2020 meeting (virtual) | SCiO

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WEBINAR | Systems Leadership in Action

WEBINAR | Systems Leadership in Action

Evaluating Community Impact, Webinars and Videos, Evaluation, Systems Change, Community Change, Pamela Teitelbaum

In this webinar, Pamela Teitelbaum, our Director of Evaluating Impact will hosted Tatiana Fraser and Rachel Sinha from Systems Sanctuary to share an overview of the capabilities and capacities of systems leadership

Complex challenges of the moment, like the Corona Virus crisis, climate change, rising economic inequality and gender-based violence call for new ways of leading. These new approaches demand leaders to move away from traditional hero style leadership towards relational approaches and emergence. While systems practice has risen in prominence over the last five years, it is often seen as rooted in western academia, and inaccessible.

This hour-long interactive session combinined reflection with an opportunity to assess your own skills and experience in the context of your work. From their research, Tatiana and Rachel surfaced some of the key capacities, capabilities and strategies for systems leadership.https://www.youtube.com/embed/vuijMnSp8wI

Take Your Learning Further:

• Explore Systems Sanctuary
  
• Masterclass on Systems Practice Starting October 13, small, international Cohort On Systems Change 101, Systems Leadership, Systems Mapping, Strategy for Systems Change, Working across Difference, Building Ecosystems for Positive Change and Reflective Practice.
  
• Bridging the fields of feminist and systems practiceTatiana and Juniper Glass published Bridging the fields of feminist and systems practice: Building ecosystems for gender equity. Sharing insights, new frameworks and lessons from four years of work with eight systems change collaboratives in Canada.
  
• Building ecosystems for Positive ChangeYou, along with a team or community – are starting to nurture a new ecosystem for systems change.
  In this guide we share common challenges we see our colleagues come up against to remind you you’re not alone, along with some insights and frameworks that have helped us and those that we wish we’d had when we were in this stage of development.

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WEBINAR | Systems Leadership in Action

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The coronavirus disease (COVID‐19) pandemic: simulation‐based assessment of outbreak responses and postpeak strategies – Struben – – System Dynamics Review – Wiley Online Library

Main Article  Free Access

The coronavirus disease (COVID‐19) pandemic: simulation‐based assessment of outbreak responses and postpeak strategies

Jeroen StrubenFirst published: 24 September 2020 https://doi.org/10.1002/sdr.1660SECTIONSPDFTOOLSSHARE

Abstract

It is critical to understand the impact of distinct interventions on the ongoing coronavirus disease pandemic. I develop a behavioral dynamic epidemic model for multifaceted policy analysis comprising endogenous virus transmission (from severe or mild/asymptomatic cases), social contacts, and case testing and reporting. Calibration of the system dynamics model to the ongoing outbreak (31 December 2019–15 May 2020) using multiple time series data (reported cases and deaths, performed tests, and social interaction proxies) from six countries (South Korea, Germany, Italy, France, Sweden, and the United States) informs an explanatory analysis of outbreak responses and postpeak strategies. Specifically, I demonstrate, first, how timing and efforts of testing‐capacity expansion and social‐contact reduction interplay to affect outbreak dynamics and can explain a large share of cross‐country variation in outbreak pathways. Second, absent at‐scale availability of pharmaceutical solutions, postpeak social contacts must remain well below prepandemic values. Third, proactive (targeted) interventions, when complementing general deconfinement readiness, can considerably increase admissible postpeak social contacts.

© 2020 System Dynamics Society

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The coronavirus disease (COVID‐19) pandemic: simulation‐based assessment of outbreak responses and postpeak strategies – Struben – – System Dynamics Review – Wiley Online Library

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Complexity Scientist Beats Traffic Jams Through Adaptation | Quanta Magazine

Complexity Scientist Beats Traffic Jams Through Adaptation

To tame urban traffic, the computer scientist Carlos Gershenson finds that letting transportation systems adapt and self-organize often works better than trying to predict and control them.

READ LATER

Rodrigo Pérez OrtegaWriting Intern

September 28, 2020

Mexico City is famous for its museums, food and culture, but also for its traffic jams. The city has a population of close to 22 million people and more than 6 million cars, and two-hour daily commutes to school or work are the rule for many people. Perhaps because delays are routine, it’s often socially acceptable to be 10 to 15 minutes late to classes or meetings.

How people travel in the Mexican capital is a complex problem that cannot be reduced to just one or two variables, and it is emblematic of the urban mobility challenges facing half of the world’s population. It’s also the kind of problem that for the past two decades has been a favorite of Carlos Gershenson, a computer scientist at the National Autonomous University of Mexico who is affiliated with both its Institute for Research in Applied Mathematics and Systems and its Center for Complexity Sciences.

To solve a complex problem, Gershenson believes, scientists need to let go of traditional methods and find novel ways to study ever-changing challenges. “Science and engineering have assumed that the world is predictable, and that we just need to find the proper laws of nature to be able to foresee the future,” he wrote while he was a visiting professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Northeastern University in 2016. “But the study of complex systems has shown that this assumption is misguided.”

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Complexity Scientist Beats Traffic Jams Through Adaptation | Quanta Magazine

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How can we amplify impact to foster transformative change? – Integration and Implementation Insights

How can we amplify impact to foster transformative change?

September 29, 2020

By David P. M. Lam

How can the impact of sustainability and other initiatives be scaled or amplified to achieve transformative change?

There are hundreds of promising sustainability initiatives emerging around the world. A sustainability initiative is, for example, a local food initiative from citizens and farmers who promote healthy and organic food production and consumption. Another example is the installation of solar panels by a community to support the use of renewable energies. Such initiatives provide potential solutions for urgent sustainability problems, for instance, biodiversity loss, climate change, social injustice, and poverty in rural areas or cities.

This blog post is based on a review of the literature to understand how sustainability transformations research is currently conceptualizing the scaling or amplifying of impact from initiatives. Although our focus was on sustainability, the processes are likely to also be pertinent for other initiatives.

We synthesized eight processes that describe how initiatives can purposively amplify their impact: stabilizing, speeding up, growing, replicating, transferring, spreading, scaling up, and scaling deep.

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How can we amplify impact to foster transformative change? – Integration and Implementation Insights

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Cautionary Tales – 99% Invisible

EPISODE 379

Cautionary Tales

THE OSCARS(r) – The 89th Oscars(r) broadcasts live on Oscar(r) SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2017, on the ABC Television Network. (ABC/Eddy Chen) JORDAN HOROWITZ, WARREN BEATTY, JIMMY KIMMEL

CATEGORY

Visuals

DATE

11.19.19

PRODUCER

99pi

We tell our children unsettling fairy tales to teach them valuable life lessons, but these Cautionary Tales are for the education of the grown-ups — and they are all true. Tim Harford (Financial Times, BBC, author of “Messy” and “The Undercover Economist”) brings you stories of awful human error, tragic catastrophes, daring heists, and hilarious fiascos.https://www.youtube.com/embed/8KeOxeuiZjs?feature=oembed

Galileo tried to teach us that adding more and more layers to a system intended to avert disaster often makes catastrophe all the more likely. His basic lesson has been ignored in nuclear power plants, financial markets and at the Oscars… all resulting in chaos. At the 2017 Academy Awards, Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway famously handed the Best Picture Oscar to the wrong movie. In this episode of Cautionary Tales, Tim Harford takes us through all of the poor design choices leading into the infamous La La Land/Moonlight debacle, and how it could have been prevented.

Find out more about Cautionary Tales and more about Tim Harford’s work here.

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Cautionary Tales – 99% Invisible

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I’m automatically sceptical of anything that’s a theory of everything, that has this kind of graphics, or talks about cybernetics and mind (remembering the infamous ‘Psycho-cybernetics’), but hey ho…

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The Cybernetic Theory of Mind: The Five Foundational Axioms

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The Cybernetic Theory of Mind: The Five Foundational Axioms