System traps

Question 1

What is an archetype?

Answer 1

System structures that produce patterns of problematic behaviour

Question 2

What are the 8 archetypes?

Answer 2

• Policy resistance
• Tragedy of the commons
• Drift to low performance
• Escalation
• sucess to the successful
• Shifting the burden to the intervenor
• Rule beating
• Seeking the wrong goal

Question 3

What is policy resistance and what is the way out?

Answer 3

Various actors have various goals within the system. Any new policy pulls the system state farther from the goals of other actors and produces resistance.

The way out of this trap is;

1. Let go and seek out mutually satisfactory ways for all goals to be realized
2. Redifine goals into larger more important goals that everyone can pull forward to

Question 4

What is the tragedy of the commons trap and what is the way out?

Answer 4

A commonly shared resource has benefits for every user, but every user also shares the costs of its abuse.
This trap happens when there is an overuse of the resource so it becomes unavalable to anyone.

Ways out:

1. Educate and exhort users
2. restore/strengthen the missing feedback link (for example privitizing the resources)

Question 5

What is the drift to low performance trap and its way out?

Answer 5

When a system allows performance to be influenced by previous performance, there is a chance that a reinforcing feedback loop of eroding goals arises. This sets a system drifting toward low performance.

Way out:

1. keep performance standards absolute
2. Let the standards be enhanced by the best actual performances instead of being discouraged by the worst

Question 6

What is the escalation trap and what is the way out?

Answer 6

When the state of one stock is determined by trying to surpass the state of another stock. A reinforcing feedback loop carries the system in an arms race. This escalation is exponential and stops when one stock collapses.

Way out;

1. avoid getting in it
2. refuse to compete
3. negotiate a new system (with balancing loops) to control the system

Question 7

What is the success to the successful trap and the way out?

Answer 7

When winners of a competition are systematically rewarded with the means to win agian, a reinforcing feedback loop is created. The winners eventually take all.

Way out:

1. Diversification, losers have the opportunity to step out and start another game
2. Limitation on the fraction of the price
3. Policies to level the playing field ( remove some of the advantage from the winners and add advantage to the losers)
4. Policies that devise rewards for success

Question 8

What is the shifting the burden trap and its way out?

Answer 8

Arises when a olution to a systematic problem only reduces the symptons, but not the actual problem. This can result in a destructing reinforcing feedback loop. (e.g. drugs, you take them to feel better, but when they are out of your system you feel worse and want to take them more)

Way out;

1. Avoid getting in
2. Beware of sympton relieving policies that do not adress the problem
3. Focus on long-term restructering instead of short-term relief
4. Build your own system’s capabilities back up before removing the intervention

Question 9

What is the rule beating trap and the way out?

Answer 9

rules to govern a system, can lead to rule-beating perverse behaviour that gives the behaviour of obeying the rules but actually distorts the system.

Way out;
1. Design/re-design rules in the direcion of achieving the purpose of the rules

Question 10

What is seeking the wrong goal trap and its way out?

Answer 10

system behaviour is sensitive to the goals of feedback loops. if the goals are defined inaccurately, the system may work to a result that is unwanted.

The way out;
1. Specify inducators and goals that reflect the real welfare of the system