The why of systemic thinking

Abstract

The previous chapters in this section have addressed: (1) the who question through a discussion of problem stakeholders, their analysis, and management; and (2) the what question by decomposing the mess and constituent problems into relevant elements such as outputs and outcomes. In this chapter, we will address the why question through an analysis of motivation, and how each problem has a unique model of motivation and feedback between and among the stakeholders and the problem. The sections that follow will focus on the underlying fact or cause that provides logical sense for achieving goals and objectives as part of solving messes and their constituent problems. It will provide a short description of 20 theories of motivation that have informed the body of knowledge on the subject of motivation. Developing an understanding for the motives underlying the behaviors associated with why is the central tenet of each of these theories. The chapter will conclude by providing a theory or framework, for linking existing theories of motivation within a cybernetic model. The cybernetic model is provided as an aid in understanding the relationship between individual problems and the associated stakeholders, and the unique two-way relationship that contains both motivation and an associated feedback response.