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Month: August 2024

TB871: Perplexity and Soft Systems Methodology (SSM)

Posted on by Doug Belshaw

Note: this is a post reflecting on one of the modules of my MSc in Systems Thinking in Practice. You can see all of the related posts in this category. 

‘Perplexity’ is a word that not only feels nice in the mouth, but gains you a decent score in Scrabble. It’s a term which refers to something being puzzling, because a situation is intricate or complicated.

In terms of systems thinking, situations of interest are often complex and ill-defined, and therefore ‘perplexing’. It’s difficult to know what the actual problem is.

My area of practice is community development and wellbeing, within which I have identified various systems, including ‘a system to support education and information.’ Within this, I have identified a system to support lifelong learning in the context of library services.

Libraries cater to a broad spectrum of community members, each with unique requirements and expectations. The sheer diversity involved, especially in an increasingly multicultural landscape can make it challenging to point to a particular ‘problem’. For instance, library staff might focus on providing comprehensive resources, while what community members might want a whole range of diverse services from study support to social gatherings.

Resource constraints can further complicate this situation. Limited budgets and staffing can lead to conflicts around prioritisation, making it difficult to maintain up-to-date resources and technology. Additionally, the rapid pace of technological change necessitates continuous updates and training, which can strain already limited resources.  

In this kind of situation, it’s difficult to know how to move forward. There are different needs and agendas of stakeholders, and these can often clash. For example:

  • Library staff: aim to provide a broad range of resources and programmes, but face constraints in funding and personnel.
  • Community members: have diverse needs such as job skills training, study support, and educational support for children.
  • Local government: focuses on budget constraints and measurable outcomes, potentially at the expense of innovation.
  • Educational institutions: seek collaboration for resource sharing and support for students, which may not always align with the library’s broader community focus.

These conflicting priorities can lead to misunderstandings and a lack of coordinated effort, making it difficult to define and address the core issues effectively.

Soft Systems Methodology

Flowchart showing the Soft Systems Methodology (SSM) with interconnected steps addressing problematical situations and involving various worldviews.
SSM as a methodological approach to improving problematical situations of interest (The Open University, 2020)

The module materials describe Soft Systems Methodology (SSM) in the following way:

SSM is an approach developed by Peter Checkland to address complex problematic situations applied across a wide set of domains where part of the perceived issue is that the problem defies definition. More explicity, SSM is a ‘methodology’ (in contrast with VSM, which is a ‘model’). This ‘methodology’ is like a ‘recipe for action’ – a set of instructions to follow for carrying out agreed action – in a complex situation of interest. The recipe is not, however, a fixed method, but rather it is a flexible framework within which you can follow your own path.

[…]

From a STiP perspective, methodology can best be described as the ‘conscious braiding together of theory and practice in a given situation, as a context specific enactment’ (Ison, 2017, p. 167, italics added). So for our purposes SSM, whilst nominally called a methodology, can best be understood as ‘a methodological approach’, where its application in specific contexts with or without other tools can be understood more specifically as methodology.

(The Open University, 2020)

In a library context, therefore, we need to do at least a couple of things:

  1. Make boundary judgements: we need to decide what to include (i.e. what to prioritise) and what to exclude (i.e. what can be deprioritised, being addressed later or not at all)
  2. Engage multiple perspectives: to gain a holistic view of the situation, we need to acknowledge that each stakeholder’s viewpoint contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the problem.

SSM is ultimately about learning alongside stakeholders, trying something which may improve a situation of interest, seeing what happens, and then continuing along that path, or trying something else.

References

TB871: Reflections on TMA02 and looking forward to Block 5 (SSM)

Posted on by Doug Belshaw

Note: this is a post reflecting on one of the modules of my MSc in Systems Thinking in Practice. You can see all of the related posts in this category. 

After almost two weeks off, I’m back in the library continuing with my studies. Given the lack of downtime — only one week between modules — I’m wondering whether I’m going to be able to sustain this for three years to gain the full MSc.

I gained 85% for my first tutor-marked assignment (TMA01) whereas I received 75% for my most recent one (TMA02). As I said in an email to my tutor, the word count was so restrictive that I found it really difficult to get into much depth with my answers. The third question, for example, which called for an evaluation of particular tools for the purposes of making strategy, was limited to 300 words! Given that students are now penalised for going even 1% over the word count, I found this very frustrating.

I didn’t disagree with any feedback from my tutor, but some of what she suggested and said was missing was actually included in a previous version of the document. I’m all for concise answers, but the word limits seem somewhat arbitrary.

Moving on, I’m entering the Block 5 Tools Stream which covers Soft Systems Methodology (SSM). This is something I covered as part of TB872, so here are some posts I wrote about SSM as part of that module:

TB872: Snappy Systems
TB872: Rich picture for my systemic inquiry (S2)
TB872: Understanding systemic inquiry in activity model terms
TB872: Situations of concern, systems of interest, and PQR statements

Although I never liked it as a teacher when students were really focused on what was in the test rather than on the curriculum, I’m going to have to be a bit strategic when it comes to TMA03 and my End of Module Assessment (EMA). It looks like TMA03 has exactly the same question structure as TMA02, so I’ve asked for model answers for the latter from my tutor to help structure my answers for the former.

Given that the questions ask about sequential parts of the module, I might actually try a different strategy and answer them as I finish each block, rather than wait to answer them all together. We’ll see.

An isosceles triangle of wind and racism

Posted on by Doug Belshaw

Update: it’s worth reading this report from March 2024, by Dame Sara Khan, Independent Adviser to the UK Government for Social Cohesion and Resilience. As she states, “The government of the day may choose to continue to commission further reviews as it has done in the past, but it is implementation and decisive action that is ultimately needed.”

We’re on our way back from a wonderful holiday and I don’t think I’ve ever wanted to return to England less. The violence that’s been visited upon many towns and cities by thugs over the last week while we’ve been away seems to have shocked a lot of people.

Those people mustn’t have been paying much attention to the state of the country or the wider world. To state the obvious, England is a deeply fragmented country. You could blame that on Brexit and on the Tories, and you’d be correct.

However, the issues run much deeper than that. Populists like Nigel Farage with their dogwhistle racist politics like to blame people weaker than themselves. In this case, refugees. But, to my mind, the issue is squarely about money.

If you look at a map of where the violence is kicking off, and compare that to maps of where people voted Reform at the recent General Election, you’ll notice a pattern. Now overlay a map of some of the poorest wards in England and we’ve got some correlation.

The letters section of The Guardian often has its fair share of hand-wringing middle-class left-leaning pearl-clutching. But these examples, including a first-hand account from a counter-demonstrator, the chair of a network of organisations dedicated to community cohesion, and an emeritus professor, paint a stark picture.

There’s a lot of disinformation doing the rounds, which as someone who wrote their thesis on digital literacies, and as the parent of two teenagers, is quite concerning. There’s no simple answer to systemic issues. It’s going to take a lot of work over multiple years, but it’s also going to take funding, something that’s been sorely lacking in our most deprived communities for far too long.

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