Glossary from LinkingThinking WWF Scotland
Analysis
The division of an abstract or physical whole into its component parts to examine and
understand them.
Atomism
A theory that says that complex wholes can only be understood by looking at the individual
and smallest parts.
Boundary
The division or distinction between a system and its environment – as drawn by the
observer’s sense of the system’s purpose. This boundary may or may not correspond with a recognised
physical, legal or cultural division.
boxed-thinking Thinking in a compartmentalised way. Much more emphasis on ‘things-in-themselves’ than
‘things-in-relationship’. Opposite in emphasis to Linkingthinking or systems thinking. Boxed-thinking is
close to simple causal thinking which tends to isolate causes and effects. Also referred to as ‘box-thinking’.
carrying capacity
The ability of an ecosystem to support organisms or people while maintaining its
productivity, adaptability and abilities of renewal (after IUCN, Caring for the Earth, 1991).
cause-effect
A linear relationship between a cause and an effect, (or limited number of known effects).
Context
The environment of any system (which affects and is affected by the system). Context often
provides meaning. Seeing things in context is a key part of Linkingthinking.
Design
The conscious shaping of materials, energy and processes to meet an identified need. In a
broader sense, design also means change by careful intention rather than by default.
Determinism
A belief that outcomes can be predicted from initial changes, and therefore it is also a belief
in the possibility of control.
Dualism
A view of the world which sees the world as made up of binary opposites: eg spirit-matter;
science-religion; mind-body; reason-emotion; people-nature. In the dominant social paradigm, these pairs are
seen as largely oppositional. In the holistic paradigm, they are seen as largely complementary.
ecological design
The purposeful design or shaping of matter, energy and processes to fit in with or
emulate natural processes in order to minimise environmental cost and maximise multiple benefits. Other
terms used include ‘ecodesign’, ‘sustainable design’ and ‘regenerative design’.
ecological footprint
The area of land needed to support any defined number of people and their
standard of living in terms of provision of resources and absorption of waste.
Ecologism
A term used to describe a ‘system of thought’ or worldview where the metaphor of ecology
is used as the basis of the worldview. As distinct from ecology as a natural science.
Ecosphere
atmosphere.
The planetary totality of ecosystems, including the biosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere and
Ecosystem
An interrelated system of plants, animals and other organisms together with non-living
elements of their environment.
Emergence
The phenomenon by which qualities arise from the interaction of parts of a whole.
emergent property
A quality that arises from the interaction of the parts of a whole, but which cannot
be attributed to any of the parts themselves, and cannot be predicted looking at the parts.
Environment
From a systems point of view, this means the context within which a system exists,
including everything that affects the system, and which in turn might be affected by it.
Feedback
An output or information from one system influencing another system as input (or reinfluencing the original system). Feedback can be either ‘negative’ which has a dampening or balancing effect
on change in the system, or ‘positive’ which has an amplifying effect on change in the system. An example of
negative feedback is the effect of eating something until the feeling of hunger has gone, or adjusting the
temperature of a shower. An example of positive feedback is an unchecked fire, the arms race, or growing
trust in a relationship. This can be a ‘vicious circle’ or a ‘virtuous circle’ depending on whether the growth is
wanted or not.
feedback loop
A link whereby an effect is fed back to a system and influences the behaviour of the system
– as in, for example, noticing the consequences of our actions and adjusting our actions in the light of this
information.
Hierarchy
A vertical arrangement of systems – sub-subsystems within subsystems, and these
subsystems within meta-systems.
Holism
A belief or view that a complex whole cannot be understood only by looking at the parts
but by appreciating that ‘the whole is greater than the sum of the parts’ .
linear causality If A then B. In this relationship, any cause gives rise directly to effects that can be known
and predicted, and therefore controlled.
Linkingthinking A term used in the Linkingthinking project to describe thinking that focuses attention on
the nature of and consequences of relationships. Broadly equivalent to systems thinking.
Meta-system
whole.
The larger system, in relation to smaller systems which are contained within this larger
natural capital
resources.
The stock of biodiversity, life-support systems, and renewable and non-renewable
nesting levels
How systems are positioned and relate, one inside another: eg the cell in the stomach, the
stomach in the digestive system, the digestive system in the body. The boundaries of such system levels
depend largely on how they are perceived by the observer.
Objectivism
A belief that reality can best be understood by the observer distancing his/her beliefs,
values, opinions, feelings and intuition from the observation, and a belief that this is necessary and possible
for any valid claim. An objective view tries to look at a system from the outside. A subjective view proceeds
from or acknowledges the observer’s system of belief in perceiving a system in the first place. This is largely
a question of where we place the boundaries.
Paradigm
A coherent set of beliefs, assumptions, ideas and practices. Sometimes used
interchangeably with ‘worldview’, and sometimes used to describe the ideas and practices that guide a
specific sector, such as medicine or education.
Part
A component of a system. Any part might be made up of smaller parts (subsystems), in
which case it is also a whole and a meta-system to its parts. (For example, the liver is part of the body, but a
meta-system to the cells that make up the liver).
Perception
How people see, view or think about the world.
Permaculture
An international ecological design movement, originally based and still centred on
sustainable food production, but increasingly also concerned with meeting other human needs through
sustainable design. The term suggests the need for and possibility of a ‘culture of permanence’ or
sustainability.
problem solving An approach to resolving problems where the nature and extent of the difficulty and the
likely answers are both approximately known.
Purpose
Goal or organising principle in a system.
Rationalism
A belief that everything, in principle, can be explained through reason, which is seen as the
only basis of valid knowledge.
Reductionism
A belief or view that a complex whole can best be understood by examining its individual
parts. Also means the methodology used to do this.
Relationship
Something (A) is in relationship with something else (B) when A is affected by the
presence or absence of B.
stakeholder
A person or group with an interest in something like a project, design, decision
or outcome, whether or not this interest is articulated.
Subsystem
whole.
A lesser system within a larger system, and a component part of the larger
sustainable development A process by which progress towards a condition or state of sustainability is made.
IUCN (1991) define it as “improving the quality of human life while living within the carrying capacity of
supporting ecosystems” .
sustainability
and wellbeing.
The capacity or ability to sustain something far into the future. Continued survival, security
Synergy
The interaction of two or more components to produce an effect which is greater than the
sum of their parts (see emergence). Resulting ‘synergies’ (emergent properties) may be positive (healthy),
neutral or negative (dysfunctional).
System
A perceived common field of activity or function bounded by the perception or purposes of
the observer. It has an interrelated set of elements organised around a purpose, and a boundary that
distinguishes it from its context or larger environment in which it sits.
system of interest
A thing – or set of things or areas – that is important and meaningful to us, (or to
somebody else, or to another group or organisation). We tend to put a conceptual boundary around those
things that are of interest to us, and externalise those things that we consider are of less or no interest to us.
Same as ‘system of concern’.
systemic coherence
Where the parts of a system exist in an integrated state of harmony and mutual
support, rather than disintegration, conflict and harmful competition.
Whole
A whole is an integrated state, ie showing integrity or wholeness. Any whole can be a part
of something larger (a stomach in the body, a carburettor in the car, for example). A living system ‘whole’ is
characterised by a high degree of internal interconnection (or ‘systemicity’).
Worldview
A set of beliefs, values and ideas which forms a coherent view of reality and which
influences how people perceive, interpret and operate in the world. Every individual has a worldview and, at
social level, there is a shared cultural worldview.
Some other relational thinking terms
ecological thinking
Used to describe thinking, values and beliefs that derive from or give expression
to a worldview based on the metaphor of ecology. This is often presented as counter to, or incorporating and
going beyond, a mechanistic worldview which can be seen as the fundamental orientation of modern society.
holistic thinking
Often presented as ‘opposite’ to reductionist thinking. A concern with ‘the whole’
rather than ‘the part’, and a belief that ‘the whole is greater than the sum of the parts’.
joined-up thinking
A popular term that has emerged in the last decade. Often used in a policy-making
context to mean developing policies that complement each other rather than conflict. It carries the implication
that most policy making is not ‘joined-up’ but fragmented and sometimes mutually conflicting.
systems thinking
Ways of thinking which look primarily at process, relationship, pattern and
context. Systems thinking regards the world as if it were made up of interacting systems. A whole disciplinary
field has grown up around systems thinking in the last half-century. Systems thinking is a form of (applied)
holistic thinking.
systemic thinking
Usually used as a synonym for ‘systems thinking’ (although there is a distinction
at a more advanced level of study).
systematic thinking
Not the same thing as systems thinking. Systematic means doing things
methodically, bit by bit, in a logical sequence. This approach tends to be more reductionist than holistic.
Compiled by Stephen Sterling 2004 for Linking Thinking WWF