scholarly journals Towards systemic evaluation in turbulent times – Second-order practice shift

Evaluation ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 205-226
Author(s):  
Barbara Schmidt-Abbey ◽  
Martin Reynolds ◽  
Ray Ison
Keyword(s):  
Systems Thinking ◽  
Second Order ◽  
Developmental Evaluation ◽  
Evaluation Practice ◽  
Turbulent Times ◽  
Personal Experiences ◽  
Skilled Practitioner ◽  
Practice Framework ◽  
Improve Practice

The need for, and possibilities of, a second-order shift in evaluation practice are explored. Second-order evaluation practice enables an evaluator to improve practice as a skilled practitioner, acknowledging her embeddedness within an evaluand. The article explores evaluation practice as experienced by professional evaluators, using ideas from developmental evaluation coupled with systemic evaluation in the tradition of systems thinking in practice. Systemic evaluation aims to capture systemic sensibilities – the bigger picture – of complex turbulent situations of change underpinning evaluands. Attributes of second-order practice with systemic evaluation are understood as being aligned with both systemic and systematic modes of evaluation praxis. Personal experiences are provided where this juxtaposing praxis has been found wanting. By example, a systems thinking in practice framework is explored as heuristic support for making a second-order practice shift. The article concludes with a discussion of some implications for developments in professionalising evaluation practice and research.

Medical leadership in the NHS during the COVID-19 pandemic

2020 ◽  
Vol 81 (6) ◽  
pp. 1-3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Warraich ◽  
Bayanne Olabi ◽  
Bilal Azhar ◽  
S Fizza Tanzeem ◽  
Martin Fischer
Keyword(s):  
Systems Thinking ◽  
Healthcare Systems ◽  
Adaptive Leadership ◽  
Personal Experiences ◽  
Medical Leadership

Amid the global COVID-19 pandemic, adaptation of healthcare systems, with strong medical leadership, has been integral to coping with the ever-changing situation. This article is based on the personal experiences of doctors in the NHS and insights into the frontline response to this situation. It reflects on leadership dilemmas and strategies implemented to overcome them, with a focus on systems thinking and adaptive leadership.

Toward Valuing With Critical Systems Heuristics

2017 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 201-220 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily F. Gates
Keyword(s):  
Systems Thinking ◽  
Social Value ◽  
Critical Systems ◽  
Practical Application ◽  
Value Judgments ◽  
Critical Systems Heuristics ◽  
Evaluation Practice ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Central Task ◽  
The Social

Evaluation is defined by its central task of valuing—the process and product of judging the merit, worth, or significance of a policy or program. However, there are no clear-cut ways to consider values and render value judgments in evaluation practice. There remains contention in the evaluation field about whether and how to make value judgments. No approach to valuing eliminates the uncertainty, plurality, and potential for conflict that comes with considering values. This article explores what critical systems heuristics (CSH), an area of applied systems thinking, might contribute to four long-standing issues regarding valuing: envisioning the social value of evaluation, framing the evaluand and evaluation, selecting and justifying criteria, and determining the roles of the evaluator(s) and stakeholders in valuing. CSH contributes concepts and tools that, in theory, support more reflective, responsible valuing although further practical application is needed.

scholarly journals A critical realist approach to systems thinking in evaluation

Evaluation ◽  
2022 ◽  
pp. 135638902110646
Author(s):  
Denise E. De Souza
Keyword(s):  
Systems Thinking ◽  
Critical Realism ◽  
Social Systems ◽  
Social Structures ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
Evaluation Practice ◽  
Work Program ◽  
Critical Realist ◽  
Closed Systems ◽  
Realist Perspective

Pawson and Tilley’s acknowledgment of programs embedded in multiple social systems has gained little traction in realist synthesis and evaluation practice. A practice focusing on fairly closed systems—explaining how programs work and do not work—has emerged. This article negotiates the boundaries of knowledge pertinent to have in program design and evaluation from a realist perspective. It highlights critical realism as another possible response to systems thinking in evaluation. Moving one level up a program, it theorizes about social structures, mechanisms, and causes operating in a complex system within which an education-to-work program is nested. Three implications of the approach are highlighted: it foregrounds the relational nature of social, psychological, and programmatic structures and mechanisms; enables policymakers to develop a broader understanding of structures needed to support a program; and enables program architects to ascertain how a planned program might assimilate and adapt to social structures and mechanisms already established in a context.

scholarly journals Systems Thinking in Design: Service Design and self-Services

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
John Darzentas ◽  
Jenny Siobhane Darzentas
Keyword(s):  
Systems Thinking ◽  
Real World ◽  
Service Design ◽  
Second Order ◽  
Application Domain ◽  
Requisite Variety ◽  
Law Of Requisite Variety ◽  
The Law

The purpose of this paper is twofold. Firstly, it seeks to use a practical real-world example to demonstrate the power of a systems thinking perspective in design, and more specifically in the design of services. It makes use of the paradigm of e-accessibility, in the application domain of publicly available self-services. Secondly, the benefits of this perspective will be discussed, through some theoretical tenets of systems thinking, such as the use of emerging properties, the law of requisite variety and notions of second order cybernetics, in terms of the richness that they offer to the conceptualisation and praxis of design in general, and service design in particular. Finally, we speculate on the implications of systems thinking to question the nature of the interdisciplinarity and even transdisciplinarity of design.

Systems Thinking to Improve E-Government Evaluation

2015 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
José-Rodrigo Córdoba-Pachón
Keyword(s):  
Systems Thinking ◽  
Complex Problem ◽  
Electronic Government ◽  
Critical Surface ◽  
Complex Problem Solving ◽  
Managerial Decision ◽  
Evaluation Practice ◽  
Body Of Knowledge ◽  
Systems Implementation ◽  
Evaluation Information

Worldwide there is increasing interest in both academic and government sectors to evaluate the different impacts of electronic government (e-government) systems. A number of predictive, cause-effect, linearly and functionally oriented models of evaluation have been proposed and applied. The focus of these models is to identify and quantify costs and benefits derived from successful e-government systems implementation and adoption. However the inclusion of different stakeholders in e-government evaluation remains marginal and limited to input information for the above models. This paper criticises existing evaluation models in two particular aspects: 1) the uncritical identification and quantification of different evaluation elements (aspects, costs, benefits or impacts, people to be involved in evaluation); and 2) the lack of reflection in relation to how evaluation information is used in managerial decision making. Criticisms regarding these aspects are drawn with the help of systems thinking, a body of knowledge which includes theories, ideas and methodologies for complex problem solving and whose use could enable critical surface and review of evaluation stakeholders' concerns about e-government. Strategies to make e-government evaluation practice more inclusive and critical in relation to stakeholders' concerns in their evaluation context are proposed and discussed.

Systems thinking: a case for second‐order‐learning

2007 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 473-479 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamshid Gharajedaghi
Keyword(s):  
Systems Thinking ◽  
Second Order

The Self-Organising Work of Music

2011 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 192-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Phivos-Angelos Kollias
Keyword(s):  
Systems Thinking ◽  
Open System ◽  
Graphical Model ◽  
Second Order ◽  
The Self ◽  
Algorithmic Composition ◽  
Musical Work ◽  
Self Organisation ◽  
The Difference

In this paper, I will focus on the musical work as a self-organising entity within a systemic framework. In particular, two significant and inter-related systemic concepts will be mentioned: self-organisation and open system. Firstly, I shall explain the two concepts within the context of systems thinking with reference to a graphical model of second-order cybernetics. This section will conclude with a discussion of the difference between natural and artificial self-organising systems. I will then extend the systemic perspective, describing what I call self-organising music, and discussing my algorithmic composition Ephemeron as a case study.

An Empirical Study of the Training Evaluation Decision-Making Model to Measure Training Outcome

2010 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 87-101 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tsang-Kai Hung
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Human Resource Development ◽  
Training Evaluation ◽  
Evaluation Practice ◽  
Training Professionals ◽  
Evaluation Decision ◽  
Hrd Professionals ◽  
Practice Framework ◽  
Trainee Satisfaction ◽  
Decision Making Model

In terms of training evaluation, most human resource development (HRD) or training professionals as program suppliers are usually limited to course-level trainee satisfaction. The training evaluation practice framework can be originally linked to Kirkpartrick (1959). The purpose in this study was to explore the key important factors that affect the relationship between HRD professionals and training evaluation by establishing a decision-making model of training evaluation practices using fuzzy concept (Van Laarhoven & Pedrycz, 1983) and grey relation analysis (Deng, 1982), that is, a quantitative method. This could guide HRD or training professionals when making the decisions about which evaluation level can be viewed as the priority to be implemented by looking at their own organizational characteristics.

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