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A review by caprivoyant
Systems Thinking for Social Change: A Practical Guide to Solving Complex Problems, Avoiding Unintended Consequences, and Achieving Lasting Results by David Peter Stroh
Did not finish book. Stopped at 17%.
As a trained systems engineer, I was excited to read this book! And I love the intention behind it. I think systems thinking can and should be applied to solve complex social problems.
I wasn't impressed with the author's ability to get a look at the whole system, though. Specifically, he talks about the get-tough prison sentences and the problem of over-incarceration & how many people released from the prison system find their way back. In the first 2 chapters, he doesn't recognize the original role of policing and it's racist origins. In chapter 3, he mentions that connection... But in a conference meant to solve the problems of the prison system that he helped to organize so people could start to think more systemically about the problems they were trying to solve, there was no invitation sent to people who had been released from the prison system. Nobody who had personal experience with that seemed to have a voice at the conference.
Anyway. That makes me question the credibility of this author. I feel like I can find a different book that'll cover the same stuff but in a more systemically-holistic way.
I wasn't impressed with the author's ability to get a look at the whole system, though. Specifically, he talks about the get-tough prison sentences and the problem of over-incarceration & how many people released from the prison system find their way back. In the first 2 chapters, he doesn't recognize the original role of policing and it's racist origins. In chapter 3, he mentions that connection... But in a conference meant to solve the problems of the prison system that he helped to organize so people could start to think more systemically about the problems they were trying to solve, there was no invitation sent to people who had been released from the prison system. Nobody who had personal experience with that seemed to have a voice at the conference.
Anyway. That makes me question the credibility of this author. I feel like I can find a different book that'll cover the same stuff but in a more systemically-holistic way.