Frame
Causal Loop Modeling
Drawing how causes and effects feed back into each other, to see why problems grow or return.
What is Causal Loop Modeling?
Drawing how causes and effects feed back into each other, to see why problems grow or return.
What you learn
Check whether your response feeds the problem it responds to.
When it helps
you already have a system map and need to trace how a response changes the problem over time.
Use it at work
- Choose one loop from your system map.
- For each link, ask whether more of one thing causes more or less of the next.
- Mark delays between an action and its effect.
- Follow the loop back to the start and check whether it amplifies or limits the problem.
- Test a change to a link in the loop.
Your output
For a problem your team keeps fighting, draw how your response affects its cause. Look for responses that make things worse later.
Watch for
Treating a symptom in a way that strengthens its cause.
Related practices
Sources
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