Five Commitments of Critical Systems Thinking

Abstract

Critical systems thinking is a relative newcomer to the systems tradition of thought. Yet it is now developing more quickly than any other part of systems thinking. It is argued that, as it has evolved, critical systems thinking has taken on five commitments which distinguish it from other types of systems approach. These five commitments are detailed below with comment on their origins and on the theoretical and practical work that has established them as pillars upon which critical systems thinking can be built and can be further refined.