Systemic thinking and system dynamics for the analysis of public policies : fundamentals and recommendations

Abstract

This document presents a general vision of the systemic approach and one of its variants called system dynamics. It also explains the use of both frames for the analysis of public policies. The document begins by presenting some background on the systemic approach and the main principles of General Systems Theory as one of the most well-known variants. The conceptual foundations are then explained and specific definitions of key concepts are provided. The document also includes a brief description of some variants of this approach. The document then presents a brief review of the main elements of system dynamics as one of the variants of the systemic approach, giving special emphasis to the elements that are unique to this variant and those which complement common elements of the systemic approach as a whole.