DSRP Research Hungry? Better Use DSRP... Across the animal kingdom, hunting methods vary. The more adept an animal is at distinguishing prey from not prey and further distinguishing one type of prey from another, the more likely they are to eat. Elena Cabrera Elena Cabrera 30 Jun 2021 • 1 min read
Organization Using DSRP in Health and Human Performance This blog is from: https://gmschmidt3.medium.com/using-dsrp-in-health-and-human-performance-3a64432d83c9 Grant Schmidt Grant Schmidt 13 May 2021 • 3 min read
Law A Few Important Distinctions Regarding the Current Constitutional Crisis In this polarized landscape, unfortunately people focus less on what is being said than on who is saying it. Derek Cabrera, PhD Derek Cabrera, PhD 13 Jan 2021 • 3 min read
Jigs Could Cognitive Jigs Be the Missing Link to Better Problem Solving? An Interview With Dr. Derek Cabrera To read more about jigs, check out the help article on jigs and also check out the cognitive jigs tag... Staff Staff 19 Oct 2020 • 9 min read
DSRP Dynamics Are Dogs Systems Thinkers, Too? Dogs are our best friends, but we can't talk to them... we have no common language. But, what if you could use the simple rules of DSRP to teach your dog to communicate with you? This blog and the remarkable videos included illustrates how this is possible when we use the underlying stuctures of systems thinking. Elena Cabrera Elena Cabrera 11 Aug 2020 • 1 min read
DSRP Dynamics Systems Mapping Using Physical Objects I discovered Systems Thinking and Systems Mapping less than three months ago. Well, more precisely, I discovered cabreraresearch.org. Diving deep into Derek and Laura’s insightful tools and generous resources, I realized I had known about Systems Mapping for years. I just didn’t know what it was called. Let me explain. Scott Moehring Scott Moehring 29 Jul 2020 • 2 min read
Reification Solving Small Problems With Systems Thinking— A Real-Life Walk Through “Systems Thinking” sounds like such a grandiose thing, requiring complicated tools designed to solve complicated problems. But what if there is more (or less) to it? What follows is a short blow-by-blow account of how I solved a small problem using DSRP (Distinctions, Systems, Relationships, Perspectives). Scott Moehring Scott Moehring 23 Jul 2020 • 2 min read
DSRP Dynamics Look Beyond Labels Distinctions involve several different skills blended into one simple underlying structure where two elements (identity and other) make up any distinction. These skills include: Derek Cabrera, PhD Derek Cabrera, PhD 14 Jul 2020 • 1 min read
DSRP Dynamics DSRP Is All Around Us: Color Like all things, color is chock-full of DSRP patterns. Presented with the most common colors most of us can (unless colorblind) identify them on the spot. They are distinct from one another. Elena Cabrera Elena Cabrera 18 Jun 2020 • 1 min read
Emergence The Distinction Rule Is NOT Just For Humans Distinctions are universal. They are commonly thought to be uniquely human and to exist only as concepts. Elena Cabrera Elena Cabrera 17 Jun 2020 • 1 min read
Law Drs. Cabrera Give DSRP Lecture at the Military University of New Granda in Colombia Staff Staff 3 Jun 2020
Logic Embrace And/Both Logic This post is an excerpt from Chapter 7 of Systems Thinking Made Simple. A New Kind Of Logic There is always an underlying logic implicit in both informal and formal systems thinking methods. Making the logic explicit leads to clarity of thought and deeper understanding of concepts. Logic is any system of principles that guides one’s thinking. It need not be formalized or even conscious. All of us use logic every day without an awareness of what it is or where it came from. Systems thinking as a method also has an underlying logic. Derek & Laura Cabrera Derek & Laura Cabrera 1 Jun 2020 • 4 min read
Systems Engineering Leapfrog Leaders "Leapfrog Leaders" written by Drs. Derek Cabrera, Laura Cabrera and Hise Gibson applies existing knowledge about the elements of systems thinking to a widely used decision making framework called SOT. SOT stands for Strategic, Operational, and Tactical - which are are thought to be the three levels of problem solving. More specifically, this paper offers readers insight into the skills needed at each level of decision making; as well as how to develop them through an understanding and application of the basics of systems thinking and leadership. Staff Staff 31 May 2020 • 1 min read
Jigs Jig: System Of Relationships In our jig series, we have explored many jigs such as a Barbell Jig, which combines the patterns R, D and S to create new molecular structures. In this post, we explore the "System of Relationships" jig or "S-of-R". A system of relationships is a part-whole system where the parts are relationships. Usually, (although not always) the relationships act together in some way to make up a meaningful system (as opposed to just being parts of a system of relationships without any dynamical properties or similarities). In other words, it is a jig where a set of relationships work together to form a system. Elena Cabrera Elena Cabrera 29 May 2020 • 2 min read
Jigs Jig: Mix and Match Excerpt from the book: Systems Thinking Made Simple, Chapter 4 This blog is part of a set of blogs under the tag "cognitive jigs." Be sure to check Derek & Laura Cabrera Derek & Laura Cabrera 28 Apr 2020 • 2 min read
Jigs Jig: Ishikawa or "Fishbone" Diagram Excerpt from the book: Systems Thinking Made Simple, Chapter 8 This blog is part of a set of blogs under the tag "cognitive jigs." Be sure to check Derek & Laura Cabrera Derek & Laura Cabrera 28 Apr 2020 • 1 min read
Jigs Jig: XY Graph Excerpt from the book: Systems Thinking Made Simple, Chapter 8 This blog is part of a set of blogs under the tag "cognitive jigs." Be sure to check out the tag to read them as a group and learn how cognitive jigs are at play in our everyday lives. Graphs are immensely useful in every discipline of knowledge. Understanding DSRP not only reveals the implicit structure of graphs but also allows us to Derek & Laura Cabrera Derek & Laura Cabrera 26 Apr 2020 • 1 min read
DSRP Dynamics The Four Simple Rules of Systems Thinking: The Perspective Rule Excerpt from the book: Systems Thinking Made Simple, Chapter 3 Perspectives Rule Any Thing or Idea Can Be the Point or the View of a Perspective In systems thinking, perspectives are as Derek & Laura Cabrera Derek & Laura Cabrera 23 Apr 2020 • 3 min read
DSRP Dynamics The Four Simple Rules of Systems Thinking: The Relationship Rule Excerpt from the book: Systems Thinking Made Simple, Chapter 3 Relationship Rule Any Idea or Thing Can Relate to Other Things or Ideas Relationships (e.g., connections, links, feedback, causality, likes, and Derek & Laura Cabrera Derek & Laura Cabrera 22 Apr 2020 • 1 min read
DSRP Dynamics The Four Simple Rules of Systems Thinking: The Systems Rule Excerpt from the book: Systems Thinking Made Simple, Chapter 3 Systems Rule Any Idea or Thing Can Be Split into Parts or Lumped into a Whole There’s an old saying that Derek & Laura Cabrera Derek & Laura Cabrera 21 Apr 2020 • 2 min read
DSRP Dynamics The Four Simple Rules of Systems Thinking: The Distinction Rule Excerpt from the book: Systems Thinking Made Simple, Chapter 3 A deeper understanding and greater application of systems thinking requires that we identify the patterns that connect all of the Derek & Laura Cabrera Derek & Laura Cabrera 20 Apr 2020 • 9 min read
Jigs Jig: Tables Excerpt from the book: Systems Thinking Made Simple, Chapter 8 This blog is part of a set of blogs under the tag "cognitive jigs." Be sure to checkout the tag to read them as a group and learn how cognitive jigs are at play in our everyday lives. Derek & Laura Cabrera Derek & Laura Cabrera 19 Apr 2020 • 2 min read
Systems Models Network Theory This article is a part of our ongoing "System Models" series that looks at various systems models through the universal lens of DSRP in order to identify their Derek & Laura Cabrera Derek & Laura Cabrera 17 Apr 2020 • 6 min read
Emergence Systems Thinking Is A Complex Adaptive System (CAS) Our post today is about complex adaptive systems (CAS), in memory of English mathematician and systems thinker John Conway who died on April 11, 2020 due to COVID-19. Conway developedConway's Game of Life, a cellular automata that animated complex adaptive systems for generations of people. RIP Derek & Laura Cabrera Derek & Laura Cabrera 15 Apr 2020 • 9 min read
Systems Models Soft Systems Methodology This article is a part of our ongoing "System Models" series that looks at various systems models through the universal lens of DSRP in order to identify their Derek & Laura Cabrera Derek & Laura Cabrera 14 Apr 2020 • 2 min read
Jigs Jig: Perspective Ecology This blog is part of a set listed under the tag "cognitive jigs." Be sure to check out the tag to read them as a group and learnhow cognitive jigs are at play in our everyday lives. Ecologies are great systems to reference when teaching systems thinking. Elena Cabrera Elena Cabrera 10 Apr 2020 • 3 min read
Systems Models The Underlying DSRP Structure of System Dynamics Excerpt from the book: Systems Thinking Made Simple, Chapter 8 System dynamics is a method that is popular, and for some types of systems—especially population models—system dynamics isvery powerful. Derek & Laura Cabrera Derek & Laura Cabrera 8 Apr 2020 • 3 min read
Emotional Intelligence Not Just Posters, Culture Transforming Reifications We're committed to increasing public understanding of science about systems thinking. We strive to make the basic science of systems thinking accessible without loss of fidelity. One of the many Staff Staff 8 Apr 2020 • 5 min read
Getting Started Just one thing. I've taught SystemsThinking/DSRP[1] for a long time... I've taught it to scientists, doctoral students, and graduate students. I've taught it to high schoolers, teachers of all stripes, grade Derek Cabrera, PhD Derek Cabrera, PhD 5 Apr 2020 • 1 min read