ABSTRACT

The aim of this chapter is to demonstrate how two of these methods can be used to provide in-depth analyses of performance in complex sociotechnical systems (STS), such as those found in the land-use planning and urban design (LUP & UD) discipline. The systems thinking approach involves taking the overall system as the unit of analysis, looking beyond individuals, and considering the interactions between humans and between humans and artifacts within a system. This view also encompasses factors within the broader organizational, social, or political system in which behavior takes place. Taking this perspective, behaviors emerge not from the decisions or actions of individuals but from interactions between humans and artifacts across the wider system.