Good Books for Teaching System Dynamics
Posted: Sat Mar 18, 2000 8:54 am
Ivan Taylor wonders if my new system dynamics text, Business Dynamics, is
too advanced for beginners. I hope not. Certainly one of my goals was to
provide a resource that would help people who want to learn to build
effective models of difficult situations. To that end the book does go
into depth on issues such as the formulation of robust decision rules;
developing nonlinear functions; how to use delays, aging chains and
coflows; model testing; and other issues needed to build robust simulation
models grounded in the widest range of data (both numerical and
qualitative). I believe this material is essential for anyone seriously
interested in using system dynamics to solve problems in the real world.
However, the first part of the book is focused on the basic systems
thinking skills everyone needs, whether they ever plan to build a formal
simulation model or not. These include dynamic problem definition,
recognizing feedback and setting a broad model boundary; causal loop
diagramming; and mapping the stock and flow structure of a problem.
The book includes case studies of "system dynamics in action" that describe
how modeling has been used successfully in a diverse set of important
problems, from project management, automobile leasing strategy, and supply
chain reengineering to the cocaine epidemic, automobile recycling, and
global warming (the book is not only for those interested in business
applications of system dynamics).
The book also includes about 80 "Challenges" for readers to work through as
a way to develop and test their systems thinking and modeling skills.
These range from simple mental simulation exercises and causal-loop
diagramming case studies to full-scale modeling projects. I am currently
writing the instructors manual, which will include suggested solutions for
each of the challenges. The website (currently under construction) will
also contain resources to help both students and instructors.
The book also includes a cd-rom containing all the models developed in the
text, in ithink, Powersim, and Vensim format, along with ithink Run-time,
Powersim Lite, and Vensim PLE so that you can run them without needing any
additional software (the models and software are provided in both PC and
Macintosh formats). Id like to thank the folks at High Performance
Systems, Powersim, and Ventana for their generosity in providing their
software and helping in the translation of the models; full acknowledgments
are included at the website below.
Folks can read excerpts from the preface and see the table of contents at
http://web.mit.edu/jsterman/www/BusDyn2.html. The citation is Business
Dynamics: Systems Thinking and Modeling for a Complex World,
Irwin/McGraw-Hill. ISBN 0-07-231135-5.
Id be pleased to get any feedback.
John Sterman
jsterman@mit.edu
too advanced for beginners. I hope not. Certainly one of my goals was to
provide a resource that would help people who want to learn to build
effective models of difficult situations. To that end the book does go
into depth on issues such as the formulation of robust decision rules;
developing nonlinear functions; how to use delays, aging chains and
coflows; model testing; and other issues needed to build robust simulation
models grounded in the widest range of data (both numerical and
qualitative). I believe this material is essential for anyone seriously
interested in using system dynamics to solve problems in the real world.
However, the first part of the book is focused on the basic systems
thinking skills everyone needs, whether they ever plan to build a formal
simulation model or not. These include dynamic problem definition,
recognizing feedback and setting a broad model boundary; causal loop
diagramming; and mapping the stock and flow structure of a problem.
The book includes case studies of "system dynamics in action" that describe
how modeling has been used successfully in a diverse set of important
problems, from project management, automobile leasing strategy, and supply
chain reengineering to the cocaine epidemic, automobile recycling, and
global warming (the book is not only for those interested in business
applications of system dynamics).
The book also includes about 80 "Challenges" for readers to work through as
a way to develop and test their systems thinking and modeling skills.
These range from simple mental simulation exercises and causal-loop
diagramming case studies to full-scale modeling projects. I am currently
writing the instructors manual, which will include suggested solutions for
each of the challenges. The website (currently under construction) will
also contain resources to help both students and instructors.
The book also includes a cd-rom containing all the models developed in the
text, in ithink, Powersim, and Vensim format, along with ithink Run-time,
Powersim Lite, and Vensim PLE so that you can run them without needing any
additional software (the models and software are provided in both PC and
Macintosh formats). Id like to thank the folks at High Performance
Systems, Powersim, and Ventana for their generosity in providing their
software and helping in the translation of the models; full acknowledgments
are included at the website below.
Folks can read excerpts from the preface and see the table of contents at
http://web.mit.edu/jsterman/www/BusDyn2.html. The citation is Business
Dynamics: Systems Thinking and Modeling for a Complex World,
Irwin/McGraw-Hill. ISBN 0-07-231135-5.
Id be pleased to get any feedback.
John Sterman
jsterman@mit.edu
