In his discussion of an ‘idealised’ Systems Thinking Practitioner, Ison (2017, pp.192-195) makes the case for an underlying emotion of inquiry and curiousity and engaging in what it refers to as small ‘r’ research. He explains this as “willed and reflexive action, done for a purpose, though the purpose may not be clear initially” (Ison, 2017, p.193).
The case resonates with me, in a world of uncertainty, we can never ‘know’ anything because what we ‘know’ always changes as the real-world flux of events and ideas unfold. So always inquiring and small ‘r’ researching – and therefore continually learning – seems an appropriate way forward.
Lately, I have been reflecting on this in relation to the use of a research-based capstone module to ‘end’ an MSc in Systems thinking in practice at the Open University and my own experience of subsequently moving on to do a PhD. Continue reading