This essay focuses on a very narrow section of systems thinking and systems theory. There's an entire field, with many different subdisciplines beyond just the Club of Rome stuff (and which influenced them directly) that, quite explicitly also deals with systems that "fight back". In fact, any serious definition of systems thinking usually has said dynamics baked into it—systems are assumed to evolve from the start.

I'd encourage people to look into soft systems methodology, critical systems theory, and second order cybernetics, all of which are pretty explicitly concerned with the problem of the "system fighting back". The article is good, as works in progress articles usually are, but the initial premise and resulting coverage are shallow as far as the intellectual depth and lineage here goes.

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vslira 3 days ago | parent [-]

Any particular resource to recommend?

	▲	voidhorse 3 days ago \| parent \| next [-]
		Both of the books "Systems Thinkers" and "The Emerging Consensus in Social Systems Theory" are nice broad introductions into the historical developments, various lines of thought, and the massive space that is systems thinking. They should both give you a good initial starting point for further research.
	▲	firesteelrain 3 days ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		“Thinking in Systems: A Primer” is the best first read. Then, “Meltdown” and finally “The Fifth Discipline”