Subject: Cognitive Maturity

Posted by Peter Hovmand on 11/16/2007
In Reply To:Cognitive Maturity Posted by Alice Squires on 11/16/2007

Message:

Alice,



This is an interesting question. Although I primarily teach graduate students in social work and engineering, some experiences suggest that age might not be the right variable to focus on for capacity to learn system dynamics. I get the sense that the further along we move in education emphasizing linear cause effect relationships and ignoring the distinctions between stocks and flows and importance of feedback, the harder it becomes to learn these concepts. For example, my first semester masters students seem to have no problem with these concepts, a few who are introduced second or third semester have more difficulty, and the doctoral students seem to have the hardest time. In some work with a science program focusing on teens, it seems the teens are continually able to extend the concepts beyond the expectations of the instructors who are older. My son who is 6 ½ draws his own stock flow diagrams of ecosystems. This would suggest that one should also allow for the fact that the more exposed one is to linear cause-effect thinking, the more difficult it might be to learn system dynamics and systems thinking.



Peter

Follow Ups:

Cognitive Maturity - Wade Schuette 11/16/2007 
Cognitive Maturity - Alice Squires 11/18/2007
Cognitive Maturity - Wade Schuette 11/19/2007