Abstract for: Bridging the Divide: Reconciling System Dynamics and Systems Thinking on Shared Characteristics & a Common Order

Building upon recent and continuing dialogue on the identity of system dynamics made in a recent System Dynamics Review. Although quantitative system dynamics and qualitative systems thinking causal loop diagrams (CLDs) are common in the field, significant tensions remain on what is, or is not, appropriate to consider system dynamics. Building upon recent work identifying five defining characteristics of quantitative system dynamics models, we propose a path of reconciliation by showing how qualitative systems thinking CLDs share all but one of the same characteristics. This commonality creates an opportunity to arrange a common order, similar to an architectural order, of the constituent parts, using the metaphor of a stonemasonry bridge and an analogy to the hierarchy of matter. From this ordering arises a set of key first principles common to the order and both kinds of models: deconstruction & subsummation across levels in the order, scalar indifference to aggregation or disaggregation, and bridging between mental and mathematical equations. We show how, as the field matures, embracing metaphors and analogies as tools to facilitate the introduction of complex subjects by tying them to already-known topics can improve accessibility to new students and stakeholders encountering the field.