Defines systems as a set of things that are related to each other and to the whole and that collectively behave differently as opposed to when separated. Investigates the relationship between systems and technology. (Author/JOW)

Defines the traditional psychological worldview and the emergent systemic worldview in counseling theory. Contrasts hegemonic (predominant) and counterhegemonic (emergent and competitive) viewpoints in counseling theory. The two counseling worldviews are described as presenting distinct roles for professional counselors with respect to assessment,…

Discusses the complex character of everyday life as the deep ecology of Home Economics/Human Ecology. Explores the meanings of ecology and the ways in which diversity and harmony are interrelated companions of dynamic living systems. (JOW)

Examines issues involved in conceptualizing consultation from systems framework. Discusses language for understanding and implementing systems interventions. Describes systems as interacting multilevel dynamic structures that affect and are affected by meaning structures used by members. Notes that consultants can learn to use reframing and other…

Proposes the conceptualization of work knowledge as co-emergence, based on the theory of enactivism. Discusses three dimensions of enactivism: (1) knowledge unfolds in systems; (2) understanding is embedded in relationships among systems, not in the minds of individual actors; and (3) learning is continuous invention and exploration, linked to…

This paper explores the added value of chaordic systems Thinking for organizational renewal, which is defined as transformation instead of reformation. The exploration is presented in the form of an antagonistic dialogue between two "voices," which develop commentaries from distinct theoretical inspirations, namely chaordic systems thinking (CST)…

We outline the nature of dynamic systems, both linear and nonlinear, and we review dynamic systems principles that apply well to various aspects of human development, including the emergence of new forms, phases of stability and instability, continuous and discontinuous change, and differentiation among individual trajectories. We then document…

The purpose of this study was to generate a snapshot profile of the teaching and learning environment in each of five schools in Cape Town, South Africa. The generated profile would in turn facilitate the identification of critical, localized and systemic factors that might be targeted by a whole school intervention programme to improve the…

Technical assistance (TA) has long been a standard, overarching strategy for assisting, states, agencies, family members, and practitioners with building capacity for service and system change initiatives. But, what is meant by the term "technical assistance"? What is known about the technical assistance strategies that are likely to…

This paper examines the psychological well-being of high school adolescents immigrating from Russia and Ukraine to Israel without parents. Data were collected in a 3-year longitudinal study that covered the premigration through postmigration periods. Immigrant adolescents were compared with nonemigrating adolescents in Russia and Ukraine.…

Based on the recommendation of the AAAS and the NRC, middle level science is the rightful introduction for a systems approach, including the study of its parts, subsystems, interconnections, and interrelationships. Dr. Seuss's "The Lorax" provides an excellent opportunity to combine ecological consequences within a systems approach (Sweeney 2001).…

An overview is presented of forces that have shaped how public and private funders approach evaluation, including the challenges that funders, and particularly foundations, face in effectively using evaluation within an organizational learning framework. Even with internal organizational challenges to learning, foundations are increasingly…

This paper proposes an initial model for the care and support of primary school children coping with family situations and family changes. The model is built on existing counselling literature, incorporating the perceptions of teachers, children and parents on their needs for support and a small empirical study by the author on teachers'…

Activity theory (AT) is a powerful tool for investigating "artefacts in use", ie, the ways technologies interrelate with their local context. AT reveals the interfaces between e-learning at the macro- (strategy, policy, "campus-wide" solutions) and the micro-organisational levels (everyday working practice, iterative change, individual…

This paper presents a brief overview of the changes made during our department level reform (DLR) process (Grant Title: "A Systems Approach for Civil and Environmental Engineering Education: Integrating Systems Thinking, Inquiry-Based Learning and Catamount Community Service-Learning Projects") and some of the effects of these changes on…