B2–C1 · SYS · XTHSYS005

The system will keep producing [X] as long as [Y] remains unchanged

A reusable frame from “Systems thinking”. Trace second-order effects, bottlenecks, local optimisation, and the drivers that keep a problem recurring.

EN · EnglishThe system will keep producing [X] as long as [Y] remains unchanged.
DE · GermanDas System wird weiterhin [X] erzeugen, solange [Y] unverändert bleibt.

Try variations2 · more examples

  1. RU · Translation

    Система будет продолжать выдавать непоследовательные решения, пока правило принятия решений остаётся неявным.

    EN · English

     The system  will  keep  producing inconsistent decisions as long as  the decision rule  remains  implicit.

    DE · German

     Das System  wird weiterhin  inkonsistente Entscheidungen  erzeugen, solange  die Entscheidungsregel implizit  bleibt.

  2. RU · Translation

    Система будет продолжать производить устаревшие страницы, пока публикация зависит от человеческой памяти.

    EN · English

     The system  will  keep  producing stale pages as long as  publication  depends on manual memory.

    DE · German

     Das System  wird weiterhin  veraltete Seiten  erzeugen, solange  die Veröffentlichung vom manuellen Erinnern  abhängt.

Reasoning move · Trace consequences

Trace consequences

What it does

Link a recurring outcome to a structural condition that remains unchanged.

Pattern graph

Continue with nearby patterns

Related reasoning patterns4

Nearby structures let you perform the same reasoning move in a different form.

  1. The immediate effect may be [X], while the second-order effect could be [Y].Trace consequences · same reasoning move · same study set
  2. This removes the bottleneck at [X], but may move it to [Y].Trace consequences · same reasoning move · same study set
  3. Optimising [X] locally can make [Y] worse overall.Trace consequences · same reasoning move · same study set
  4. This treats the symptom [X] without changing the underlying driver [Y].Trace consequences · same reasoning move · same study set

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