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| Criterion | ![]() Systems Thinking Futures Wheel | ![]() Systems Thinking Rich Picture | ![]() Systems Thinking Leverage Points | ![]() Systems Thinking CATWOE Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | The Futures Wheel helps explore the consequences of a decision, a trend, or a strategic move in a structured way. It makes visible which first, second, and third-order effects could arise from an event. | A Rich Picture brings an unclear situation onto a shared drawing. It captures actors, tensions, information flows, and blind spots before the team jumps to solutions too early. | Leverage Points show exactly where interventions in a system produce a disproportionate effect. It draws relationships, patterns, and feedback loops. The result is captured as a leverage map and action strategy. | CATWOE structures a problem from six viewpoints and prevents too narrow a view of the situation. Different experiences of the system become comparably discussable this way. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Low | High | Medium |
Timedifferent | 60-120 min | 30-90 min | Half day | 45-90 min |
Participantsdifferent | 3-10 | 2-10 | 3-12 | 3-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Futures Wheel, Consequence Chains, Strategic Signals | Rich Picture, Problem Framing Notes | Leverage Map, Action Strategy | CATWOE Canvas, Root Definition, Stakeholder Perspectives, Constraints |
Tags1 shared | ForesightSystems thinkingSignals | Systems thinkingSoft systemsFramingVisualization | Systems thinkingChangeStrategy | Systems thinkingFramingStakeholders |



