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Selected:Polarity Mapping ARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs)Stock and Flow Diagram Causal Loop Diagram

Criterion	Systems Thinking Polarity Mapping	Architecture ARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs)	Systems Thinking Stock and Flow Diagram	Systems Thinking Causal Loop Diagram
Purposedifferent	Polarity Mapping makes tensions between two opposing poles tangible, such as standardization and adaptation or control and autonomy. The method guards against making apparent either-or decisions prematurely.	ARID examines how well developers can work with a technical design. It focuses on a part of the system that can still be revised, between the architecture overview and the detailed specification.	A Stock and Flow Diagram shows how stocks, inflows, and outflows shape a system over time. It is especially suited when growth, delays, or capacity limits determine the dynamics.	A Causal Loop Diagram makes feedback, reinforcement, and balance in a system legible. It uncovers side effects and self-reinforcement that stay hidden in linear explanations.
Complexitydifferent	Medium	Medium	High	Medium
Timedifferent	1-2 h	2–4 h review as a planning range; preparation and evaluation additional	2-6 h	1-3 h
Participantsdifferent	3-12	Designers, developers as users, and facilitation	1-6	2-8
Formatdifferent	Workshop	Workshop + async	Workshop + async	Workshop
Outputdifferent	Polarity Map, Warning Signs, Balance Actions	Prioritized development tasks, Jointly produced code or pseudocode, Observed difficulties and open design questions, Proposed design revisions	Stock and Flow Model, Dynamics Notes, Simulation Hypotheses	Causal Loop Diagram, Feedback Notes, Leverage Points
Tagsno overlap	Systems thinkingTradeoffsLeadership	ArchitectureEngineeringFeedbackValidationTasks	DynamicsSimulationFeedbackSystems thinking	FeedbackSystems thinkingCausalityDynamics

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