Thinking in systems
Many paths, same place
In shortThe same difficulty can have different causes, so two children with the same label may need different help.
The idea
Living systems do the same thing in several ways: if one path fails, another serves. The reverse also happens: the same difficulty can come from different origins in different people. That is why two children with the same label may need very different help, and something that worked for one may not work for the other.
What to try
- Before copying what worked for another child, ask whether the path is the same.
- Look for the several ways the child already has of getting to the same place, and strengthen them.
- Try, watch and adjust: it is how you find this person’s path.
The common mistake
Choosing help by label (‘for ADHD, do this’) instead of by process.
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Short, plain pieces by the researchers and good writers.
The science behind itHow strong the evidence is, the model, videos and references.
How strong the evidence is
Promising Good studies, but little tested with children at home or school, or the step to daily life is our interpretation.
Degeneracy (Edelman and Gally, 2001): structurally different elements produce the same function, giving robustness and evolvability. Together with equifinality and multifinality, it implies that the same observed behaviour can reflect different processes, and that intervention should be chosen by the identified process and judged by the response (response to intervention).
References
- Edelman, G. M., & Gally, J. A. (2001). Degeneracy and complexity in biological systems. PNAS, 98(24), 13763–13768.
- Cicchetti, D., & Rogosch, F. A. (1996). Equifinality and multifinality in developmental psychopathology. Development and Psychopathology, 8(4), 597–600.
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