How Systemic Problem solvers Understand Socio-Technological Transitions, a Multi-Level -Perspective Approach (Pt.1)
How can we see the phases of transformation in complex socio systems?
The multi-level perspective is a framework that provides us with a way of mapping out a system on its different levels to understand how transitions may occur within socio-technical systems. It asks what happens in Social complex systems when a new technological invention emerges.
The answer to this question is crucial to all business sectors, Leaders of organisations and systemic problem solvers. However, to understand how socio-technical transition can impact our life or our organisations, we need first start mapping the stages of transformation, and how path dependency generates lock-in thorough network effect (Part 2 here).
We also need to think about the aspects of complex systems transitions, give a fast look at the figure below:
In many case studies of industry reorientation, Frank Geels identifies 4 main stages of the change process.
First phase >
As he noted it seems to always start with resistance — in the beginning, the incumbents tend to say “it can’t be done,”; “we do not cause the problem, we can’t address it,” and “it’s too expensive.” (Geels, 2008).
Second phase >
Gradually, says Geels (2008), if the pressures begin to build, they start hedging as they still do the mainstream strategy. However, the recognition of the need for change emerges and to protect some investments, they start investing a little bit in alternatives.
Third phase >
The third phase would be diversification. The agents start to see opportunities, admit a possible system collapse and go for markets with innovation races occurring. (At Niche level)
Forth phase >
The actors of the regime and niche create alliances, a full reorientation programme takes place and the new logic starts to become embedded in the economic practices and beliefs
Transitions in Multi-level Perspective Literature (MPL)
Transitions, in the MPL literature, are seen to appear when a prevailing socio-technical regime starts to display stress from multiple dimensions. More specifically, this is seen to proceed given pressures from both above, as the landscape changes in some way and can create exogenous shocks in the social-technical system such as pandemics, geopolitical wars, and economic and political crises. Have you heard about any of these shocks recently?
Pressure can also come from the niche, where key innovations can occur and they could become a dominant design.
Changes in Systems because of Technological innovations (MPL)
Because socio-technical systems are interlinked and interdependent they form an overall pattern or paradigm, within which technologies, economics, business models, and social and cultural institutions fit and interoperate. If we take the example of the automobile, the car is in fact dependent upon a whole transport paradigm.
Getting to modern personal transportation required a significant number of interlinked changes to road infrastructure and traffic systems, traffic rules and regulations, symbolic meanings, marketing, culture assimilations, fuels, the development of new infrastructure, changes in user behaviour and mass production capabilities.
Thus, as the name indicates the multi-level perspective approach makes us think about deep and long-run transitions anchored by technological innovations, and how such innovations disseminate changes in all spectrums of social systems.
References:
Multi-Level Perspective on System Innovation: Relevance for Industrial Transformation (Frank Geels, 2008).
Multi-level perspective guide, By Systems Innovations> https://media2-production.mightynetworks.com/asset/36886645/Multi-Level_Mapping.pdf?_gl=1*o5z442*_ga*NDM5MTgxODk2LjE2MTkzNDQ5NzE.*_ga_T49FMYQ9FZ*MTY1NjY1MjEyNi4yMTcuMS4xNjU2NjUyMTY2LjA.
