Leveraging industrial-technological innovation to achieve sustainable development: A systems thinking perspective

Industrial-technological innovation (ITI) has become an important requirement for the sustainable development of China. ITI development requires a comprehensive understanding of the dynamic complexity associated with ITI systems. Previous research into ITI systems is based primarily on static methods that isolate system components, and ignore feedback on adjustments made. Based on systems thinking, this paper develop six archetypes (“Limit to Growth,” “Success to the Successful,” “Tragedy of the Commons,” “Fixes that Fail,” “Accidental Adversaries,” and “Shifting the Burden”) and an ITI system integration model. The model visualizes the ITI system as a whole and identifies bottlenecks that may affect ITI development. This conceptual model provides a more effective method of judgment, which can better explain the operational mechanism of the ITI system and improve the system’s operational characteristics. Finally, we evaluate the ITI system and propose that self-organization is a key lever of a systemic intervention framework for ITI.