Critical Thinking vs. System Thinking: Two Approaches to Becoming a Better Problem Solver

If you want to become a better thinker, MIT xPRO has courses for that! Critical Thinking and Decision Making and System Thinking are two of our most popular offerings, but potential learners often wonder which one is best for their professional development. What’s the difference between the two methodologies? When should you use one approach over the other? What can you expect from each course?

Simply put, critical thinking and system thinking are alike in that they each shape our understanding and approach to solving complex problems. There are times when critical thinking complements system thinking, and vice versa. However, there are key differences to consider. 

In this piece, we’ll define each methodology, explain what the courses cover, and examine how to understand the two approaches in relation to one another. 

Critical Thinking

Critical thinking is a logical, analytical process for evaluating information, arguments, and evidence to make sound judgments or decisions. A critical thinker should be able to analyze potential solutions to a problem, probing their strengths and weaknesses and comparing them with other alternatives to determine the best course of action.

“It’s impossible to encompass critical thinking in a step-by-step process, but the scientific method is a decent guide,” says Dan Frey, lead instructor for MIT xPRO’s Critical Thinking and Decision Making course. “If you look at the steps that are conventionally listed as parts of the scientific method, a similar process applies to critical thinking in general.” That includes gathering information, forming a hypothesis, testing it, and so on, until you reach a conclusion.

The applications of critical thinking are broad, though a good rule of thumb is to apply it when making high-stakes decisions. As Professor Frey explains, one of the most significant benefits of becoming a better critical thinker is improved resistance to what he calls self-sealing. “Many high-performing professionals fall into a pattern of behavior in which they find it difficult or impossible to recognize the limits of their own ability,” he says. “You should constantly expose your own theories to data and reasoned evaluation. If you have the skills to do that, you will learn and improve over your entire life.” 

What to expect from MIT xPRO’s critical thinking course

Professionals who enroll in MIT xPRO’s critical thinking course can expect the following: 

• Master the art of solving complex problems and making informed decisions confidently.
  
  
• Explore deductive thinking, meta-cognition, and information literacy to critically evaluate alternative solutions and form well-supported conclusions.
  
  
• Practice applying Bayes's Law, diagramming arguments, and considering social and technical factors in evidence assessment.
  
  
• Gain hands-on experience with group decision-making tools like the Pugh Matrix and Evaluation Matrix to enhance collaborative problem-solving in real-world scenarios.

The course also emphasizes the creative element of critical thinking. As Professor Frey explains, we use creativity to develop alternative solutions to a problem. He sees creativity as a cognitive skill that can be improved with practice and uses the course curriculum to help students exercise their creative muscle. 

MIT xPRO’s critical thinking course is ideal for: 

• Technical professionals looking to advance their essential skills to improve the performance of their projects and processes.
  
  
• Individual contributors who want to perform at their highest potential.
  
  
• Managers who are intent on architecting successful, collaborative, and happy teams.

System Thinking

System thinking is a holistic approach to understanding complex systems by exploring how different entities interact within a whole. A system thinker should be able to examine and simplify complexity, recognize patterns, and develop effective solutions to challenges.

As Edward Crawley, one of the lead instructors for MIT xPRO’s System Thinking course, explains, the world is made up of systems: individual entities and the relationships between them. As these systems grow more complex, the ability to think in systems has become a “critical skill for the 21st century.”

Complex systems show up everywhere: in products and services, in teams of people, and in the business and technical processes that hold organizations together. Though systems thinking is most prevalent in STEM fields, it is also relevant outside of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. “The legal system is a system, the Constitution is a system, public health is a system, national defense is a system, finance is a system,” says Professor Crawley. 

What to expect from MIT xPRO’s system thinking course

Professionals who enroll in MIT xPRO’s system thinking course can expect the following: 

• Apply system thinking to improve project performance.
  
  
• Understand how system thinking is used in diverse areas such as logistics & transportation, project management, and computation.
  
  
• Participate in a project management simulation to apply the concepts learned, and engage in activities to contextualize each concept.

The course includes thoughtfully curated examples that help learners understand and apply system thinking. For instance, some instructors introduce the example of a bicycle to illustrate the principles underlying the system, the methods used to think about it, and the concrete tools system thinkers use each day. 

MIT xPRO’s system thinking course is ideal for: 

• Technical professionals looking to advance their essential skills to improve the performance of their projects and processes.
  
  
• Individual contributors who want to perform at their highest potential.
  
  
• Managers who are intent on architecting successful, collaborative, and happy teams.
  
  
• Project managers, product managers, and anyone working with complex, interrelated systems.

Understanding the Two Methodologies in Relation to One Another

Critical thinking tends to have a broader application set than system thinking. Not every situation requires system thinking; there are plenty of scenarios where it’s best to keep a problem simple and focus only on the specific part that needs fixing. 

That said, critical thinking and system thinking often complement one another. Critical thinking skills are almost always applicable when engaging in system thinking. Alternatively, if you’re thinking critically about a problem, those same critical thinking skills can help you recognize if and when there is a need to pivot to system thinking.

One clear point of interaction between the two methodologies is in the framing of a problem, a key part of the critical thinking process that helps to avoid getting locked into a poor decision. Generating new alternatives is necessary during this phase. If you ignore certain systems-level behaviors in your framing—such as the emergence of new phenomena resulting from interactions among different subsystems—you risk overlooking the best outcomes.

“I would encourage people who are trying to improve their critical thinking to educate themselves about system thinking as well,” says Professor Frey. Both MIT xPRO courses also help individuals and organizations develop a shared language for critical thinking and system thinking, enabling them to collaborate more effectively.

Become a Better Problem Solver 

No matter which course you enroll in, you’ll emerge with a better understanding of how to approach and solve complex problems. While the courses are geared toward technical professionals, learners across many disciplines can benefit from improved critical and system thinking skills. 

“Surely, everybody has work they’re doing that requires critical thinking,” says Professor Frey. “I’m thinking about the lecture I’m delivering tomorrow—deciding what to add, what to remove, considering how learners will receive the information. If I can make good decisions in those regards, I’ll be so much better off. I’ll feel more confident going into it, and I’ll enjoy it more.”

Professor Crawley has an even more direct take on the value of system thinking: “System thinking is for everyone on this side of the life-death line,” he says. 

Enroll in Critical Thinking and Decision Making or System Thinking today to become a better problem solver.