Hans Jørgen Andersen
The theory of leverage points is a central framework in systems thinking and systemic design used to explain, understand, and implement interventions in complex systems. The core idea is that a small change within a complex system can have a significant impact on the entire system. This theory is applied across various subject areas and employs Archimedes’ lever—a Class 1 simple machine—as an analogy for interacting with complex systems. This paper elaborates on this idea by extending the analogy to all three lever classes of simple machines. Expanding the analogy beyond Class 1 levers allows for more nuanced narratives of complex systems, acknowledging that, as with ontologies, the trade-off is between the level of detail and simplification. This paper will address how these analogies can provide more nuanced narratives and perspectives of the actors, leverage points, and interventions. Together, these lever classes provide a richer vocabulary for articulating diverse forms of systemic intervention, capturing differences between pushing, lifting, and accelerating change rather than treating all leverage as functionally equivalent. In doing so, this paper will elaborate on the theory of leverage points, broaden our understanding, and examine how narratives, interpretations, and imaginaries of complex systems are shaped by the underlying analogy.
Keywords: leverage, systemic change, systems theory, narratives, Wicked problems