Overview
Our health is an outcome of a complex social-ecological system of variables including individual characteristics, social factors and environmental drivers. Such systems, by nature, incorporate elements that are uncertain, unpredictable and co-occurring at the same time across different levels and scales. In this unit, you will be introduced to the concept of complex adaptive systems and learn how to apply systems thinking to identify ways in which changes can be made to social and environmental determinants to influence health outcomes at community and population levels. You will also learn to use participatory methods to anticipate alternate futures as a tool for improving public health planning and building resilience.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
There are no requisites for this unit.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 1 - 2020
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Postgraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback – Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Unit evaluation
More case studies in teaching material
Consider introducing a greater number of case studies to illustrate concepts more clearly.
Feedback from UC reflection
Formative tutorial activities to develop systems thinking skills worked well.
Maintain these tutorial tasks, with further development according to the needs of each cohort.
Feedback from UC reflection
Assumptions of referencing and paraphrasing ability were overestimated
More practice in researching, paraphrasing and referencing be integrated into formative tutorials.
- Explain how complex adaptive systems thinking is used in public health to better understand entrenched health issues related to colonisation, population pressure, climate and environmental changes
- Distinguish between different scales and domains identified within complex adaptive systems thinking relevant to public health
- Apply complex adaptive systems thinking to public health issues relating to social and environmental determinants of health
- Analyse participatory and relational approaches to addressing complex adaptive system challenges in public health
- Reflect on and discuss the impact of social practices related to power, leadership and trust on public health from a complex adaptive systems perspective
- Determine how complex adaptive systems thinking informs practical and sustainable interventions across scales and domains using asset-based community development and disease prevention models
- Evaluate how complex adaptive systems thinking influences approaches to evidence and practice in public health.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | |
| 1 - Group Work - 50% | |||||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 50% | |||||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | |
| 1 - Knowledge | |||||||
| 2 - Communication | |||||||
| 3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills | |||||||
| 4 - Research | |||||||
| 5 - Self-management | |||||||
| 6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility | |||||||
| 7 - Leadership | |||||||
| 8 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||||||
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | |
| 1 - Group Work - 50% | ||||||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 50% | ||||||||
Textbooks
There are no required textbooks.
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Harvard (author-date)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
d.fanany@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Introduction to systems thinking
Chapter
Kim (1999) Introduction to Systems Thinking, Pegasus Communications
Events and Submissions/Topic
Tutorial
Module/Topic
Introduction to systems thinking, continued
Chapter
Peters (2014) The applications of systems thinking in health: Why use systems thinking? From Health Research Policy and Systems
Events and Submissions/Topic
Tutorial
Module/Topic
Complex adaptive systems
Chapter
Preiser, R Biggs, R, De Vos, A, and Folke, C (2018) Social-ecological systems as complex adaptive systems: organizing principles for advancing research methods and approaches. Ecology and Society vol. 23 no. 4 pp. 46-60.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Tutorial
Module/Topic
Complex adaptive systems, continued
Chapter
Meadows, D (1999) Leverage Points: Places to Intervene in a System, The Sustainability Institute
Events and Submissions/Topic
Tutorial
Module/Topic
Causal loops
Chapter
Paina, L (2014) Developing causal loop diagrams using Vensim. Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Baltimore, USA.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Tutorial
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Causal loops continued and advanced system interactions
Chapter
"Framework for Linkages Between Health, Environment, and Development", in Health in Sustainable Development Planning: The Role of Indicators, WHO, Geneva.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Group assignment presentations in tutorial classes
Group presentation Due: Week 6 Friday (24 Apr 2020) 11:45 pm AEST
Module/Topic
Systems thinking and social determinants
Chapter
Friel, S, Pescud, M, Malbon, E, Lee, A, Carter, R, Greenfield, J, Cobcroft, M, Potter, J, Rychetnik, L, Meertens, B (2017) Using systems science to understand the determinants of inequities in healthy eating. Plos One Vol. 12 No. 11.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Tutorial
Module/Topic
Systems thinking and social determinants, continued
Chapter
Walker, B (2014) Understanding Resilience and Reducing Future Vulnerabilities in Social-Ecological Systems, in J Boston, J Wanna, V Lipski, and J Pritchard (eds) Future-Proofing the State: Managing Risks, Responding to Crises and Building Resilience, ANU Press, Canberra.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Tutorial
Module/Topic
Systems thinking and public health interventions
Chapter
Zurcher, KA, Jensen, J, and Mansfield, A (2018) Using a Systems Approach to Achieve Impact and Sustain Results. Health Promotion Practice 19 (1_suppl), 15S-23S.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Tutorial
Module/Topic
Global systems and health
Chapter
Trochim, WM, Cabrera, DA, Milstein, B, Gallagher, RS, Leischow, SL (2011) Practical Challenges of Systems Thinking and Modelling in Public Health. American Journal of Public Health vol. 96 no. 3, pp. 528-546.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Tutorial
Module/Topic
Global systems and health, continued
Chapter
Atum, R and Menabde, N (2008) Health Systems and Systems Thinking, in R Coker, R Atun and M McKee (eds) Health Systems and the Challenge of Communicable Diseases: Experiences of Europe and Latin America, Open University Press, Berkshire, UK.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Tutorial
Module/Topic
Review
Chapter
None
Events and Submissions/Topic
Individual assignment due Friday June 5th
Case study analysis Due: Week 12 Friday (5 June 2020) 11:45 pm AEST
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1 Group Work
Early in the term you will be formed into groups. Your task is to analyse a public health issue and develop a causal loop model to illustrate the system that influences that issue. Each group will then prepare and present a 10 minute presentation for the rest of the class. Your presentation should:
- identify the public health issue
- explain the variables, driving forces and relationships relating to the public health issue
-
discuss ways in which changes to some of the variables can affect public health outcomes
Presentations will be held during regular tutorial sessions in Week 6.
Submissions
- Each group will need to submit a copy of their slides to Moodle.
-
Each student will take responsibility for one slide or section of the presentation and submit a paragraph of summary analysis of their section.
Students must obtain at least 45% of the available marks on each assignment to pass the subject. The minimum overall grade to pass this subject is 50%.
Week 6 Friday (24 Apr 2020) 11:45 pm AEST
- Relevance 30%
- Validity 40%
- Organisation 10%
- Presentation 5%
- Participation 15%
- Explain how complex adaptive systems thinking is used in public health to better understand entrenched health issues related to colonisation, population pressure, climate and environmental changes
- Distinguish between different scales and domains identified within complex adaptive systems thinking relevant to public health
- Apply complex adaptive systems thinking to public health issues relating to social and environmental determinants of health
- Analyse participatory and relational approaches to addressing complex adaptive system challenges in public health
- Reflect on and discuss the impact of social practices related to power, leadership and trust on public health from a complex adaptive systems perspective
- Determine how complex adaptive systems thinking informs practical and sustainable interventions across scales and domains using asset-based community development and disease prevention models
- Evaluate how complex adaptive systems thinking influences approaches to evidence and practice in public health.
- Knowledge
- Communication
- Cognitive, technical and creative skills
- Research
- Self-management
- Ethical and Professional Responsibility
- Leadership
2 Written Assessment
In the second half of the term, a case study drawn from a real-world scenario will be available on Moodle. This case study will include descriptive material, statistics, and other relevant information. You will use this material to perform an analysis of the systems interactions relevant to the case study. Specifically,
- identify different elements and relationships within the system
- explain how these elements and relationships impact upon public health outcomes
-
identify how specific elements and relationships in the system can be used to inform public policy/public health interventions
Students must obtain at least 45% of the available marks on each assignment to pass the subject. The minimum overall grade to pass this subject is 50%.
Week 12 Friday (5 June 2020) 11:45 pm AEST
- Relevance 30%
- Validity 40%
- Organisation 20%
- Presentation 10%
- Explain how complex adaptive systems thinking is used in public health to better understand entrenched health issues related to colonisation, population pressure, climate and environmental changes
- Distinguish between different scales and domains identified within complex adaptive systems thinking relevant to public health
- Apply complex adaptive systems thinking to public health issues relating to social and environmental determinants of health
- Analyse participatory and relational approaches to addressing complex adaptive system challenges in public health
- Reflect on and discuss the impact of social practices related to power, leadership and trust on public health from a complex adaptive systems perspective
- Determine how complex adaptive systems thinking informs practical and sustainable interventions across scales and domains using asset-based community development and disease prevention models
- Evaluate how complex adaptive systems thinking influences approaches to evidence and practice in public health.
- Knowledge
- Communication
- Cognitive, technical and creative skills
- Ethical and Professional Responsibility
- Leadership
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
