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Guidelines for Drawing Causal Loop Diagrams p:\...\materials\graphic\causlp.doc) PAGE 3 DATE \l 2/28/95 jb Guidelines for Drawing Causal Loop Diagrams Guideline Example Selecting Variable Names When choosing a variable name, use nouns. Avoid verbs and action phrases since the action is conveyed in the arrows. For example, “Costs” is better than “Increasing Costs,” since a decrease in Increasing Costs is confusing. The sign of the arrow (“s” for same or “o” for opposite) indicates whether Costs increase or decrease relative to the other variable. Litigation Costs Increasing Costs Variables should be something that can be measured—quantities that can vary over time. It does not make sense to say that “State of Mind” increases or decreases. A term like “Happiness,” on the other hand, can vary. Rewards Happiness State of Mind Choosing the “positive” sense of a variable name is preferable. An increase or decrease in “Growth” is clearer than an increase or decrease in “Contraction.” Demand Growth Contraction Loop Construction For every course of action included in the diagram, think of the possible unintended consequences as well as the expected outcomes. An increase in “Production Pressure” may increase “Production Output,” for example, but it may also increase “Stress” and decrease “Quality.”  SProduction OuputProduction Pressure SStress OQuality  All balancing loops are goal-seeking processes. Try to make goals driving the loop explicit. For example, Loop B1 may raise questions as to why increasing “Quality” would lead to a decrease in “Actions to Improve Quality.” By explicitly identifying “Desired Quality” as the goal in Loop B2, we see that at the “Gap in Quality” is really driving improvement actions.  Desired Quality S Distiguishing between perceived and actual states, such as “Perceived Quality” vs. “Actual Quality,” is important. Perceptions often lag reality, and mistaking the perceived status for current reality can