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Fixes that Fail: A system archetype for examining racialized structures within the food system
Elizabeth Benninger1, Gwendolyn Donley1, Megan Schmidt-Sane1
1Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA.
American Journal of Community Psychology
|August 1, 2021
Summary
This study uses systems thinking and the "Fixes that Fail" archetype to show how issues like poverty and incarceration create food system inequity in urban communities. Understanding these systemic links can help transform food access.
Area of Science:
- Community Health
- Systems Science
- Food Systems Analysis
Background:
- Community health is influenced by access to healthy food, which is often inequitable.
- Food system inequities are rooted in structural and systemic challenges.
- Systems thinking offers a framework to understand the complexity of food systems.
Purpose of the Study:
- To demonstrate how systems thinking can enhance understanding of food system complexity.
- To illustrate the use of system archetypes as analytical tools for community issues.
- To examine how systemic challenges like incarceration and poverty contribute to food system inequity in urban settings.
Main Methods:
- Utilized semi-structured interviews with 22 community stakeholders.
- Applied the "Fixes that Fail" system archetype to analyze qualitative data.
- Mapped interview data to the archetype to identify systemic interdependencies.
Main Results:
- The "Fixes that Fail" archetype illuminated how incarceration and poverty structure food system inequity.
- This archetype served as a narrative tool to reveal the complexity of the food system.
- Interdependencies between the food system and racialized systems (criminal justice, labor markets) were unveiled.
Conclusions:
- Systems thinking, particularly system archetypes, provides valuable insights into complex community issues.
- The "Fixes that Fail" archetype effectively highlights the production of inequity through racialized forces.
- This approach offers a pathway for generating narratives on systemic complexity and identifying opportunities for transformation in urban food systems.
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