Maria Guta

Objective: The purpose of this study was to use Group Model Building (GMB), a participatory systems thinking method, to build a system structure map of the mobile crisis workforce pipeline in Illinois (IL). Additionally, this study sought to determine if GMB effectively incorporates systems thinking into the mental models of participants. Methods: 14 stakeholders from across the mobile crisis workforce pipeline in IL gathered for a 4.5 hour GMB session, during which various systems thinking activities were performed to elicit the mental models of the workforce from participants. System structure diagrams were face-validated by at least two participants after the session. Moreover, responses to initial and final problem framing surveys were qualitatively dual coded at the level of the primary problem, potential solutions, and the level of the socioecological model associated with the solutions. These codes were compared within participants to determine if participants’ mental models shifted following GMB. Results: The GMB session produced two system structure diagrams, one for each member of the mobile crisis response dyad, that were validated by participants. Furthermore, most participants exhibited change in at least one dimension measured in the problem framing activity. Conclusions: GMB was effectively used to map the mobile crisis workforce pipeline in IL, including multiple feedback loops and multi-layered composite variables. Additionally, the initial and final problem framing activity illustrated the expansion of participant mental models.