Amplifying feedback cycles drive change. They can be vicious cycles driving (1) climate change, or (2) a personal problem like drug addiction. They can also be virtuous cycles driving (3) the evolution of life on earth, or (4) promoting constructive change in a person’s life. Here is one vicious cycle driving climate change.

Rising global temperatures		Less ice cover
The Earth absorbs more of the sun’s heat		Less reflection of sunlight back into outer-space

Unfortunately, people are often unaware of these dynamics that shape their lives, societies, and environment.

“Structures [feedback cycles] of which we are unaware hold us prisoner. Conversely, learning to see the structures within which we operate begins a process of freeing ourselves from previously unseen forces and ultimately mastering the ability to work with and change them.” (Senge, 1992, p 94)

This website explores amplifying feedback across three domains, and each has an overview page:

• Systems theory and amplifying feedback cycles.
• Climate change and action to reduce it.
• Human behaviour: A self-organising network of interacting feedback cycles organises human behaviour. Vicious cycles often drive problems, while virtuous cycles can help resolve them. Counsellors can assist their clients by identifying and explaining these dynamics.

Long-established “systems theory” recognises amplifying feedback as the fundamental dynamic through which a system can transform itself: ecosystems, minds, and societies – any complex system. This insight gave this website its name: Feedback Reigns.

One vicious cycle driving global heating

Again, consider the vicious cycle shown above. It is one of the vicious cycles that is escalating global heating.

Rising global temperatures		Less ice cover
The Earth absorbs more of the sun’s heat		Less reflection of sunlight back into outer-space

When this cycle is dominant: (1) rising global temperatures reduce ice cover, (2) with less ice, the Earth reflects less sunlight back into outer-space, and (3) the planet absorbs more solar energy, so (4) temperatures rise further.

The more heating we have, the more heating we will get. It’s a dangerous self-reinforcing cycle. Unfortunately, there are many of these vicious cycles driving climate change, bringing more extreme heat, fires, and floods. We need radical climate action before these cycles become unstoppable. They threaten rapid, irreversible change and the end of life as we know it on planet Earth.

See The Critical Danger: Climate change’s vicious cycles.

One vicious cycle driving a personal problem

Self-reinforcing feedback cycles can drive change in humans, including the development of problems and recovery from problems. Here’s an example, based on my ten years working as a problem gambling counsellor.

During a counselling session with my client Zed, I identified a vicious cycle that was a revelation to him. (This is a fictional client.)

You gamble more to feel respected – that’s when you are winning.		Damage: You lose more money & respect
	You need more respect.

During the session, we built a diagram of key parts of his story. The vicious cycle emerged from this diagram, and I summed it up, saying to him, “There is a cycle here: (1) the more you gamble to feel respected, while on winning streaks, (2) the more money you lose and the less respect you get at home and at work, so (3) the more you need respect, and (4) this throws you back to gamble more. This vicious cycle is making your life very difficult.”

The method for generating and using the cyclic intervention is critical: the page describing the example counselling session details this.

This is a simple and effective method that I often used. The approach is supported by an understanding of human behaviour in terms of feedback cycles, which emerged from my work and from the integration of aspects of recognised counselling methods.

This offers counsellors a simple and effective way to identify and explain these vicious cycles to clients in counselling sessions.

Australia can be a renewable energy superpower.

There are advantages for Australia in taking action to limit climate change.

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Australia glows orange on this map, indicating that we have strong wind and solar resources relative to most developed countries. We also have abundant minerals, like iron ore and lithium. So, Australia can take action on climate change and become a renewable energy superpower. This would be a win for our climate, industry, jobs, and prosperity. See Australia: A Renewable Energy Superpower

Image Source: The global map of wind and solar potential is from the “Beyond Zero Emissions” 2015 publication “Renewable Energy Superpower”.

The massive cost of importing fossil fuels.

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Australia spends $61 billion annually on fossil fuel imports.

Another benefit of taking climate action is that, as Australia electrifies, we will be able to reduce this enormous flow of money from Australia to countries such as Russia. This would also make our energy supply more secure, as we would no longer rely on easily disrupted fossil fuel imports. We only have a few weeks of stored fossil fuel in Australia.

A vicious cycle driving right-wing populism

Another benefit of climate action is that it will reduce mass displacement and migration. If we do not prevent increased mass migration, another vicious cycle could accelerate climate change.

Higher global temperatures		More extreme weather
Less climate action		More conflict over land, water, food & housing
More right-wing populism		More migration

If this cycle were dominant, (1) higher temperatures would produce (2) more extreme weather, which would produce (3) more conflict over land, water, food, and houseing, which would lead to (4) more migation, which would lead to (5) more right-wing populism, which would lead to (6) less climate action, which would lead to (7) even higher temperatures.

Climate action to reduce migration and right-wing populism.

Climate change evidence

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See Evidence of human-caused climate change.

Convergence: The basis for scientific confidence

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See Convergence: The Basis for Scientific Confidence.

Site Author: Andrew Gunner

See my background.

Site Overview (Map)

See the overview pages for the three main topics covered by this site.

Updated: 1 March 2026