As the world faces increasingly complex issues, there is a recognition in many disciplines that the existing paradigm of reductionist and linear thinking is not enough to address these issues. The agriculture, food, and natural resources fields are facing a host of issues that defy solutions in part because of the level of complexity. Systems thinking is an approach to thinking that involves looking at the whole system, its separate parts, and the interactions and connections between these parts. It has been suggested that systems thinking can be utilized to address complexity by allowing people to gain a deeper understanding of the issue they are exploring. Currently, research indicates that students are ill-prepared to tackle issues of complexity and struggle to understand nonlinear situations. For faculty to prepare the next generation to solve complex issues, a concentrated effort should be made to incorporate systems thinking into their teaching and research practices. The purpose of this study was to explore how agriculture, food, and natural resource (AFNR) faculty at a land grant institution develop a systems thinking paradigm. Two methodologies were used to explore this issue, phenomenological interviews and Q methodology. Results indicated that systems awareness, a precursor to systems thinking, develops through a combination of inborn characteristics and educational practices. Real-world experiences, transformational experiences, and social interactions move individuals from systems awareness to a systems thinking paradigm. Four systems thinking typologies, a) Hard, b) HARDsoft, c) SOFThard and d) Soft, underlie systems thinking paradigms. It is recommended that universities focus on providing their students with experiences that support the development of a systems thinking paradigm, intentionally approaching this method to promote systems thinking. It is recommended that secondary education instructors revise their pedagogical approaches to support system awareness development. Land grant universities should guide students through transformational experiences and provide them with real-world experiences and social interactions to promote the development of a systems thinking paradigm. Systems thinking typologies should be explored to determine if they can be used to promote interdisciplinary collaboration. Research should also explore how experiences contribute to the development of systems thinking typologies. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]