Title :
Systems theory, systems thinking
Author :
White, Stephanie M.
Author_Institution :
Comput. Sci. & Manage. Eng., Long Island Univ., Brookville, NY, USA
Abstract :
This paper discusses several important concepts in cybernetics, including holism, transformation, variety, feedback, control, autopoiesis, and nearly decomposable systems. The paper then examines and critiques three systems methodologies that are based on these concepts, and identifies their strengths and weaknesses. The approaches include Forrester´s System Dynamics, Checkland´s Soft Systems Methodology, and Beer´s Viable Systems Model. The last section of the paper discusses using multiple methodologies to understand a complex system, each of which has different capabilities and strengths to support analysis.
Keywords :
cybernetics; large-scale systems; system theory; Beer viable systems model; Checkland soft systems methodology; Forrester system dynamics; complex system; cybernetics; systems theory; systems thinking; Complexity theory; Control systems; Cybernetics; Monitoring; Organizations; Process control; Standards organizations; SSM; Soft Systems Methodology; System Dynamics; VSM; Viable Systems Model; cybernetics; multimethodology; problem analysis; systems analysis; systems theory; systems thinking;
Conference_Titel :
Systems Conference (SysCon), 2015 9th Annual IEEE International
Conference_Location :
Vancouver, BC
DOI :
10.1109/SYSCON.2015.7116787
