Origins of the Systems Approach
Introduction to Methodology
EXPLAIN WHAT A METHODOLOGY IS AND HOW THEY RELATE TO PARADIGMS
Systems dynamics
Systems Dynamics (SD) uses some of the ideas of cybernetics to consider the behavior of systems as a whole in their environment. SD was developed by Jay Forrester in the 1960’s (Forrester 1961). He was interested in modeling the dynamic behavior of systems such as populations in cities, industrial supply chains.
SD is also used by Senge (Senge 1990) in his influential book The Fifth Discipline. This book advocates a system thinking approach to organization, and makes extensive use of SD notions of feedback and control.
Hard Systems Methodologies
Checkland (Checkland 1975) classifies hard system methodologies, which set out to select an efficient means to achieve a predefined end, under the following headings:
- System Analysis, the systematic appraisal of the costs and other implications of meeting a defined requirement in various ways.
- Systems Engineering, the set of activities that together lead to the creation of a complex man-made entity and/or the procedures and information flows associated with its operation.
Operational Research is also considered a hard system approach, closely related to the Systems Analysis approach developed by the Rand Corporation, in which solutions are known but the best combinations of these solutions must be found. There is some debate as to whether System Dynamics is a hard approach, which is used to assess the objective behavior of real situations. Many application of SD have focused on the system, however it can and has also be used as part of a soft approach including the modelling of subjective perceptions (Lane 2000).
Systems Engineering allows for the creation of new solution systems, based upon available technologies. This hard view of systems engineering as a solution focused approach applied to large, complex and technology focused solutions, is exemplified by (Jenkins 1969; Hall 1962) and early defense and aerospace standards.
NOTE: More recent developments in systems engineering have incorporated problem focused thinking and agile solution approaches. It is this view of SE that is described in this SEBoK.
All of these hard approaches use systems thinking to ensure complete and viable solutions are created and/or as part of the solution optimization process. These approaches are appropriate to unitary problems, but not when the problem situation or solution technologies are unclear.
Soft Systems and Problem Structured Methods
Problem Structuring Methods (PSM) are interactive and participatory approaches to assist groups of diverse participants to alleviate a complex, problematic situation of common interest. Typically the hardest element of the situation is framing the issues which constitute the problem (Minger and Resenhead 2004).
PSM use systems and systems thinking as an abstract framework for investigation, rather than a structure for creating solutions. Systems descriptions are used to understand the current situation and describe an idealized future. Interventions directly in the current organization to move towards the idea recognize that the assumptions and mental models of the participants are an important obstruction to change and that these differing views cannot be dismissed but must form part of the intervention approach.
Action Research is an approach first described by Kurt Lewin as a reflective process of progressive problem solving in which reflection on action leads to a deeper understanding of what is going on and to further investigation (Lewin 1958).
Peter Checkland’s action research program in the 1980‘s led to an Interpretative-based Systemic Theory which seeks to understand organizations by not only observing the actions of people, but by building understandings of the cultural context, intentions and perceptions of the individuals involved. This theory forms the basis of work by Checkland, Wilson and others in the development of soft systems methodology (SSM) (Checkland 1999; Wilson 2001). SSM formalizes the idea of a soft approach using systemic thinking to expose the issues in a problem situation and guide interventions to reduce them. SSM provides a framework of ideas and models to help guide participants through this systemic thinking.
Other PSM approaches include Interactive Planning Approach (Ackoff 1981); Social Systems Design (Churchman 1968), and Strategic Assumptions Surfacing and Testing (Mason and Mitroff 1981).
SSM and other soft approaches use systems thinking to ensure problem situations are fully explored and resolved. These approaches are appropriate to Pluralist (glossary) problems. Critics of SSM suggest that it does not consider the process of intervention, and in particular how differences in power between individuals and social groups impacts the effectiveness of interventions.
Critical systems thinking and Multimethodology
The development of a range of hard and soft methods naturally leads to the question of which method to apply when (Jackson 1989). critical systems thinking (CST) or Critical Management Science Jackson (Jackson 1985) attempts to deal with this question.
The word critical is used in two ways. Firstly, critical thinking considers the limits of knowledge and investigates the limits and assumptions of hard and soft systems, as discussed in the above sections. From this comes frameworks and meta-methodology for when to apply different methods such as Total Systems Intervention (TSI) (Flood and Jackson 1991).
The Multi-Methodology approach takes this aspect of critical thinking one stage further to recognize the value of combining techniques from several hard or soft methods as needed (Mingers and Gill 1997).
The second aspect of critical thinking considers the ethical, political and coercive dimension and the role of system thinking in society. The addition of the coercive dimension in Jackson's SOSM framework (Jackson 1990) (see Systems Thinking for more detail) adds the Postmodernist (glossary) dimension to CST. While these ideas sit at the extreme of system thinking as a tool for problem solving, Jackson (Jackson 2003) identifies the work of some authors who have included these ideas into their systems approach.
References
Citations
Ackoff, R.L. 1981. Creating the Corporate Future. New York, NY, USA: Wiley and Sons.
Checkland, P. 1975. "The Origins and Nature of “Hard” Systems Thinking." Journal of Applied Systems Analysis, 5(2): 99-110.
Checkland, P. 1999. Systems Thinking, Systems Practice, New York, NY, USA: John Wiley & Sons.
Churchman, C.W. 1968. The Systems Approach. New York, NY, USA: Dell Publishing.
Flood, R. and M. Jackson. 1991. Creative Problem Solving: Total Systems Intervention. London, UK: Wiley.
Forrester, J. 1961. Industrial Dynamics. Cambridge, MA, USA: MIT Press.
Hall, A.D. 1962. A Methodology for Systems Engineering. New York, NY, USA: Van Nostrand Reinhold.
Jackson, M. 1985. "Social Systems Theory and Practice: the Need for a Critical Approach." International Journal of General Systems. 10: 135-151.
Jackson, M. 1989. "Which Systems Methodology When? Initial Results from a Research Program." In: R Flood, M Jackson and P Keys (eds). Systems Prospects: the Next Ten Years of Systems Research. New York, NY, USA: Plenum.
Jackson, M. 2003. Systems Thinking: Creating Holisms for Managers. Chichester, UK: Wiley.
Jackson, M.C. and Keys, P. 1984. "Towards a System of Systems Methodologies." The Journal of the Operational Research Society. 35(6) (Jun. 1984): 473-486.
Jenkins, G.M. 1969. The Systems Approach. In Beishon, J. and G. Peters (eds.), Systems Behavior, 2nd ed. New York, NY, USA: Harper and Row.
Lane 2000 ???
Lewin, K. 1958. Group Decision and Social Change. New York, NY, USA: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. p. 201.
Mason, R.O. and I.I. Mitroff. 1981. Challenging Strategic Planning Assumptions: Theory, Case and Techniques. New York, NY, USA: Wiley and Sons.
Mingers, J. and A. Gill. 1997. Multimethodology: Theory and Practice of Combining Management Science Methodologies. Chichester, UK: Wiley.
Mingers, J. and J. Rosenhead. 2004. "Problem Structuring Methods in Action." European Journal of Operations Research. 152(3) (Feb. 2004): 530-554.
Senge, P. 1990. The Fifth Discipline: the Art and Practice of the Learning Organisation. London, UK: Century Books.
Wilson, B. 2001. Soft Systems Methodology—Conceptual Model Building and Its Contribution. New York, NY, USA: J.H.Wiley.
Primary References
Additional References