ISSN:0731-7239    

DOI:10.1002/sres.3850060401

出版商:John Wiley&Sons, Ltd.    

年代:1989

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

AbstractA historical review and interpretation of the concepts of field theory, field, field of forces, and order parameter is provided. The historical meaning of these concepts in physics and in psychology is discussed, but emphasis is placed on applications to complex societal systems. Evidence for longitudinal attitude and expectancy change and for social learning is reviewed and interpreted. The mathematical formalization of the key concepts is discussed and representative equations presented. The evolution of the world system‐field over the next two decades is discussed and some likely sources of crises and reconfiguration pointed out. Policy implications of this evolution are note

ISSN:0731-7239    

DOI:10.1002/sres.3850060402

出版商:John Wiley&Sons, Ltd.    

年代:1989

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

AbstractToday we are standing at a critical juncture of societal evolution at which unprecedented human fulfillment as well as the annihilation of the human race are equally possible. However, we are not at the mercy of evolutionary forces but have the potential and the opportunity to give direction to societal evolution by design, provided we create a vision for the future of humankind and develop the will and the competence to realize that vision in all of our human systems, from the family on to the global system of humanity.First I present a brief overview of societal evolution and point out evolutionary gaps that are potential sources of our destruction. I will then suggest we have the power within us to steer societal evolution toward a hoped‐for future, provided we: (1) develop evolutionary consciousness, (2) create an evolutionary vision for societal development, (3) acquire evolutionary competence, and (4) apply our competence in guiding the evolution and development of our sociocultural and socio‐technical systems.In the third part, I elaborate on item (4) above and discuss: (a) a general model for evolutionary guidance, (b) the role of design in societal evolution, and (c) the process by which Evolutionary Guidance Systems can be created and used in societal developm

ISSN:0731-7239    

DOI:10.1002/sres.3850060403

出版商:John Wiley&Sons, Ltd.    

年代:1989

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

AbstractChurchman reminds us that information systems tend to be constrained by ‘the inability of the system and its users to have proper sensing devices with respect to the outside world’. The solution to this problem of ‘closure’ is of concern in the design of information systems. This paper explores the use of Living Systems Theory as a conceptual framework for information systems design.A formal characterization of the information processing subsystems of Living Systems Theory is presented. Miller's taxonomy of information coding mechanisms is extended to account for temporal, self‐referential, and environmental information. The extended formulation of Miller's theory is proposed as a theoretical framework for information syste

ISSN:0731-7239    

DOI:10.1002/sres.3850060404

出版商:John Wiley&Sons, Ltd.    

年代:1989

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

AbstractIn the following essay, the author argues that homelessness presents a challenge not only to society in general, but to social theory in particular, insofar as that theory remains bound to a 19th‐century conception of industrial society. Until social theorists are willing to problematize their own assumptions about social processes and associations, they will simply (and unwittingly) continue to reproduce ‘popular’ models of homelessness based upon unexamined notions of subjectivity and individualism. Finally, in this essay I am concerned with uncovering the interrelated set of problems associated with the homelessness ‘mess’ rather than an idealized design for dealin

ISSN:0731-7239    

DOI:10.1002/sres.3850060405

出版商:John Wiley&Sons, Ltd.    

年代:1989

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

AbstractC. West Churchman in ‘Churchman's Conversations’ inSystems Researchjournal defines systems research as ‘research into the ethics of human systems’ [2]. The methodological research problem with ethical or human systems questions is that there is no commonly agreed criterion of ultimate validity. Systems researchers who wish to abide by C. West Churchman's exhortations to investigate the ethics of our human systems will undoubtedly meet with resistance to their ideas from the scientific community on methodological grounds. To those researchers, this discussion of Michael Polanyi's arguments and observations may be relevant in putting such criticisms in a larger perspective. As an example, the dialectical tension between two ethical principles (tolerance and doubt) is argued to be a historical and philosophical foundation of the system of science. The case study of science is used to illustrate that unprovable ethics permeate even our most rationalized human systems. Paradoxically the study of ethics is somewhat beyond the range of science. Hence, a model for systems research into the ethics of human systems is proposed based on work by Joseph C

ISSN:0731-7239    

DOI:10.1002/sres.3850060406

出版商:John Wiley&Sons, Ltd.    

年代:1989

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

AbstractThe concept of rational action has usually been analyzed and explained in some theories stressing certain partial aspects of rational action, e.g. in sociological theories, in the domain of logic of action, etc. The presented paper emphasizes the role of systems approach distinguishing a specification of goals, basic functions of action, input prerequisites and achieved or achievable outputs. For any rational action there is typical what we can denote as ‘knowledge‐ladenness’ and ‘value‐laden‐ness’. The knowledge prerequisites include various domains of knowledge, especially ‘know‐what’, ‘know‐how’ and ‘know‐why’. The systems approach is useful in connection with automation problems and ‘delegation’ problems (i.e. processes of transmitting some components of human actions to computerized systems. Solving the delegation problems we have to evaluate not only the final results but also all

ISSN:0731-7239    

DOI:10.1002/sres.3850060407

出版商:John Wiley&Sons, Ltd.    

年代:1989

数据来源: WILEY

ISSN:0731-7239    

DOI:10.1002/sres.3850060408

出版商:John Wiley&Sons, Ltd.    

年代:1989

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

AbstractProlog is a relatively new computer programming language, developed for Artificial Intelligence, that provides automatic inference from given facts and rules. Prolog is of interest to the Systems community, since it is suited to modeling complex qualitative relationships involving uncertainty, continual change, and self‐modification. This article includes a description of Prolog, some of its present applications, its relevance to Systems research, a brief tutorial, and comparative reviews of seven books on the languag

ISSN:0731-7239    

DOI:10.1002/sres.3850060409

出版商:John Wiley&Sons, Ltd.    

年代:1989

数据来源: WILEY

ISSN:0731-7239    

DOI:10.1002/sres.3850060410

出版商:John Wiley&Sons, Ltd.    

年代:1989

数据来源: WILEY