BCSSS

International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics

2nd Edition, as published by Charles François 2004 Presented by the Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science Vienna for public access.

About

The International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics was first edited and published by the system scientist Charles François in 1997. The online version that is provided here was based on the 2nd edition in 2004. It was uploaded and gifted to the center by ASC president Michael Lissack in 2019; the BCSSS purchased the rights for the re-publication of this volume in 200?. In 2018, the original editor expressed his wish to pass on the stewardship over the maintenance and further development of the encyclopedia to the Bertalanffy Center. In the future, the BCSSS seeks to further develop the encyclopedia by open collaboration within the systems sciences. Until the center has found and been able to implement an adequate technical solution for this, the static website is made accessible for the benefit of public scholarship and education.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z

DESIGN (Systems) 1)2)

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"The full scope of activities by which we attempt to construct systems that are adequate models of desirable man-made objects" (G. KLIR, 1993, p.30).

This implies that the "desirable artificial object can be constructed in such a way that relevant objective criteria are satisfied within given constraints" (Ibid).

The definitions of what is desirable and what are objective criteria are of course difficult to establish. Also, "objects" can be abstract: research projects, institutions, social systems modes of organization, etc.

This point is made by B. BANATHY "Systems design in the context of social systems is a future creating disciplined enquiry. People engage in design in order to devise a model of a system, based on their vision of what should be. They seek to create a design that has a "goodness or fit" with their larger society and with their own expectations…

"This approach is very different from the widely practiced traditional social planning, which reduces the problem to manageable pieces and seek solutions to each" (1992, p.548).

In accordance with BANATHY, ACKOFF writes: "To design a system is to develop a representation of a system that does not (yet) exist (1988, p.245).

Some important points should be noted:

- the design escapes from the dangers of ideological bias, if people, i.e. each and everyone of the "stakeholders" in the project effectively and personally participates in the design process.

- and if the whole area of possible situations is duly explored by the community of participants.

- experts are to be consulted when needed, but are not to be placed in the position of all powerful deciders.

Categories

  • 1) General information
  • 2) Methodology or model
  • 3) Epistemology, ontology and semantics
  • 4) Human sciences
  • 5) Discipline oriented

Publisher

Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science(2020).

To cite this page, please use the following information:

Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science (2020). Title of the entry. In Charles François (Ed.), International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics (2). Retrieved from www.systemspedia.org/[full/url]

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