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.

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PROBLEM SET 2)3)4)

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The word "problem", after being used and abused widely all along time, has finally lost any clear meaning for most people. J. WARFIELD writes: "Extensive empirical evidence in working with complexity has made clear that the statement "let's begin by defining the problem" is the opening scene of an evolving linguistic nightmare". Whenever complexity is involved nearly all stakeholders in some situation of issue have different views about what the "problem" is. This is the recipe for confuse, or even incoherent debate, for muddled thinking and inefficient meandering management through "underconceptualization" as defined by J. WARFIELD.

In effect, the apparently clear concept of "the problem" totally obscures the fact that most problematic situations have multiple concurrent (and even synergetic) causes.

It tends to lead astray the would be "problem solvers" making them believe that, "finding "the" cause of the problem", it will be easy to "solve".

Warfield proposes to consider what he calls a "problem set", which would include as many as possible of the converging causes of different kinds, at different levels.

He also observes that any problem definition is a human construct, and as such, of course, depending on probably different and even divergent views of the stakeholders.

Unless a wide-open conversation is instaured with an appropriate technique, the socalled "problem" would probably be misunderstood and conflicting unresolved views would lead to underconceptualization, leading in turn to costly mistaken decisions.

→ Clanthink; Design (Generic); Group technique (Nominal); Groupthink; Solution

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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