第八章 系统理论

第八章系统理论SystematicTheorySectionASystemsTheorySystemstheoryorgeneralsystemsorsystematicsisaninterdisciplinaryfieldwhichstudiessystemsasawhole.SystemstheorywasfoundedbyLudwigvonBertalanffy,WilliamRossAshbyandothersbetweenthe1940sandthe1970sonprinciplesfromphysics,biologyandengineeringandlatergrewintonumerousfieldsincludingphilosophy,sociology,organizationaltheory,management,psychotherapy(withinfamilysystemstherapy)andeconomicsamongothers.Cyberneticsisarelatedfield,sometimesconsideredasapartofsystemstheory.Systemstheoryfocusesoncomplexityandinterdependence.Ithasastrongphilosophicaldimension,becauseappliedtothehumanmindandsociety,itresultsinunusualperspectives.Inrecenttimescomplexsystemshasincreasinglybeenusedasasynonym.Systemstheoryhasalsobeendevelopedwithinsociology.ThemostnotablescientistinthisareaisNiklasLuhmann.Partofsystemstheory,systemdynamicsisamethodforunderstandingthedynamicbehaviorofcomplexsystems.Thebasisofthemethodistherecognitionthatthestructureofanysystem—themanycircular,interlocking,sometimestime——delayedrelationshipsamongitscomponents——isoftenjustasimportantindeterminingitsbehaviorastheindividualcomponentsthemselves.Examplesarechaostheoryandsocialdynamics.Inrecentyears,thefieldofsystemsthinkinghasbeendevelopedtoprovidetechniquesforstudyingsystemsinholisticwaystosupplementmoretraditionalreductionisticmethods.Inthismorerecenttradition,systemstheoryisconsideredbysomeasahumanisticcounterparttothenaturalsciences.SectionBSystemsTheory:theBasicsAsystemisanorganizedstructureofmatterandenergyexistinginadimensionoftimeandspace.Morethanacollectionofparts,onceorganized,thesystemhaspropertiesthatarenotpresentwhenthepartsareseparate.Allthingscanbeviewedassystemsand/oraspartofasystem,composedofsystemsandinterfacingwithothersystems.Systemsshowacircularandcyclicqualitytotheirfunctioning.Certainprinciplesapplytoallsystemswhileotherprinciplesareuniquetospecifictypesofsystems.Allareinterconnectedandaffectothersystemstovaryingdegrees.Allsystemsareconstantlychangingandareindynamicbalancewitheachother.Somebasicconceptsare:Asystemcontainsastructureoforganizedcomponentsofdifferenttypes.Nosystemexistsinisolation.Asysteminterfaceswithothersystemsthatmaybeofasimilarordifferenttype.Thefunctioningofasystemaffectsmultipleothersystemsandiseffectedbymultipleothersystems.Withthepossibleexceptionoftheuniverseandthesmallestcomponentofenergyormatter,allsystemsarecomponentsoflargersystemsandarecomposedofsmallersystems.Theconstantinteractionbetweensystemsresultsinaconstantstateofchange.Whenasystemremainsstablewhiletherearechangesinothersystems,itisinastateofbalance.Balanceisafundamentalconceptinnature.Timeisasignificantdimensionanddiffidenteffectsoccurovertime.Asystemexertsafeed——forwardeffectuponasecondsystem.Thiseffectmaybestimulatory(positive)orinhibitory(negative).Thesecondsystemmaythenexertafeedbackeffectonthefirstsystem.,whichmaybeeitherstimulatoryorinhibitory.Modulationoccurswhenthefeedbackorfeed一forwardisacomplexcombinationofdifferentpositiveandnegativeeffects.Systemhaveevolvedovertime.Whenwelookatthestructureofasystem,itmayappearillogical.Aswestudythehistoryofhowsystemshaveevolved,thecurrentandfuturestructureandfunctioningofsystemsarebetterunderstand.Thecombinationofasystemsandevolutionaryapproachallowustoorganizecurrentinformationinamuchmoreefficientmanner.Suchanapproachisequallyeffectiveforastrophysics,biology,psychology,sociologyetc.Toacquireavalidtheoryofhumanfunctioning,weneedtounderstandobservationsofhumanfunctioninginrelationtointernalandexternalsystems.Anunderstandingofsystemstheory,historyandthespecificsofanygivenSincesystemsareverycomplexandimpactedbyaninfinitenumberofothersystems,wecanneverattaintotalpredictabilityofeffects.Suchaviewisanopensystemsmodel.Incontrast,aclosedsystemmodelassumesthatafinitenumberofvariablesimpactanoutcome,therefore,outcomeistotallypredictable.Anopensystemmodelstillaffordsussomecapacitytopredict.Wecancreateahierarchyofthesystemvariablesthatappeartohavegreatestimpactuponanevent.Whenweorganizethesevariables,itimprovesourstatisticalcapacitytopredictalthoughweareneverabletoattaintotalpredictability.Everyeventisthecausedbyasequenceofotherevents.Thelastcausativeeventistheproximatecause,howevermoredistanteventsmaybemoresignificantthanthefinalproximatecause.Itishelpfultounderstandthesequenceofeventssinceeachstageisapotentialinterventionpoint.Aneventistheresultsofasequenceofeventsovertimebetweenorwithinsystemsandcausesmultipleeventsinothersystems.Acycleisarepetitivesequenceofevents.Cyclingmayretainbalanceasaresultofrepetitiveoscillations.Spiralingoccurswhenthereisasequentialeffectthatmagnifiestheinitialeffect.Growthisattainingahigherlevelofintegration.Agrowthspiral(orgrowthcycle)occurswhenspiralinghasanincreasinglyintegrativeeffects.Anegativespiral(orviciouscycle)occurswhenthespiralinghasanincreasinglydisintegrativeeffect.Hierarchycanbeusedtorankbydifferentcriteriasuchassize,space,timeorthesignificanceofcausesandeffects.Ifthoseinvolvedinproblemsolvingremainopen一mindedanduseanopen,multi一systemapproach,wecanbenefitfromothers’perspectivesandexpertise.Occasionally,however,someuseaclosedsystem,arigid,dogmaticapproachtocomplexissueswiththeviewthatabsolutetruthsandpredictabilityexist.Althoughcomforting,itisoverlysimplistic,preventingusfrombeingopentothefullcomplexityofanygivenproblem.NewWordsandExpressionscyberneticadj.控制论的holisticadj.整体的，全盘的humanisticadj.人文主义的illogicaln.不合逻辑，缺乏逻辑Interface n.(地质)分界面，接触面，(物，化)界面modulation“调制philosophy n.哲学，哲学体系，达观，冷静reductionistic adj.减少的，变形的，缩减的sociology^社会学ahierarchyof作为一个层级的，一系列的asequenceof 一连串的torankbydifferentcriteria 根据不同的标准评定ProfessionalVocabularyChaostheory混沌理论Complexityandinterdependence 复杂性和相互关联性Naturalscience自然科学Organizationaltheory 组织理论Sysyemdynamics 系统动力学Systemthinking 系统思考NotestotheTextPartofsystemstheory,systemdynamicsisamethodforunderstandingthedynamicbehaviorofcomplexsystem.Thebasisofthemethodoftherecognitionthatthestructureofanysystem themanycircular,interlocking,sometimestime-delayedrelationshipsamongitscomponents isoftenjustasimportantindeterminingitsbehaviorastheindividualcomponentsthemselves.Examplesarechaostheoryandsocialdynamics.系统动力学作为系统理论的一部分，是负责理解系统动态行为的一种方法。这种方法的基础是认识到任何系统的结构 这些构成元素有时是换环状的，有时是连锁的，又是延时的关系 在确定系统行为方面与组成系统的各个要素起同等重要的作用，例如混沌理论和社会动力学理论。Asystemisanorganizedstructureofmatterandenergyexistinginadimensionoftimeandspace.Morethanacollectionofparts,onceorganized,thesystemhaspropertiesthatarenotpresentwhenthepartsareseparate.一个系统是物质结构和现存的能量在时间和空间上的一个组织结构。不只是零件的一种收集，一旦组织起来，系统就具有各部件分散式所谓呈现的属性。夜里士多德早就说过“整体大于部分之和”。因此对系统的研究可以说从古代就已经开始了现代系统论的基本思想最初产生于20世纪20年代，是由奥地利生物学家贝朗塔非提出的。系统理论是研究系统的一般模式，结构和规律的学问，他研究各种系统的共同特征，用数学方法定量的描述其功能，寻求并确立是用于一切系统的原理、原则、和数学模型，是具有逻辑和数学性质的一门新兴科学。 SuggestedAUMtiessdExtendedMate