THE WORK PROGRAM OF COMPLEXITY

John N. Warfield, Ph. D.

Electrical Engineering, Purdue, 1952.

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THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED

• The Meaning of “Complexity”: Two Analogies

• Two Domains for the World of Engineering

• Scientific Legacies for the Domains: Calculus and Dynamics of

Motion versus Logic & Behavior

• The Work Program of Complexity: Processes and Infrastructure

• Relevant Literature

• Epilog (optional) Thought Leaders on Behavioral Pathologies

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WATER

OXYGEN HYDROGEN

INCLUSION STRUCTURE #1

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AIR

OXYGEN NITROGEN

INCLUSION STRUCTURE #2

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DOMAIN OF ENGINEERING

DOMAIN OF NORMALITY

DOMAIN OF COMPLEXITY

INCLUSION STRUCTURE #3

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MY PRIMARY ASSUMPTION

The world of engineering can be partitioned into two domains:

• The Domain of Normality

• The Domain of Complexity

Most engineering takes place in the Domain of Normality, but today’s systems engineering has moved into the Domain of Complexity.

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THE DOMAIN OF NORMALITY BENEFITSFROM MANY OF ITS COMPONENTS:

• 4 Centuries of Science and Mathematics• 2 to 3 Centuries of Engineering Experience• Great cooperation in engineering societies

Standards, Literature, Methodology

• A globally-accepted language

• Highly-developed algorithms and processes

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THE DOMAIN OF NORMALITY CAN BEENTERED FROM THE DOMAIN OF

COMPLEXITY, BUT NOT TOO SOON!!!

THE WORK PROGRAM OF COMPLEXITY LIGHTS THE WAY TO THE DOMAIN OF NORMALITY, BY STRUCTURING A PROBLEMATIC SITUATION SO THAT IT CAN BE DEALT WITH IN FAMILIAR WAYS.

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THE DOMAIN OF COMPLEXITY CAN BENEFIT GREATLY FROM TWO LEGACIES:

• 2,300 years of the study of formal logic

• One century of the study of human behavioral pathologies

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BEFORE GENERAL SCIENTIFIC FINDINGS

CAN BE WELL-USED, THEY MUST BE

PARTICULARIZED TO THE SPECIFIC

PROBLEMATIC SITUATION THAT IS

ENCOUNTERED. THIS IS TRUE BOTH IN

THE DOMAIN OF NORMALITY AND THE

DOMAIN OF COMPLEXITY.

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THE FINDINGS FROM THE PHYSICALSCIENCES HAVE REPEATEDLY BEEN ADAPTED TO PARTICULAR ENGINEERING SITUATIONS. BUT THE FINDINGS ABOUT FORMAL LOGIC AND HUMAN BEHAVIORAL PATHOLOGIES ARE SELDOM ADAPTED TO PROBLEMATIC SITUATIONS IN THE DOMAIN OF COMPLEXITY. IT IS MY LIFETIME GOAL TO CHANGE THAT.

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THE PROGRAM FOR THAT CHANGE IS WHAT I CALL THE WORK PROGRAM OF COMPLEXITY (WPOC).

IT CONSISTS OF JUST TWO MAIN PARTS:

• DISCOVERY (of the underlying logic)

• RESOLUTION (of complexity)

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DISCOVERY HAS TWO PARTS:

• DESCRIPTION

• DIAGNOSIS

In carrying out these two parts, formal logic and behavioral pathologies are taken into account in preparing for a system design.

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DESCRIPTION IS DONE IN A GROUP PROCESS.

DIAGNOSIS IS DONE BY AN EXPERIENCED INDIVIDUAL PROFESSIONAL, WHO ITERATES WITH THE GROUP UNTIL THE DESCRIPTION IS FULLY UNDERSTOOD AND ACCEPTED.

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RESOLUTION (of complexity) INVOLVESTWO PARTS ALSO:

• DESIGN

• IMPLEMENTATION (of the design)

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DESIGN IS DONE IN A GROUP PROCESS.

IMPLEMENTATION IS CARRIED OUT BY WHATEVER MEANS THE DESIGN SPECIFIES.

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THE DESIGN GROUP IS WELL-INFORMED

BY THE PRODUCTS OF DISCOVERY,

including the Diagnosis Report.

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IMPLEMENTATION MAY INVOLVE MANYPEOPLE WHO WERE NOT INVOLVED IN THE DISCOVERY AND DESIGN ACTIVITIES.

INFRASTRUCTURE OF TWO TYPES IS NEEDED TO SUPPORT THE WPOC. ONE TYPE SUPPORTS THE GROUP WORK. THE OTHER SUPPORTS THE EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM NEEDED TO GET SUITABLE IMPLEMENTATION.

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DESIGNS OF THE TWO TYPES OF INFRA-STRUCTURE HAVE BEEN PUBLISHED AND TESTED.

THE FIRST TYPE IS CALLED A “SITUATION ROOM” DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY TO SUPPORT THE WPOC.

THE SECOND TYPE IS CALLED A “CORPORATE OBSERVATORIUM”.

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THE SITUATION ROOM IS DESIGNED TOSUPPORT THE GROUP WORK.

THE CORPORATE OBSERVATORIUM IS DESIGNED TO SERVE THE NEEDS OF EDUCATION OF IMPLEMENTERS WHO WERE NOT PART OF THE GROUP WORK. IMPLEMENTERS MAY INCLUDE HIGHER-LEVEL MANAGERS AS WELL AS TECHNICIANS, FOR EXAMPLE.

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ALL OF THE FOREGOING MATERIAL HASBEEN PUBLISHED IN SEVERAL BOOKS AND NUMEROUS TECHNICAL PAPERS.

THE WPOC HAS BEEN TESTED AROUND THE WORLD IN DIVERSE SITUATIONS.

THE PRIMARY ENGINEERING APPLICATIONS HAVE OCCURRED IN FORD MOTOR COMPANY AND IN THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE.

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THE ALGORITHMS FOR STRUCTURING PROBLEMATIC SITUATIONS WERE PUBLISHED IN 1976 AS FOLLOWS:

John N. Warfield, SOCIETAL SYSTEMS: PLANNING, POLICY, AND COMPLEXITY,Wiley Interscience (in the Harold Chestnut Systems Engineering Series).

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THE SCIENCE OF GENERIC DESIGN (FORUSE WITH SOCIOTECHNICAL SYSTEMS) WAS PUBLISHED IN 1990, WITH THE SECOND EDITION IN 1994 AS FOLLOWS:

John N. Warfield, A SCIENCE OF GENERIC DESIGN: MANAGING COMPLEXITY THROUGH SYSTEM DESIGN, Ames, IA: The Iowa State University Press

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THE PROCESS FOR CARRYING OUTTHE WORK PROGRAM OF COMPLEXITY WAS DESCRIBED IN 1994, AND MORE THAN A HUNDRED APPLICATIONS TABULATED IN

JOHN N. WARFIELD AND A. ROXANA CARDENAS, A HANDBOOK OF INTERACTIVE MANAGEMENT, AMES, IA: THE IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY PRESS.

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THE OVERVIEW OF THE SCIENTIFICBASIS FOR ALL OF THIS WORK WAS PUBLISHED IN 2,002, INCLUDING DETAILS OF A VARIETY OF APPLICATIONS IN

John N. Warfield, UNDERSTANDING COMPLEXITY: THOUGHT & BEHAVIORPalm Harbor, FL: AJAR Publishing Co.

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THE ESSENTIAL MATHEMATICS, FIRSTPUBLISHED IN 1976, HAVE BEEN OR SOON WILL BE REPUBLISHED IN 2003 in

John N. Warfield, THE MATHEMATICS OF STRUCTURE, Palm Harbor, FL: AJAR Publishing Company.

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THE SOFTWARE PACKAGE THAT SUPPORTSTHIS WORK IS A 1997 WINDOWS VERSION, WHICH HAS A HIGH-QUALITY USER GUIDE WRITTEN BY PROFESSOR BEN BROOME OF THE HUGH DOWNS SCHOOLOF HUMAN COMMUNICATION AT THE ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY, TEMPE.

THIS VERSION WAS PLACED IN SERVICE IN 1997 BY FORD MOTOR COMPANY AND BY THE DEFENSE SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT COLLEGE.

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AN INTEGRATED PRESENTATION OFTHE FOREGOING IN TERMS OF THE SCIENCE BASE IS OFFERED IN THE PAPER PUBLISHED IN 2003 IN SYSTEMS RESEARCH AND BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE (A Wiley Journal):

John N. Warfield, “A PROPOSAL FOR SYSTEMS SCIENCE”.For a reprint, email jnwarfield@aol.com

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THOUGHT LEADERS ON INDIVIDUAL BEHAVIORAL PATHOLOGIES

GEORGE A. MILLER 1920-*****

MICHEL FOUCAULT 1926-1984

ROBERT F. BALES 1916-*****

KEN BOULDING 1910-1994

HERBERT A. SIMON 1916-2001 SIR GEOFFREY VICKERS

1894-1982

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GRAHAM ALLISON 1940-****

FRIEDRICH HAYEK 1899-1992

MICHEL FOUCAULT

1926-1984

IANNIS KAPELOUZOS*****-*****

THOUGHT LEADERS ON GROUP BEHAVIORAL PATHOLOGIES

A. H. VAN DE VEN*****-*****

ANDRE DELBECQ1936-*****

IRVING JANIS *****-***** HAROLD LASSWELL

1902-1978

NO PHOTO AVAILABLE

BRUCE TUCKMAN 1938-*****

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THOUGHT LEADERS ON ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR PATHOLOGIES

CHRIS ARGYRIS *****-*****

KURT LEWIN 1890-1847

KEN BOULDING 1910-1994

NO PHOTO AVAILABLE

ANTHONY DOWNS 1930-*****

HAROLD LASSWELL 1902-1978

JAMES G. MARCH *****-***** H. A. SIMON

1916-2001

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