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Autonomy in a Social Setting

A system must be able to deal with the variety thrown at it

Harish Jose
Tue, 07/02/2024 - 12:03
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I have always been interested in the idea of autonomy in a social setting. In this article, I’m looking at autonomy in a social setting—such as an organization—from a cybernetics viewpoint. I’ll lean on the ideas of Heinz von Foerster and Stafford Beer.

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Von Foerster came up with the notion of first-order and second-order cybernetics. First-order cybernetics is the study of observed systems; second-order cybernetics is the study of observing systems. Von Foerster would say that ethics can’t be articulated. He was influenced by the writings of his family friend and distant relative, Ludwig Wittgenstein. All systems are descriptions of some phenomenon and require a describer. All systems are human systems.

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Comments

Submitted by Grace Duffy on Tue, 07/02/2024 - 09:45

Recursive nature of systems

Harish explains the interconnectedness of systems well in this piece. Sustaining a community is not only a nested concept like the Russian Dolls. It is a Mobius strip. The sequence folds back in on itself through feedback and sustainability. The interface between governance and humans is a vibrant interplay of standards and variability. The figure Harish presents appears to be one way. It is not. The figure can be graphed onto a Mobius strip where the macro level 12 can either be the beginning or the end of the Mobius strip. Or the sequence can begin anywhere along the continuum. The critical relationship is the sequence. One level builds and learns from the other. Harish shows the arrows on the right side providing feedback up the levels. This feedback is critical for sustainability and continuous improvement. It does not matter which level of community you enter the sequence. Once the community is established, the give and take of the autonomous elements work together to make ethical choices and sustain the system. Chaos begins when an aspect seeks to remove choice or disrupts the system through unethical behavior. Autonomy must be balanced with responsibility and accountability. That is the value of ethics. Our books, Validating a Best Practice (Van Nuland and Duffy), and Human-Centered Lean Six Sigma (Le and Duffy) address the integration of systems and humans in more detail. 

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