GENERALIST (Role of the)
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(1) |
| ID | ◀ 1413 ▶ |
| Object type | General information, Human sciences |
Already in l955, L.von BERTALANFFY quoted a number of authors who, in l949, emphasized the necessity to count with generalists and defined their role as follows: “Any research group needs a generalist, whether it is an institutional group in a university or a foundation, or an industrial group. In an engineering group, the generalist would naturally be concerned with system problems. These problems arise whenever parts are made into a balanced whole” (H. BODE et al, 1949).
R. RODRIGUEZ DELGADO states: “The intervention of generalists is necessary, specially in the first orientation stage. They do not need to be ”teachers“ in the common sense of the word, but ”resource persons“ that could advice about the materials in which systemic concepts are better expressed, explain difficult subjects, and act as ”conciliators“ trying to find complementarity in concepts apparently opposed. They should try to unveil the causes of ”real“ conflicts of interests and ideas… It is convenient to train the learners for finding, by themselves common sets of interlinked general concepts related to natural and human sciences, demonstrating their unity and diversity” (1990, p.8).
A generalist is also normally specialized in some field. But he should have a good overall understanding of the various disciplines refering to aspects influencing the whole to which his/her research is centered (or influencing the significant environment of this whole). In order to obtain such a reference viewpoint, the generalist needs a language of second order or meta-models giving her/him the potential to understand concepts and models used in other disciplines.
The numerous global man-made disasters which occured before and since the emergence of systemics fully justify these views, which are also applicable to the satisfactory operation of economic, social and political institutions as well as to their complex interrelations.