STEERING
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(2) |
| ID | ◀ 3193 ▶ |
| Object type | General information, Methodology or model |
The guidance of a system.
Steering is a not too clearly understood cybernetic concept, even if it corresponds to the very original name of cybernetics.(Kybernetes = Helmsman).
In engineering, steering devices are constructed ad hoc. However, many of them must still be piloted.
In human systems too (enterprises, organizations, nations), in principle, steering implies the presence of a helmsman and some power device or subsystem to help him in his task.
Steering also implies willful control of the system by the helmsman, with the purposeful intention to drive it toward some goal. It is a “control for” case.
There are however some difficult question marks:
- Are systems really governable? And, if so, to what extent?
- Why and how does a helmsman reach a power position?
- How does a helmsman acquire the basic concepts and methods he applies in his steering action?
- Why and how do the power devices become established (or overthrown)?
There are until now no clear answers to these questions and the most recent changes in socio-political systems (f. ex. the rise and fall of the so-called Sovietic system), while profusely, described, are still widely unexplained in depth.