SYSTEMS ANALYSIS (Weaknesses in)
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(2) |
| ID | ◀ 3449 ▶ |
| Object type | General information, Epistemology, ontology or semantics |
Systems Analysis suffers from various weaknesses. Some are methodological, others are conceptual.
As to conceptual aspects R. TOMLINSON and I. KISS state: “One… assumption was that the ”hard“ part of the problem — which could be expressed in mathematical terms — could usefully be isolated from the human and organizational elements which could thus be eliminated from the analysis. Another false assumption was that implementation was an entirely separate activity from the analysis itself” (1984, p.IX).
From a methodological viewppoint, complex situations and nonlinear processes are many times excessively simplified in order to allow for their study within the framework of current mathematics. H. LINSTONE writes: “The analyst has been caught between two unpalatable choices: solving linear, irrelevant problems and struggling unsuccessfully with nonlinear relevant ones” (1989, p.309).
Obviously, using correct mathematics to solve a ill-stated problem leads to illusory forecasts and to a false security.