From: The Comparison among the Schools of Science of Complexity
by Xuefeng Song & John N. Warfield, I've been told
the paper is published on the net on a Chinese site, in English but I couldn't
find the URL.
(2) The Philosophy of Thought of SBSC (Structure Based Science
of Complexity) The philosophy of thought of SBSC
was derived from the integrated understanding of the thoughts about behavioral
pathologies: individual, group and organization. The behavioral pathologies
are as follows.
(a). The Individual behavioral pathologies
(snip)
can be summarized and integrated as follows:
- A limitation on the amount of information that can be managed in short term memory;
- The choice of inappropriate categories, inadequate to reflect the membership in those categories;
- Inability to take part in group activity without disrupting it by exercise of emotional negatives;
- Mindless acceptance of received doctrine which biases an inquiry at its outset;
- Inherent inability to allocate importance across members of a large set in the light of relative saliency;
- Downgrading of the language of science to suit individual preferences;
- Inadequate use of external learning adjuncts to compensate for mental limitations;
- Disinterest in the origins and trajectories of bodies of belief;
- Uncritical propagation of dysfunctional received doctrine;
- Lack of self-recognition of physiologically-based mental limitations when pressing personal beliefs on others;
- Excessive emphasis upon products of physical science when working with human systems;
- Self-generated action frameworks that may incorporate combinations of the foregoing.
Each member of a group that is intended to strive to resolve
complexity brings to the group that framework already developed,
incorporating a variety of Killer Assumptions and each individual's
own behavioral pathologies. As a result, new pathologies may be encountered
that arise from the group.
Again the discoveries of thought leaders are invoked to describe group
behavioral pathologies. They can be summarized and integrated as follows:
(b). Group pathologies include Groupthink
(Janis, 1982), Clanthink (Warfield and Teigen, 1993), Spreadthink
(Warfield, 1995), and Underconceptualization. To the cumulative
effect of those, one now escalates the difficulties in group work. The
group is susceptible both to groupthink and to clanthink, either or both
threatening the quality of the group product. Add to that the common
practice of failing to understand the importance of the working infrastructure
when struggling with complexity, and there is already a tower of reasons
to suppose that the group product cannot help resolve complexity. Recognizing
further that the language which is needed to portray complexity in any
particular situation cannot be ad hoc but must carefully evolve from belief
about that situation as the group proceeds, and that must portray structural
non-linearity; the work of ordinary groups, no matter how prominent and
no matter how frequently occurring, can hardly be taken seriously by anyone
who is seeking a modicum of understanding.
(c). Organizational behavior pathologies
were
discovered by the following thought leaders: Argyris (1982), Anthony Downs
(1966, 1994), Harold Dwight Lasswell (1960, 1963, 1971), and Herbert A.
Simon (1955).
The resolution of complexity relies on
an integrated understanding of these pathologies. A careful design
of a system for resolving complexity is required to be responsive to the
collective pathologies, and to find ways to circumvent their mutually reinforcing
efforts. The SBSC is just set up on that.
=========================================================
I find the translation from Chinese into English both interesting and revealing. I often find in working with the poetry in other languages that the translation back into English gives me another view. It would be wonderful if we could all find a way to enjoy the different ways of looking at problems together. Life is too short.
Regards
REH
"Robert E. Bowd" wrote:
I think Ray is quite right about the need to critically assess the current moment in
medical work.Regards,
Bob Bowd"Ray E. Harrell" wrote:
> Hi Arthur,
>
> I'm not in medicine but it seems that this could evolve into a discussion on the
> future of medical work since there seems to be several models being discussed
> here. The problem is whether one can objectively discuss the psyche and the
> drugs one is taking, or not taking. It seems to be a very loaded topic given
> the state of the politics of medical programs. The fragmentary approach that
> is so much a part of standard medical practice seems to grow not out of the need
> to heal so much as the need to evolve a workable "economic medicine of scale."
>
> As I've explored the same issue in the Arts it has become so incredibly complex
> that I could spend all of my time just researching and trying to understand the
> past, present and future possibilities of the thing. The arts are the soul and
> the medicine is the body. I wonder if what we are seeing here is a breakdown in
> the public health system caused by the same economic presumptions that have
> eaten the soul away over the last 100 years in the West.
>
> REH
>
> [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
>
> > Could I gently intervene here and note that we are getting well off topic.
> > For what its worth I too have seasonal moods with the coming and going of
> > the sun. And I have found mellatonin and St. John's Wort to be of use at
> > that time.
> >
> > So as Pres. Clinton says " I feel your pain", but after all we should be
> > carrying on much of this important conversation on medication off the FW
> > list and on a one to one basis.
> >
> > thanx
> >
> > Arthur Cordell
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
> > Sent: August 25, 2000 9:52 AM
> > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> > Subject: Re: Medications
> >
> > Ed Weick replied:
> > > This assumes that we know what the "causes" are. I know people who are
> > well
> > > off, productive and have no cause to get depressed, but they still do.
> > > There is not much you would want to add to or remove from their lives.
> >
> > How superficial. The medical literature has identified quite a few causes,
> > but Joe Sixpack and his "practicioner" aren't aware of them or deny them
> > (the latter because treating symptoms keeps him in business). One of the
> > main causes is mercury, the main supply of which comes from dental amalgam
> > [14]. FYI I'm attaching a few references on the topic.
> >
> > No silly flames from the vested interests, please...
> > Chris
> >
> > References: Mercury and mental health
> >
> > [1] Dr. P.Krauss & M.Deyhle, "Field Study on the Mercury Content of Saliva",
> > University of Tübingen (Germany), 1997.
> > Full text at http://www.uni-tuebingen.de/KRAUSS/amalgam.html
> > This study with 18,000 people found that the WHO limit for mercury
> > intake was exceeded in 30% of the participants.
> >
> > [2] Behavioral toxicology.
> > Needleman HL
> > Environ Health Perspect 1995 Sep;103 Suppl 6:77-9
> >
> > [3] Behavioral toxicology: evaluating cognitive functions.
> > Smith PJ
> > Neurobehav Toxicol Teratol 1985 Jul-Aug;7(4):345-50
> >
> > [4] Specificity of psychiatric manifestations in relation to
> > neurotoxic chemicals.
> > Ross WD, Sholiton MC
> > Acta Psychiatr Scand Suppl 1983;303:100-4
> >
> > [5] Psychological effects of low exposure to mercury vapor.
> > Liang YX et al.
> > Environmental Med Research, 60(2): 320-327, 1993
> >
> > [6] Occupational and environmental toxicology of mercury and its compounds.
> > Satoh H
> > Ind Health 2000 Apr;38(2):153-64
> >
> > [7] Neurobehavioral effects from exposure to dental amalgam.
> > Echeverria D et al.
> > FASEB J, Aug 1998, 12(11):971-980
> >
> > [8] The relationship between mercury from dental amalgam and mental health.
> > Siblerud RL
> > Am J Psychother 1989 Oct;43(4):575-87
> >
> > [9] A comparison of mental health of multiple sclerosis patients with
> > silver/mercury dental fillings and those with fillings removed.
> > Siblerud RL
> > Psychol Rep 1992 Jun;70(3 Pt 2):1139-51
> >
> > [10] Chronic elemental mercury intoxication: neuropsychological
> > follow-up case study.
> > Hua MS, Huang CC, Yang YJ
> > Brain Inj 1996 May;10(5):377-84
> >
> > [11] Neurobehavioral effects from exposure to dental amalgam Hg(o):
> > new distinctions between recent exposure and Hg body burden.
> > Echeverria D, Aposhian HV et al.
> > FASEB J 1998 Aug;12(11):971-80
> >
> > [12] Chronic illness in association with dental amalgam.
> > Godfrey ME
> > J Adv Med 3:247-255, 1990
> >
> > [13] Defensive characteristics in individuals with amalgam illness.
> > Henningsson M et al.
> > Acta Odont Scand 54(3): 176-181,1996
> >
> > [14] WHO Environmental Health Criteria (118), Geneva 1991.
