Loading AI tools
Book by John Gall From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
General Systemantics (retitled to Systemantics in its second edition and The Systems Bible in its third) is a systems engineering treatise by John Gall in which he offers practical principles of systems design based on experience and anecdotes.
1977 edition | |
| Author | John Gall |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | R. O. Blechman |
| Language | English |
| Subject | Systems science |
| Publisher | General Systemantics Press |
Publication date | 1975/78, 1986, 2002 |
| Media type | |
It is offered from the perspective of how not to design systems, based on system engineering failures. The primary precept of the treatise is that large complex systems are extremely difficult to design correctly despite best intentions, so care must be taken to design smaller, less-complex systems and to do so with incremental functionality based on close and continual touch with user needs and measures of effectiveness.
The book was initially self-published after Gall received rejection letters from 30 publishers. After several reviews in academic journals, it was picked up by Quadrangle–The New York Times Book Company, who published it in 1977.[1] A condensed version was also published in The New York Times prior to the book's publication.[2]
The term systemantics is a commentary on prior work by Alfred Korzybski called general semantics which conjectured that all systems failures could be attributed to a single root cause – a failure to communicate. Gall observes that, instead, system failure is an intrinsic feature of systems. He thereby derives the term general systemantics in deference to the notion of a sweeping theory of system failure, but attributed to an intrinsic feature based on laws of system behavior. He observes as a side-note that system antics also playfully captures the concept that systems naturally "act up."[3]
This is more a universal observation than a law. The origin of this observation is traced back via:
By systems, the author refers to those that "...involve human beings, particularly those very large systems such as national governments, nations themselves, religions, the railway system, the post office..." though the intention is that the principles are general to any system.[5]
Additionally, the author observes:
Once a system is set up to solve some problem, the system itself engenders new problems relating to its development, operations and maintenance. The author points out that the additional energy required to support the system can consume the energy it was meant to save. This leads to the next principle:
The author defines anergy as the effort required to bring about a change. This is meant as a tongue-in-cheek analog of the law of conservation of energy.
One of the problems that a system creates is that it becomes an entity unto itself that not only persists but expands and encroaches on areas beyond the original system's purview.
The author cites a number of spectacular unexpected behaviors including:
Not only do systems expand well beyond their original goals, but as they evolve they tend to oppose even their own original goals. This is seen as a systems theory analog of Le Chatelier's principle that suggests chemical and physical processes tend to counteract changed conditions that upset equilibrium until a new equilibrium is established. This same counteraction force can be seen in systems behavior. For example, incentive reward systems set up in business can have the effect of institutionalizing mediocrity.[8] This leads to the following principle:
People performing roles in systems often do not perform the role suggested by the name the system gives that person, nor does the system itself perform the role that its name suggests.
In other words, the system has a severely censored and distorted view of reality from biased and filtering sensory organs. This distorted view displaces understanding of the actual real-world, which in turn pales and tends to disappear. This displacement creates a type of sensory deprivation and a kind of hallucinogenic effect on those inside the systems, causing them to lose common sense. In addition to negatively affecting those inside the system, the system attracts to it people who are optimized for the pathological environment the system creates. Thus,
Money stated in 1978 that the author "clearly set out to write another Peter Principle".[17] A 1977 review in Etc: A Review of General Semantics states that the book's aim is unclear, commenting, "As a put-down of institutional practices it works well, as good as anything in print", but "As a slam at systems theory the book is less successful, even ambiguous."[18] A Library Journal review from 1977 comments, "Like some of its predecessors, the book pretends to rebuke people for their manifold stupidities, but is, in fact, an invitation to take pleasure in them. That's not a failing, just a fact. Recommended."[19] A 2004 review in the American Society of Safety Professionals' Professional Safety says, "It is at once deadly serious with all the outrageous contrived irony of Gary Larson's 'Far Side' cartoons" and that "the book is one continuous insight after another."[20] PCMag calls the book "small but insightful".[21]
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Every time you click a link to Wikipedia, Wiktionary or Wikiquote in your browser's search results, it will show the modern Wikiwand interface.
Wikiwand extension is a five stars, simple, with minimum permission required to keep your browsing private, safe and transparent.
