System Cell and Classification

Abstract

In this book, social systems will be represented by a network of subsystems, which are generally of two basic types: the system cell and the normative cell. The system cell represents the object to be controlled by a decision maker or group of decision makers. The decision maker is represented by a normative cell, a unit that is mainly characterized by an objective or goal, as will be further discussed in Chapters 3 and 4. In this chapter, we will concentrate on the system cell, which may be considered as an extension of the black box—that is, a system specified by only input and output variables. The system cell is also characterized by decision or control variables, which are representative of the control exercised by a decision maker, the state variables, which describe the internal position of the control object, and the auxiliary variables, which are included mainly to simplify the equations. We will now illustrate the role of the variables and their relationship by means of a few examples.