Below are some notes that I took while trying to understanding what exactly Systems theory is all about.

System

There is no universally agreed upon definition of ‘system’, but in general systems are seen as at least two elements that are interconnected. It is also common for systems to be talked about as if all of the components in the system work together to achieve some overall purpose or goal. The primary goal is often survival. A commonly accepted definition is below (note that the word ‘element’ is often replaced with ‘component’ for generality purposes):

a system is a set of two or more interrelated elements with the following properties (Ackoff, 1981, p. 15-16):

Each element has an effect on the functioning of the whole.

Each element is affected by at least one other element in the system.

All possible subgroups of elements also have the first two properties.

Non-systems are generally considered to be single instances or a set of elements that lack interconnections, although these may be part of a system.

Sand scattered on a road by happenstance is not, itself, a system. You can add sand or take away sand and you still have just sand on the road. Arbitrarily add or take away football players, or pieces of your digestive system, and you quickly no longer have the same system. (Meadows, 2009, p. 12)

Environment

A systems environment consists of all variables which can affect its state. External elements which affect irrelevant properties of a system are not part of its environment. [...] A closed system is one that has no environment. An open system is one that does. (Ackoff, 1971, p. 663)

The environment is often referred to as the context in which the system is found or as its surroundings. Systems are considered closed if they have no interaction with their environment. It is often the case that systems are considered closed for practicality reasons even though they may not technically be absolutely closed, but just have limited interaction with their environment.

Boundary

The boundary is the separation between the system and environment. The actual point at which the system meets its environment is called an 'interface'. It is often the case that the boundary is not sharply defined and that boundaries are conceptual rather than existing in nature.

As any poet knows, a system is a way of looking at

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Massimo Curatella

Massimo Curatella