1.20. Socio-technical systems understanding by Cherns

The socio-technical approach by Cherns (1976) is a basic framework for understanding and designing socio-technical systems. The fundamental assumption is that more effective and successful systems can be designed if human and social considerations are taken into account in a systematic and coherent manner. Cherns (1976) defined a list of key principles of socio-technical design which is strongly influenced by the notion of a participative process:

• Compatibility: The process of design must be compatible with its objectives • Minimal Critical specification: No more detail in design than needed, but design must express the essential requirements.

• Socio-technical Criterion: Control is local and awarded to the immediate work team – the aim is to make supervision normal

• Multi-function: Individuals and groups need a range of tasks to provide satisfying jobs and for redundancy and flexibility.

• Boundary location: Boundaries are political, boundaries are to be managed.

• Information flow: Eschew information intermediaries – information should flow initially to the prime user group.

• Support congruence: Systems should be established within a framework of social support for desired behaviour.

• Design and human values: Emphasis in design is placed on quality of working life.

• Incompletion: Design is iterative and continuous.

The key principles for design should support in exploiting the knowledge of people within a design activity and in delivering improved and flexible work practices for organisations. Cherns (1976) expresses the goal for socio-technical design as developing “a system capable of self-modification, of adapting to change and of making the most of the creative capacities of the individual”. In this way not only are people fitted to strong technological structures, but also the organisations themselves are to be formed and shaped around dominant technologies. Hence, development does not determine with the definition of the job, task or the work group, but it requires a more comprehensive design endeavour. The contribution of socio-technical theory has been in informing and extending the design process to include a consideration of individual and group interests and to provide means for their expression because new working systems based on technological innovations are established (cf. Mumford, 1996; Lin & Cornford, 2000).





References:

Cherns, A. (1976). The principles of sociotechnical design. Human Relations, 29(8), 783-792.

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