Sociotechnical systems
See also: Notes on the Principles of Sociotechnical Design
Wikipedia says:
Sociotechnical systems (STS) in organizational development is an approach to complex organizational work design that recognizes the interaction between people and technology in workplaces. The term also refers to coherent systems of human relations, technical objects, and cybernetic processes that inhere to large, complex infrastructures. Social society, and its constituent substructures, qualify as complex sociotechnical systems.
The theory is excellent, and it is interesting to me how concepts like “Sociotechnical design” have a rich history of research and discussion, yet the tech industry seems to rediscover them seemingly as a novel thing every few decades. I learned about it during one such cycle around 2020.
Sociotechnical theory is founded on two main principles:
One is that the interaction of social and technical factors creates the conditions for successful (or unsuccessful) organizational performance. This interaction consists partly of linear ”cause and effect” relationships (the relationships that are normally “designed”) and partly from “non-linear”, complex, even unpredictable relationships (the good or bad relationships that are often unexpected). Whether designed or not, both types of interaction occur when socio and technical elements are put to work.
The corollary of this, and the second of the two main principles, is that optimization of each aspect alone (socio or technical) tends to increase not only the quantity of unpredictable, “un-designed” relationships, but those relationships that are injurious to the system’s performance.
I’ve done a presentation about sociotechnical systems at Miro on 2023: Sociotechnical systems in action.