POSIWID - The Purpose of a System is what it Does
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POSIWID (the purpose of the system is what it does) is a way of thinking about complex systems, giving us a different perspective on a range of social and political issues.
When we understand the complex loops that maintain the status quo, we are better equipped to make positive changes in organizations and society.

The origins of POSIWID thinking
Recent books that use POSIWID thinking
Articles and blogs exploring POSIWID
- Memetix
- "Although it is dangerous to use the POSIWID principle to infer intent on the part of individual actors in a system, it is useful for analyzing the emergent behavior of a system. It certainly cuts through a lot of crap about unintended consequences."
- The One Percenters
- "Learn to separate beguiling economic theory from real world facts by applying an acronym from systems theory: POSIWID. Taking America as a starting point, how has the consensus treated its wealthiest one percent? What has it done?"
- Life Support Systems
- Interventions in Complex Socio-Technical Systems,
by Michael Jacobs and Aidan Ward - DUCKPOND
- A micro world of emergent clarity with much confusion and furious paddling beneath the surface.
Internet Resources
blogs and wikis
- POSIWID blog
- Topical applications of POSIWID thinking by John Smith, Richard Veryard and Aidan Ward
- POSIWID wiki
- Notes towards a POSIWID book by Amicus Rex
- POSIWID links
- various items tagged "POSIWID"
Approach
If a complex system produces a given outcome, or if a given outcome emerges from a complex system, then we may assume some purpose linked to this outcome.
This is a useful guide for investigation and interpretation. Ignore the official purpose of the system, ignore what the designers and custodians of a system say, and concentrate on its actual behaviour.
Conversely, if there is some unexplained pattern of behaviour, look for a system whose purpose this pattern reveals. (We often can't see the system directly, but we infer its hidden presence because this helps to make sense of some observed pattern of behaviour.)
Critique
Many users of the POSIWID principle seem to assume that system scope and behaviour is unproblematic - that outcomes can be unambiguously attributed to some system or other.
A complex system apparently produces a diverse set of outcomes. According to the POSIWID principle, all these outcomes may be identified as purposes. A complex system typically contains many conflicting or contradictory purposes.
Many of the purposes of a system cannot be observed in its normal behaviour because they are contingent purposes - the behaviours may only appear in extreme circumstances.
Furthermore, some behaviours are generated by the interference between many systems. It is of course possible to frame the interference within a larger system, whose purpose is presumably to generate this interference and its effects, but this framing is not generally a useful one.
Related Lenses
Logical Foundations of POSIWID
What makes backwards reasoning valid?
POSIWID represents a kind of backwards reasoning - - from effects to cause. Various philosophers and logicians have discussed whether this kind of reasoning can ever be justified. Vote here for your favourite backwardian.
Final Cause
Aristotle0 points
Engineering
Stafford Beer0 points
Reader Feedback
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puranroy
Dec 22, 2010 @ 12:34 pm | delete
- This is little tough for me to understand. :(
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William Livingston
Mar 21, 2010 @ 1:50 pm | delete
- I heard Stafford give a speech in Orlando in 1986 where he used "The purpose of a system is what it does." Using the concept so much I found the phrase ungainly I came up with POSIWID as a code word. In 1993 when I went to see Stafford in Toronto, I presented him with a pen I had engraved with POSIWID. He sort of chuckled and that was the end of it.
POSIWID is always used as an absolute. That is, no assignations about purpose are invented. What it does is, by definition, its purpose. I have never encountered a disconfirming example, nor have any of the thousands that have adopted the concept. Of course, it all started with Ashby.
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Chris Bird
Mar 30, 2009 @ 8:06 am | delete
- The "Purpose" in POSIWID is an unfortunate use of the term. Purpose implies a look forward a view into the future. However in POSIWID the idea is to look backwards. Just because someone uses a screwdriver to stir paint doesn't make paint stirring a purpose of a screwdriver. It does make it a use and it is interesting to explore why it is used that way, but that isn't a purpose.
Some reasons why people might choose a screwdriver to stir the paint include:
They didn't have anything else
The screwdriver was going to be harmed less than the pen
They were too lazy/inform to pick up the stirrer that was on the ground - the screwdriver was easier
They wanted to annoy the screwdriver's owner
Because the stirrer was dirty and the screwdriver clean
When wanting to understand the reasons why it is very valuable to go from effect to cause (think root-cause analysis appraaches), and don't expect to find only one.
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Blog Posts from Google
this week's search term: "Unintended Consequences"
- Unintended consequences of an Israeli strike on Iran
- I think there may be some unintended consequences for Israel that may not be perceived as positive for its current regime but, in my opinion, would have long term strategic advantages for Israel if the government were wise enough to advance them.
- Some FDA Warnings Have Minimal Effect
- February 14, 2012 ? Many US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) drug risk communications have a delayed effect, unintended consequences, or no effect on drug monitoring or prescribing behaviors, according to the findings of a new report.
- Spirit blasts DOT, adds $2 'unintended consequence fee'
- The carrier says in a release the "regulation requiring airlines to hold fares for 24 hours after booking without penalty comes with unintended consequences and is costing consumers millions. To cover the costs of this misguided and expensive ...
- WH 40dollars project draws conservative backlash
- By JOSEPH WILLIAMS | The cosmic Law of Unintended Consequences claimed another victim Tuesday, triggered by the White House's #40dollars Twitter project ? and conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh. To pressure Republicans on the payroll tax holiday ...
POSIWID on Twitter
by RichardVeryard
Writer: systems thinking for demanding change.
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