Hard systems

Hard systems is a problem-solving approach in systems science. It is opposing soft systems. Although soft systems thinking treats all problems as ill-defined or not easily quantified, hard systems approaches (systems analysis (structured methods), operations research and so on) assume that:

• the problems associated with such systems are well-defined
• they have a single, optimum solution
• a scientific approach to problem-solving will work well
• technical factors will tend to predominate

Developments in hard systems thinking

Hard systems began to emerge as a distinct philosophy in the 1950s.

See also

• Systems engineering
• Systems analysis
• Systems dynamics

References

Systems  ·  Systems science Systems types Anatomical Art Biological Complex Complex adaptive Conceptual Coupled human–environment Database Dynamical Ecological Economic Formal Global Positioning Holarchic Information Legal Measurement Metric Multi-agent Nervous Nonlinear Operating Physical Planetary Political Sensory Social Star Theoretical fields Chaos theory Complex systems Control theory Cybernetics Earth system science Living systems Sociotechnical system Urban metabolism World-systems theory Systems ... analysis biology dynamics ecology engineering neuroscience psychology science theory thinking Systems scientists Russell L. Ackoff William Ross Ashby Béla H. Bánáthy Gregory Bateson Anthony Stafford Beer Richard E. Bellman Ludwig von Bertalanffy Kenneth E. Boulding Murray Bowen C. West Churchman George Dantzig Heinz von Foerster Jay Wright Forrester Charles A S Hall James J. Kay George Klir Edward Norton Lorenz Niklas Luhmann Humberto Maturana Margaret Mead Donella Meadows Mihajlo D. Mesarovic James Grier Miller Howard T. Odum Talcott Parsons Ilya Prigogine Qian Xuesen Anatol Rapoport Peter Senge Claude Shannon Francisco Varela Kevin Warwick Norbert Wiener Anthony Wilden Categories Systems conceptual physical social Systems science Systems science portal