Mapping the Study of Complexity to Human Factors: An Initial Model
Abstract
What is this report about?
This work comprises part of a suite of reports that deal with Sociotechnical Theory and Network Enabled Capability (NEC) system design (HFI DTC Work Package 2.17). The current report describes some of the foundational work that has been used to design an actionable model of command and control in the form of an extended NATO SAS-050 approach space.
Background and reasoning behind the work
The development of this model is founded on the study of complexity. An initial mapping has been performed between the physical sciences (wherein the formal study of complexity resides) and the human sciences (wherein the term is rarely or adequately defined). This report is about looking at complexity from a human factors point of view.
What was undertaken in the research?
The report distils complexity through three overlapping themes: 1) the attribute view, which leads to a multi-dimensional problem space through which the field of ergonomics appears to be travelling, 2) the complexity theory view, in which metrics and measures exist to complement established ergonomics methods and diagnose at least certain aspects of complexity, and 3) the complex systems research view. This is the domain of true complexity in the sense that it helps to explain not just the ‘what’ of complexity but also the ‘why’ and the ‘how’.
What was discovered?
As an ergonomic problem, command and control is redolent in complexity of the sort operationalised in this report. Key concepts such as emergence, sensitive dependence on initial conditions and dynamical system behaviour are illustrated with reference to ergonomic case studies in command and control.
Main conclusions and recommendations
A major source of, and solution to, the challenges of complexity derives from the most adaptable component of all in complex systems: the human. Complex systems research provides a wealth of tools and concepts that map across to the study of ergonomics, and in doing so, are able to contribute meaningfully to the practice of HFI and the consequent improvement of NEC systems design.
Military relevance of the work
The work has operational relevance because it helps to reduce complexity (through the use of models and concepts that help us to understand complex sociotechnical phenomenon), it meets a number of explicit NATO ‘key priorities’ for the SAS-050 model of command and control, and it contributes to an actionable understanding of social/organizational structures and the ability to directly inform interventions against target networks.
This research has been exploited in the following ways:
- The extended NATO model of command and control has been applied to Operational Field Trial #3, a live example of NEC and part of the phased capability release for Bowman/ComBAT.
- Aspects of this work have also been presented to TTCP HUM TP11 and a forthcoming collaboration is currently under development.
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