Humans as Source of System Complexity

Systems engineering cannot address the overall system and its major source of complexity without taking into account human factors. The goal of systems engineering is to develop systems that meet specific requirements and function correctly. However, the complex interaction between humans and technology makes it challenging to achieve this goal without considering human factors.

This is generally for a number of reasons:

Unlike technological components, humans can make choices, which means they are active participants who can interact with and influence the system’s behaviour. This can lead to emergent properties in human behaviour, especially in group dynamics and communication, which can be difficult to anticipate ahead of time.

Furthermore, humans have the capacity to learn and grow, which is unusual compared to other system elements.

Additionally, humans are a major cost factor throughout the life of a system. This is due to the cost of labour, training, and maintaining the skills required to operate and maintain the system.

Moreover, humans are the most complex system component to understand and predict. Humans have different cognitive and physical abilities, perceptions, and attitudes, making it challenging to design systems that are usable, efficient, and safe.