Cybernetic Communications Between Subsystems

Cybernetics emerged from comparative studies between automated electronic machines, such as computers, and the human nervous system. It is influenced by the concept of action and requires attention to two key elements:

Communication: The flow of information.

Mechanisms of command and control of actions.

What is action control and its effectiveness? Control involves comparing the actual outcome with the expected result. If there is a discrepancy, corrective actions are taken to adjust the process or information flow. For example, the operation of a heating system or a water heater is controlled by a thermostat. This self-regulating system activates the heat when the temperature falls below a certain point and turns it off when it exceeds that threshold. Therefore, information flow is crucial in a cybernetic system. According to Wiener, information represents the continuous or discrete sequence of measurable events occurring over time. The structural-functional approach is based on similar cybernetic observations in biological and behavioral sciences. These fields undoubtedly contain structures and mechanisms that autonomously regulate metabolic processes or behaviors (Wiener, 1954).

Human behavior and actions are controlled by a cybernetic (self-regulating) system primarily located in the central nervous system. It governs behavior through various intermediary mechanisms, such as the body’s metabolic processes, prevailing social norms, traditions, customs, and overall culture, considering the body’s specific capacities and abilities. This explains why individuals lose control over their behavior when the brain’s nervous system is disrupted (as in cases of mental illness).

Thus, other subsystems can hierarchically and cybernetically control an organism’s or individual’s behavior. This dynamic results in diverse responses among individuals affected by the same stimulus. For instance, the behavior of a hungry person differs from that of a satisfied person, or a worried individual acts differently than someone calm when facing the same situation. The connection between biological systems and human actions forms a nexus where the physical environment intersects with human actions and reactions. In other words, biological needs can function as command and control mechanisms. The organic system is the most dynamic and influential subsystem in determining individual behavior and coordinating it with the external environment.

The psychological system or personality controls the biological mechanisms. In other words, psychological needs act as command and control systems, with their primary function being to achieve specific, predefined goals.

Each system has specific functions based on its structure. All systems are tools designed to achieve particular human-determined objectives. They are not inherently goal-oriented but are utilized for specific purposes. Achieving goals is exclusive to humans or human societies. Even highly organized social insects, such as bees, are not goal-directed; their actions are instinctive and natural. In contrast, humans set goals according to time and place and employ physical, mechanical, organic, social, economic, and political systems to achieve them. Thus, systems do not possess intrinsic goals—they have functions. Humans define goals based on their needs and use these tools, whether human-made (like social, economic, or mechanical systems) or natural and organic systems, in which human involvement is minimal or nonexistent.

Social systems also control the personality of the individuals who create them. Norms guide social interactions and serve as mechanisms for controlling and directing behavior. This control operates both externally and internally. Values and norms become internalized during socialization, acting as external forces overseeing behavior. Therefore, the primary function of a social system is to integrate individuals into a social group or, more broadly, into society.

The cultural system controls actions through the social system. It encompasses symbolic elements manifested as ideologies, values, knowledge, institutions, and more. Thus, the social system is the richest in terms of accumulated information, and its primary function is to preserve the prevailing cultural pattern within a given society.

According to Parsons’ supporters, a hierarchical cybernetic control structure is evident here. The higher a system’s information level, the higher its position in the hierarchy; conversely, the lower the information level, the greater its energy output. These four subsystems are interconnected within a structure that includes mechanisms for controlling actions.

The Basis of Cybernetic Hierarchy and Its Application to Subsystems

The cybernetic hierarchy, which governs the relationships between general action subsystems, also exerts authority over all dependent parts. This means that structures, functions, mechanisms, and various components are all subject to this rule. One of the main advantages of cybernetic control is its prevention of a solely mechanical control over all individual and social actions. A defining characteristic of this system is the interconnectedness of its components and its diversity and multiplicity of social actors. In other words, before anything else, a network of relationships is established between individuals or human groups. Thus, sociology cannot study the behavior of a single social actor in relation to their social environment, as psychology or functionalists might. Instead, sociology views society as a system that imposes a predetermined or calculated action on the individual through a network of regulated interactions between its components.

Therefore, cultural elements within this system cannot function as external components of the social system. Instead, they are integral and internal parts of the social action system. Sociology examines the behavior of social actors in relation to all the social elements around them, especially in relation to other social elements.

According to Parsons’ supporters, social agents or actors are not limited to individuals but also include groups of individuals or communities. This perspective allows us to extend the systematic framework of society to all levels of social reality. (J.C. Lugan – p58)

Social Systems and the Determinism of Individual Actions

A social system is not only recognized as one of the general action subsystems, but it also consists of four subsystems related to the functions of socialization, goal-setting (determining and pursuing goals), integration, and social adaptation.

A fundamental aspect of Parsons’ theory is that the system is capable of analyzing all elements of the social order, whether in groups, communities, institutions, etc. This is based on the assumption that each of these sets, while interrelated and dependent on each other, can also be studied as an independent system.

According to Parsons, society is a particular form of social organization, which French sociology refers to as the “total society,” meaning a society that is sufficiently complete to meet the needs of individuals and groups. The total society can be considered from two perspectives:

As a general social phenomenon.

As a specific, tangible set of humans and groups performing a variety of interrelated and interdependent activities.

Thus, the concept of society refers to the identifiable and concrete reality of certain dimensions of society, while the concept of the social system refers to the methods, tools, and practical analysis of a broad array of societies that can be applied in all dimensions with any type of characteristics. (Same source, p.59)