Lead Example: family and business
Family
We will consider two systems: a family and a business. We
will show them through the lens of qOSTW theory. The energy unifying the family are family
ties. The energy that unites a company is money. When there is no unifying energy the system breaks
down.
The definition of a family is the ideal object. Classes
specifying different families (full, incomplete, multigenerational) are ideal
objects, precisely classes.
A specific family of 2+3
is a system. The subsystems
are: a woman (Anna) taking the position of the
mother, a man (John) taking
the position of father, two girls (Ola and
Kate) taking positions of daughters and one boy (Michael)
in the position of a son. I have divided the children as sons and daughters because in the Indian or
Chinese culture those are different
positions related to different privileges, burdens and
obligations.
Both legal
and social norms as well as internal
arrangements constitute the system. In this
group of people within each pair there
are different relationships. Some
of these relationships belong
to the order of the family, some of these relationships such as between the father and mother belong to other
orders. In our family, besides family order, the man and the woman are caught up in two separate orders: a professional one and a
sexual couple. The order of the sexual couple is an
example of an order that coexists
among the systems of the analyzed
order and can affect
it. If the order of the sexual couple is
disturbed, it can lead to the family breakdown (destruction).
Within a family children can create a distinct
hierarchical order in which an older or stronger child
abuses a weaker one. Younger children may
suffer as a result of involvement in this order, the child’s disease
can negatively affect the family system. In the lack of new patterns people implement old habits. In order to
eliminate the hierarchical system, which
destroys the family, may be needed to develop healthy relationships and rules between siblings.
A Company
We will also analyze the system business; for
simplicity it will be a shop. Four people who are subsystems of the analyzed system
will take positions: the owner of a shop (Anna), the shop manager (John), salesman
1 (Mark), saleswoman 2 (Ela). The constitutive order is determined by the
responsibilities of each position and the rules of conduct between the positions.
Note that changes may occur in the positions occupied by the specific
subsystems (people). A shop can be sold, then the new system will take the
position of the owner. The manager may leave, then his position can be taken
over by the salesman 1, and the company will hire a new person to the position of
the seller or the company will employ a new shop manager. The new person can
unreservedly accept the prevailing rules and continue to ambient relationships.
She/he may also affect the rules’ change. Different stable states of
equilibrium of a system shop will depend on the amount of money earned (the
amount of available energy in terms of qOSTW). The increase in sales and the resulting
increase in cash available may result in hiring a new salesperson: in qOSTW terminology
there will be a new position created in the order that constitutes the system ‘company’
and it will be taken by the new system. The system ‘company’ will stabilize in
the new stable state at a higher energy level. The drop in sales will reduce
the amount of money in the system (amount of energy). So in order to get stabilized
at a new stable state at a lower energy level for the company dismissals will
be required. There may be a critical situation with too low level of energy, in
which the company earns less than needed to cover costs - energy has fallen
below the level of decomposition. The system will disintegrate unless it
stabilizes at a level of energy thanks to continuous funding (providing the
missing energy from the outside).
Note also that each new stable state may result in
changes in the level of specific positions or relationships.
New stable state may affect the attributes of the positions: may change the
amount of salary, job size, scope of responsibilities.
The constitutive order of our shop has a specific multifunctionality. Among its
functions we can distinguish: delivering goods for the local community, workplaces,
paying taxes (state maintenance), providing income to the owner, market for
local producers.
Note that each
of these functionalities, places
our system ‘shop’ at a certain position in
the new superior order, as each of
these functions is
the reason for changes in a
superior order.
Note also that each new stable state of our system ‘shop’ will cause changes within functionalities experienced by the superior order. Lower
income of a shop (stable state at
a lower energy level) will cause
lower wages, lower taxes, smaller orders from local manufacturers.
Relations binding our system ‘shop’ in superior orders are
bidirectional. Stakeholders decisions will force changes
in the analyzed system ‘shop’. The state can increase taxes,
employees can negotiate higher wages, the owner may want to earn more, local community can begin to
purchase in a hypermarket.
Family versus business
‘Shop’
Let us assume that the owner and the manager of the shop are the married couple
from our example of a family. We are dealing here with two systems (persons), that both occupy certain positions
in two superior orders: family
order and professional order. There comes also the intimate order (sexual couple). The
set of all relations from all superior
orders that occurs between those people builds
the connection between them. The connection exists as long as there
is at least one relation in any of superior orders. When a sexual relation and family
fall apart, there remain professional relation and the relation resulting from being parents of the
same children.
Gang
It is need to emphasize the importance of the connection as a set of all
the relations linking two systems and the need to recognize all the superior orders,
in which the analyzed system is entangled in. This will be done on the example
of a child belonging to a gang. The child (Michael) belongs to a local gang;
belongs to a superior order that constitutes a gang. Parents want to get him out
from under the influence of the gang keeping him at home in the afternoons or
on extra-curricular activities supervised. They will not succeed, as long as
all relations involving a child with the gang members are not broken. The child
may have a sexual partner in the gang, the child can attend the same class as
the members of the gang. Parents need to recognize all the relations and all
the superior orders that link the child with the gang members. It seems that moving
out and changing the school and the environment would be an effective solution
that would enable to break all relations.
Family in terms of attributes
Let's look at the family system through its attributes. The attributes of
the family will include: number of children, bilingualism, family income level,
place of residence, social class, nationality and religion.
The values of these attributes can be changed: another child can be born, parents can
change jobs and revenues can increase, removal can take place, there can even
be the religion converted.
Attribute values affect the relation of the system with the environment. The number of
children is related to the amount of tax deduction and child benefits, the new job
may result in the opening of a new branch of development and open up new superior
orders, for example, allow membership in a club. Place of residence is related
to an access to new chances and the loss of the old opportunities. Religion
conversion will affect changes in commitments and religious norms.
Looking at the system from the perspective of its attributes values it brings
new information and new areas for the research of the system. Changing the
attributes’ values doesn’t need to incur
changes in the constitutive order: in positions or in relations. Changing the
attributes’ values may affect changes in superior orders. Learning another
language by one of the subsystems ‘family’ (John) will increase the number of
available positions in superior orders. In qOSTW we will say that for the
attribute value ‘trilingualism’ there are more classes associated with the
positions of various professional orders than to attribute value ‘bilingualism’.
Change of residence will enable, , to have children attending a better school -
by changing the residence attribute a new opportunity has appeared - the system
‘child’ takes a position in the superior system, which is a concrete better
school .
Family order – research
Each order
has its stakeholders. The family order serves:
• family members by
satisfying their needs,
• State by
educating and providing new citizens and taxpayers,
• teachers, as children help to keep their jobs.
Order components - fixed:
Positions: mother, father, daughter, daughter, son
Functionality: education
of children (upbringing), peer support, sustaining relationships, a common household, company, relying on
each other;
Relations that
build connections
between family members (examples):
• parent-child: care (one-way), leadership (one-way),
love ( two-way
• husband-wife: love (two-way), affection (two-way), sharing (two-way), support
(two-way), joint financing of household, sexual relationship (two-way), common keeping
company
• child-child: two-way: sharing, affection, love, imitation, competition
The components (elements) of the order - variable:
Systems: Anna (mother), John (father), Kate
(the oldest
daughter), Ola (younger daughter), Michael (the youngest son)
Note that even in the family those are variable components, as in result of
divorce and mother’s re-marriage the system keeping the position of the father
can change.
The dominant attributes of the component systems: Anna (pedant, complaining), John
(muddler, applying the defense by attack), Kate (autistic), Ola (leadership features),
Michael (scamp)
Dominant attributes of component systems will shape the behaviour between component systems, will affect family relationships and order.
Let's search in our family system
feedback loops. Attributes pedantry and untidiness
are troublemaking. John’s untidiness starts the loopback: John’s mess causes
Anna’s complains, which contributes to John’s defense by attack, which causes
Anna’a complaints etc ...
Let's see how
this driving spiral can be broken successfully.
Anna’s complaining is her way for releasing tension, in
case of abstaining from complaining about perceived the conflict felt could lead
to the accumulation of tension and in further perspective to neurosis. John’s
defense by attack protects him from understating his self-esteem, which Anna’s complaints
cause. Reduced self-esteem could affect the resignation of challenges, which
would result in lower incomes, which in further consequences would reduce the financial
status of the family.
Let’s consider where there is an effective intervention
point in this situation.
Untidiness and pedantry
are elements of the natural personality, thus they undergo changes with
difficulty. We have to find a
different intervention point. John’s
untidiness is in conflict with
Anna’s pedantry and causes her complaining –
maybe there can be something done to
prevent complaints without the
accumulation of Anna’s tension.
• John can compensate for Anna’s extra cleaning caused by
his untidiness, for example he will take on preparing dinner.
• John can have his own room, where Anna doesn’t enter, where he can have things
messed up.
• We can teach John healthy reception of Anna’s complaints. Creating such an
attitude, so that he does not feel humiliated and does not need to run defense
mechanisms.
• Anna can compensate for understating John’s self-esteem (caused by grumbling
his untidiness) by increasing his self-esteem in other areas: loud admiration for
his strengths and bragging valuable activities.
Network
Let's see how the network with imposed orders looks in our example. We have systems connected with links:
Fig.1. Network
On a node
of the network occupied by John there
are imposed positions of the orders analyzed:
• John takes
a position of a manager in the professional order
• John takes a
position of a lover in the
intimate order
• John takes a
position of a father in the family order
• John may take
some other positions such as a member of a
choir, we skip those positions.
On a node
of the network occupied by Anna there are positions imposed:
• Anna takes a
position of the owner in the
professional order
• Anna takes a
position of a lover in the
intimate order
• Anna takes a position of a mother in the family
order
On a node
occupied by Michael there are positions imposed:
• Michael takes a position of a son in the family order
• Michael takes a position of a gang member in the order constituting a gang
• Michael takes the lowest position in the hierarchy of the hierarchical order
occurring among children of Anna and John
We will focus on the above-mentioned systems and
positions occupied by them.
On the link connecting systems: John and Anna we have at
least three groups of relations imposed from three different orders, these
relations will build the connections between them. We have the following relations:
• Relations in the marriage order (including intimate,
lust, affection, commitment)
• Relations resulting from the fact of being parents of the same children in
the family order
• Relations resulting from the fact of being subordinate (John) and chief (Anna)
in the professional order
On the link connecting systems: John and Michael
have a group
relations imposed:
• father-son relation
Let's get acquainted with the significance of links and rank of
knotted systems dependent on the situation. Significance of the link between John and
his son Michael is greater than between Michael and his siblings, so as a
standard Michael does not execute commands from his siblings, for which he wouldn’t get approval of his father. But
once a situation has encountered that Ola told Michael to steal money for ice
creams. In this situation the rank of Ola increased in Michael’s eyes, because
it was strengthened by the reward derived from the behavior undertaken - ice
creams. Michael went against his father and stole the money. Father’s rank in
this case was lower than the rank of Ola.
Let us now look at signs of links. Let's go back to our situation with the
theft of money for ice creams. If the link of Michael and Ola would have a
negative sign (Michal does not like her because of her commanding), the theft
of money would be less likely, and an option could happen that Michael would denounce Ola to
the father.
We know that we
have two types of links: bidirectional
(bilateral) and unidirectional (unilateral).
In the example herein discussed, the majority of our links
is bilateral, since each partner within
a relation has an impact on the other partner. We expect a unilateral relation in
case of Michael’s relation with gang
members, Michael does not count in
the gang, thus while under its
influence he has no effect on
other gang members. Michael is not a significant system in the gang.
Part of links in the network creates feedback
loops. An example of such a
feedback loop could be the case with ice creams: Ola pushes on Michael
to steal money, Michael complains to his father, the father punishes Ola,
Ola takes revenge on Michael, Michael complains
to his father.
Fig. 2. Feedback Loop
We will try to bring the concept of the situation on the example of ice creams. We
assume that the mother Anna
is in a sanatorium, so any links with her are temporarily
disabled. In the situation
of Ola’s prompting Michael to a theft there are
active links between Ola and Michael, and between Michael and his father,
because Michal was to rob his father. Ola
has not confided Kate
in her idea, so links with Kate
are inactive. Ola is afraid of her father, so also the link between Ola
and her father is
active.
Fig. 3. Situation
Let's see Michael's
position in the network against
the object, which in the situation with ice
creams is the father.
• Michael is the subject in the position .
• The target object
is John, the father.
• The set of
active relationships in the
situation with ice creams is mentioned
above.
• Active relationships of the subject and the target object is
the relationship of a parent with a child that leads Michael to respect the opinion
of the father.
• Ola’s rank here
is higher than the father, because Ola promises
the reward - ice creams.
• Significance of Michael’s link with
his father is higher than the significance
of Ola’s link with the father.
• The link between Michael and Ola is
negative (he does not like when
he is ordered), so he will not be willing to
listen to Ola.
• A series of Michael's
beliefs about his father in the ice creams case covers
the fact that his father considers a theft as the
evil and Michael can expect
a punishment.
• In the situation analyzed Michael's main emotion
in relation to his father is fear.
• Behaviours associated, resulting from fear: Michael avoids Father.
It seems that the position versus the object as a concept
is not very useful, since it does not allow to predict clearly the behavior. In
our example it seems that Michael will not steal the money. Analyzing the
position against the object, however, has such a power that enables us to deeper
understand the situation and active factors in order to design more effective
intervention in the future.
How such the intervention might look like in the example discussed? The father anticipates
that children can encourage each other to a theft. Knowing the position of a child
to himself in a situation of a theft and all the active factors in a given situation
he could take preventive measures:
• In
terms of beliefs he could talk to the children that stealing is wrong, that
it is not accepted by people that one can end up in jail
for a theft, that he does not accept it.
• In terms of
emotions he could trigger negative
emotions in them against a
theft by bringing them to a situation where they were robbed.
• In terms of behavior,
he could sensitize them that a potential theft
should be reported to an adult.
• In terms of significance
of links, he could take care of the relationship with the
children so that these links
were strong
• In terms of rank,
based on examples he could illustrate to children that situational rank of a
person or a thing is only temporarily high, and they should
not take it into
account. He could teach the children to expand each of the situations
by the consequences in the future, which usually reduces the situational rank.
