104,169 research outputs found
Formalising responsibility modelling for automatic analysis
Modelling the structure of social-technical systems as a basis for informing software system design is a difficult compromise. Formal methods struggle to capture the scale and complexity of the heterogeneous organisations that use technical systems. Conversely, informal approaches lack the rigour needed to inform the software design and
construction process or enable automated analysis.
We revisit the concept of responsibility modelling, which models social technical systems as a collection of actors who discharge their responsibilities, whilst using and producing resources in the process. Responsibility modelling is formalised as a structured approach for socio-technical system requirements specification and modelling, with well-defined semantics and support for automated structure and validity analysis. The
effectiveness of the approach is demonstrated by two case studies of software engineering methodologies
Systemic approaches to incident analysis in aviation: comparison of STAMP, Agent-Based Modelling and Institutions
The rapid development and increasing complexity of modern socio-technical systems suggest an urgent need for systemic safety analysis approaches because traditional linear models cannot cope with this complexity. In the aviation safety literature, among systemic accident and incident analysis methods, Systems Theoretic Accident Modelling and Processes (STAMP) and Agent-based modelling (ABM) are the most cited ones. STAMP is a qualitative analysis approach known for its thoroughness and comprehensiveness. Computational ABM approach is a formal quantitative method which proved to be suitable for modelling complex flexible systems. In addition, from a legal point of view, formal systemic institutional modelling potentially provides an interesting contribution to accident and incident analysis. The current work compares three systemic modelling approaches: STAMP, ABM and institutional modelling applied to a case study in an aviation domain
Formalised responsibility modelling for automated socio-technical systems analysis
Modelling the structure of social-technical systems as a basis for informing
software system design is a difficult compromise. Formal methods struggle to
capture the scale and complexity of the heterogeneous organisations that use
technical systems. Conversely, informal approaches lack the rigour needed to
inform the software design and construction process or enable automated
analysis.
We revisit the concept of responsibility modelling, which models social
technical systems as a collection of actors who discharge their
responsibilities, whilst using and producing resources in the
process. In this thesis responsibility modelling is formalised as a structured approach for
socio-technical system specification and modelling, with
well-defined semantics and support for automated structure and validity
analysis.
We provide structured definitions for entity types and relations, and
define the semantics of delegation and dependency. A constraint logic is
introduced, providing simple specification of complex
interactions between entities. Additionally, we introduce the ability to
explicitly model uncertainty.
To support this formalism, we present a new software toolkit that supports
modelling and automatic analysis of responsibility models in both
graphical and textual form.
The new methodology is validated by applying it to case studies across
different problem domains. A study of nuclear power station emergency planning
is validated by comparison to a similar study performed with earlier forms of
responsibility modelling, and a study of the TCAS mid-air collision avoidance
system is validated by evaluation with domain experts. Additionally, we perform
an explorative study of responsibility modelling understanding and applicability
through a qualitative study of modellers
Recommended from our members
Evaluating the resilience and security of boundaryless, evolving socio-technical Systems of Systems
Practitioner requirements for integrated Knowledge-Based Engineering in Product Lifecycle Management.
The effective management of knowledge as capital is considered essential to the
success of engineering product/service systems. As Knowledge Management (KM) and
Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) practice gain industrial adoption, the
question of functional overlaps between both the approaches becomes evident.
This article explores the interoperability between PLM and Knowledge-Based
Engineering (KBE) as a strategy for engineering KM. The opinion of key KBE/PLM
practitioners are systematically captured and analysed. A set of ranked business
functionalities to be fulfiled by the KBE/PLM systems integration is elicited.
The article provides insights for the researchers and the practitioners playing
both the user and development roles on the future needs for knowledge systems
based on PLM
Responsibility modelling for civil emergency planning
This paper presents a new approach to analysing and understanding civil emergency planning based on the notion of responsibility modelling combined with HAZOPS-style analysis of information requirements. Our goal is to represent complex contingency plans so that they can be more readily understood, so that inconsistencies can be highlighted and vulnerabilities discovered. In this paper, we outline the framework for contingency planning in the United Kingdom and introduce the notion of responsibility models as a means of representing the key features of contingency plans. Using a case study of a flooding emergency, we illustrate our approach to responsibility modelling and suggest how it adds value to current textual contingency plans
Contested modelling
We suggest that the role and function of expert computational modelling in real-world decision-making needs scrutiny and practices need to change. We discuss some empirical and theory-based improvements to the coupling of the modelling process and the real world, including social and behavioural processes, which we have expressed as a set of questions that we believe need to be answered by all projects engaged in such modelling. These are based on a systems analysis of four research initiatives, covering different scales and timeframes, and addressing the complexity of intervention in a sustainability context. Our proposed improvements require new approaches for analysing the relationship between a project’s models and its publics. They reflect what we believe is a necessary and beneficial dialogue between the realms of expert scientific modelling and systems thinking. This paper is an attempt to start that process, itself reflecting a robust dialogue between two practitioners sat within differing traditions, puzzling how to integrate perspectives and achieve wider participation in researching this problem space. 
Deferred Action: Theoretical model of process architecture design for emergent business processes
E-Business modelling and ebusiness systems development assumes fixed company resources,
structures, and business processes. Empirical and theoretical evidence suggests that company resources
and structures are emergent rather than fixed. Planning business activity in emergent contexts requires
flexible ebusiness models based on better management theories and models . This paper builds and
proposes a theoretical model of ebusiness systems capable of catering for emergent factors that affect
business processes. Drawing on development of theories of the ‘action and design’class the Theory of
Deferred Action is invoked as the base theory for the theoretical model. A theoretical model of flexible
process architecture is presented by identifying its core components and their relationships, and then
illustrated with exemplar flexible process architectures capable of responding to emergent factors.
Managerial implications of the model are considered and the model’s generic applicability is discussed
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