Defines human performance technology (HPT) as systems thinking applied to human resource activities, chronicles the emergence of HPT and the development of the HPT process model, and considers its use to define and implement high-performance work systems in information age organizations. (Author/LRW)

Emphasizes the important contributions of systems theory in the supervision process. A case study is used to illustrate how attention to the systemic contexts of the client, the supervisee, and the supervision process itself enlarge the possibilities for helpful change. The unifying themes of many systems theories are identified, and techniques…

Describes seven important characteristics of the performance environment that can affect a performance outcome. Topics discussed include the performance environment as an open system, performance variables that can affect outcomes, how performance can be improved, and how performance variables are interrelated. (LRW)

Reviews several general conceptual models that facilitate consultant's conceptual work. Notes that fundamental to effectiveness of consultation is consultant's ability to empower consultees conceptually. Presents and discusses several principles related to achieving this objective. Concludes with discussion targeted to objective of integrating…

Describes several approaches that could be used to test methods of promoting community, including initially using simple group and single-system research designs, operationally defining concepts, developing practical ways to measure these concepts, and focusing on evaluating the outcomes (and not the processes) of promoting a sense of community.…

The planning wheel considers the interaction of six components of program planning. Within a macro/micro systems approach, the model incorporates internal and external forces that influence economic development by capturing political, social, cultural, technological, and economic forces. (SK)

Examines a sample of the frameworks used to model human performance in organizations with respect to change orientation, theoretical basis, organizational results level, unit of analysis, and performance analysis. Contrasts organizational system and performance system frameworks with systematic process models of performance improvement. (Contains…

Knowledge management depends on understanding organizations as three-dimensional systems or environments with mechanistic, organic, and dynamic features. Knowledge managers must understand the nature of chaos and the methods and culture that use the ability of chaos to organize itself. (Contains 36 references.) (SK)

The authors present a theory of stochastic interactive parallel processing with special emphasis on channel interactions and their relation to system capacity. The approach is based both on linear systems theory augmented with stochastic elements and decisional operators and on a metatheory of parallel channels' dependencies that incorporates…

This contribution suggests a conceptual framework for using complexity to understand human interactions in learning organizations. The particular lens adopted for this purpose is that of the Chaos perspective. The following general concepts are described: discontinuous growth, attractors: their basins and landscapes, the chaordic properties of…

For Americans to engage in a global information society, it is critical that they have access to high-speed, high-bandwidth Internet, meaning broadband. Network connectivity opens up a wealth of possibilities to K-12 educators. While it has the potential to result in fundamental changes in teaching methods, it can definitely be used to enhance…

This article informs readers about early childhood in one of the poorest nations in the world--Ethiopia. Within the context of ecological systems theory, it emphasizes the characteristics of early education programs such as pre-school and basic (primary) education, and creates connections with families' views about education. The article concludes…

In this second part of the papers, exploring innovation processes from a complexity perspective, we present an empirical example to strengthen further the relevance of the approach. The example draws on a longitudinal research initiative conducted in cooperation with the Norwegian petroleum company Statoil ASA. We conducted our research into the…

As schools adopt new and varied technologies to protect the campus community, the need to look at security tools in terms of a comprehensive, layered, and integrated strategy, becomes clear. This article discusses how schools are using these security tools.

This article is an interpretive study of the theory of irreversible and dissipative systems process transformation of Nobel Prize winning physicist Ilya Prigogine and how it relates to the phenomenological study of leadership and organizational change in educational settings. Background analysis on the works of Prigogine is included as a…