Poor requirements can lead to cost and schedule overruns and are therefore a source of low quality products and stressful work environments. This paper introduces a “responsive constructivist” paradigm for use by systems engineers to address these concerns. The paradigm is “responsive” to stakeholder statements in a nonlinear but methodological manner. “Constructivist” refers to the abstract construction of problem space based on a linguistic understanding of the various stakeholder's worldview of the problem, not necessarily upon the “preordinate positivist” beliefs of science. This paradigm asserts the necessity of approaching requirements such that the human component is more formally embraced. This challenges requirements engineers to evaluate their own stance of curiosity and neutrality. Additionally, questioning types and patterns aid to gather different views of the problem. This responsive constructivist systems engineering paradigm can improve the quality of interpersonal communications, thereby resulting in higher quality requirements and alternate problem abstractions.

Human beings and the dynamics of human interaction are central features of systems engineering. Since engineers are often technically oriented, understanding and dealing with this human dimension can become problematic. Built upon the technical foundations of General Systems Theory and cybernetics, a human systems theory may provide systems engineers a more rigorous way to understand themselves, other team members, and stakeholders. This paper gives the historical development and general description of human systems theory with examples to help communicate meaning. This theory can give systems engineers a better understanding of the human dimension of systems engineering, thereby enabling rigorous management of the system.

The integration of agricultural research results into information management and information transfer technologies can aid agricultural practitioners and farm managers in understanding complex interactions among farming systems components, and in improving whole‐farm resource management. Systems approaches discussed in agricultural literature can be classified as being science‐driven or technology‐driven. Although specific objectives associated with these approaches may be fundamentally different, they share many similar principles. Our main objectives are to identify the common principles of several different systems design and development approaches, and to discuss how we applied these principles to develop the farm management information system entitled Farmbook. Support within the agricultural research community for integration of these farming systems research/extension and systems engineering principles will make it possible to develop high quality farm‐based software for education and technology transfer and ultimately for more efficient agricultural management systems development. Research Question The integration of agricultural research results into multidisciplinary user‐oriented products can aid agricultural practitioners and farm managers in whole‐farm resource management. How to accomplish this integration in light of the extreme diversity found among farms and in nature, in addition to the compartmentalized infrastructure of agricultural science, is not completely clear. Literature Summary A mathematical and computer modeling approach is being used to integrate agricultural research into management aids. Although this approach has been tried for a number of years, the resultant products have not been widely adopted by farm managers or agricultural professionals. Alternative systems approaches that are complementary to the modeling approach have recently been suggested. Unfortunately, a lack of consensus exists in the agricultural literature pertaining to the specific details of what a systems approach is or how it should be performed. A proven practical principle of the systems approach, that reduces the risk of producing unusable products, is to include field personnel (farmers, consultants, extension specialists, etc.) in determining what the product should do and how it should function. Systems theory becomes practical by insisting that end‐users of the product be involved in its design and testing. Study Description The practicality of the systems approach will be demonstrated by comparing agricultural and nonagricultural systems literature to determine common principles. These systems principles are then demonstrated in the design and construction of the integrated farm management system entitled Farmbook. The goal of the Farmbook project is to produce farm‐based information systems that satisfy the farm managers real computing needs while integrating appropriate agricultural research results. Applied Questions What are some common principles of available systems approaches? Common principles ...