Cybernetics as the science of decision making

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present decision making as the decisive activity of controllers, necessary to correct deviations from a goal value in controlled systems by deciding on goal‐oriented actions.Design/methodology/approach – Using a functional approach it is shown how an increasing complexity of controller structures follows an increasing ability to make more complex decisions. Two applications are used to analyze that in detail: first, the controller structures necessary for Miller's living systems and for Beer's viable systems are presented in one comparable scheme. Second, a complex controller structure illustrates the basic requirements for a brain.Findings – Analyzing necessary decisions in Beer's viable systems it is shown how the elementary decisions found in feedback systems can be used as a first approximation for decision making. Hence, it is shown how principles of decision making determine the development of complex controller structures.Practical implications – The paper ...