Relating structure and dynamics in organisation models

Abstract

To understand how an organisational structure relates to dynamics is an interesting fundamental challenge in the area of social modelling. Specifications of organisational structure usually have a diagrammatic form that abstracts from more detailed dynamics. Dynamic properties of agent systems, on the other hand, are often specified in the form of a set of logical formulae in some temporal language. This paper addresses the question how these two perspectives can be combined in one framework. It is shown how for different aggregation levels within an organisation structure, sets of dynamic properties can be specified. Organisational structure provides a structure of interlevel relationships between these multiple sets of dynamic properties. Thus organisational structure relates to specification of the dynamics of organisational behaviour. As an illustration, for Ferber and Gutknecht’s AGR organisation modelling approach it is shown how a foundation can be obtained for integrated specification of both structure and dynamic properties of an organisation.