The Role of Friction in Complex Organization Networks

Abstract

We assume an organization comprising a vast number of participants with varying interests and skills. In order to contribute to a common project, the members are interconnected to each other impacting adjacent players by their own attitude via nonlinear functions. Hence, an organization is modelled using systems theory as nodes representing the single variables and local interaction functions impacting next neighbours. Any such system starts with arbitrary values, i.e., a random starting state vector, and eventually develops towards equilibrium in a system-specific manner. While a purely determined system follows the given differential equation systems and, therefore, exhibits at least some principally causal character, realistic models need to take in stochastic variations on all variables representing local ideas, constraints, likes and dislikes, therewith bringing in the most important aspect of creativity. This add-on enforces non-linear interaction aspects raising the unpredictability of the development paths to possibly chaotic behaviour. The aim of this research is to investigate the developing character of systems close to these limits of determinability where unimpeded development tends to instable and finally chaotic behaviour. Based on the fundamental concepts of controlling loops, the loss of determinism is elaborated and a principal limit of controlling strength based on the local complexity is described. On this background, the role of friction within an organizational system formed by the fundamental delay to all interactions is investigated. The introduction of some additional artificial friction is furthermore proposed to help stabilizing the system in the long run. May this even slow down the local stabilizing processes, friction is expected to dampen random side effects to some degree and, hence, providing some safety margins against fundamental instability plays a crucial role.