A System Theoretical Approach to Situation Awareness : A holistic view of purposeful elements

Abstract: From the theories of Ackoff about system theory and how the management of an organization should perform, the concept of situation awareness is discussed. A short history of the situation awareness concept is given in the light of aviation and human cognition. Motives are given why it is of interest to explore the concept of SA. The Russian Theory of Activity (Activity Theory) is presented with the focus on the orientational activity to give the background for a comparison against the adaptive-learning management system as presented by Ackoff. As result a definition of SA is presented, the result of the comparison of theories is presented, discussed and summarized in a conceptual design and future research is presented.