Causal Linkages in Soft Systems: Ascertaining Causal Linkages among the Factors of Work Climate and the Measures of Effectiveness of Research Units in an R&D Organization

The systems approach is a means of studying the properties of things in relation, not just to their components, but also to the ways in which the components interact, both with each other and with their environment. Within this approach, the task of ascertaining causal linkages existing among the variables in soft systems (as against hard systems) is more complex as these are often messy and the objectives are hard to define. The study reported here has investigated into the causal relationships among the measures of effectiveness of research units of different laboratories under CSIR, India and the factors affecting the work climate of these units using structural equation modelling methodology and LISREL 7.16 program. Two causal models linking these dimensions have been developed.