The Unaccountability Machine

This is a new book. Condition: Brand New.

When we avoid taking a decision, what happens to it? In The Unaccountability Machine, Dan Davies examines why markets, institutions and even governments systematically generate outcomes that everyone involved claims not to want. He casts new light on the writing of Stafford Beer, a legendary economist who argued in the 1950s that we should regard organisations as artificial intelligences, capable of taking decisions that are distinct from the intentions of their members.

Management cybernetics was Beer's science of applying self-regulation in organisational settings, but it was largely ignored - with the result being the political and economic crises that that we see today. With his signature blend of cynicism and journalistic rigour, Davies looks at what's gone wrong, and what might have been, had the world listened to Stafford Beer when it had the chance.

Book details and technical specifications

Format: Paperback / softback
ISBN13: 9781788169554
Published: March 2025

Number of pages: 304
Width: 128 mm
Height: 196 mm
Depth: 24 mm

Publisher: Profile Books Ltd