ABSTRACT
The process of review is the attempt by any kind of human system to attain an awareness of itself with regard to how it is functioning, at both manifest and latent levels, in order to achieve the tasks and purposes for which it exists. The purpose of review is to make sense of the system's inner life and to optimize its ongoing capability in a conscious way while remaining in tune and in touch with the wider system of which it is part. At a "macro" societal level, some form of review process is essential in order to prevent societies from slipping into a totalitarian or anarchic state. Two difficult issues must be raised in order to avoid being too emphatic about the merits of the review process. First, it needs a "safe" atmosphere; second, the process is limited by the extent of self-analysis that is possible among the participants.
