yleiskokonaisuutta

Yleiskokonaisuus is a Finnish term referring to the overall or totality formed by the combination of its parts. It denotes a holistic view in which the interrelations between components matter as much as the components themselves. The word combines yleinen (general, overarching) with kokonaisuus (whole, total), emphasizing coherence, integration, and the avoidance of ad hoc fragmentation. In Finnish usage, yleiskokonaisuus is often contrasted with focusing on individual elements or sub-systems, instead highlighting how a system functions as an integrated whole.

In practice, the concept of yleiskokonaisuus is used in planning, design, engineering, education, and organizational management to describe the intended complete system. For example, in urban planning, the yleiskokonaisuus covers housing, transport, services, and green spaces as an interconnected regime rather than separate projects. In software development or systems engineering, it refers to the architecture and interfaces that ensure compatibility between modules. In education, it can describe the curriculum’s coherence, ensuring that learning objectives, content, and assessments align across subjects.

Key features of yleiskokonaisuus include interdependencies between parts, emergent properties not evident from individual components, and the need to balance efficiency, usability, and sustainability. It supports holistic evaluation and decision-making, prioritizing the integrity and long-term performance of the whole over the optimization of single parts. Related concepts include holism, systems thinking, and kokonaisuus as a general notion of a complete entity.