The hybrid approach you referred to I think reflects the sense of the sociotechnical process. I can’t imagine why people and organizations would not intentionally adopt that as the default position when considering organizational issues, and yet I see people polarizing around either or approach all time in my organization.
It seems to me that the engineering approach really appeals to people who think they have a good handle on the situational assumptions in the problem area he can rely on rules of cause and effect and planning factors lead them to a efficient and effective solution. The simplifying assumption that sociology doesn’t have a major effect and what they’re about to do can sometimes be warranted but is often the assumption that we come to regret later.