Abstract
This article intends to discuss problems related to our understanding of the complex causes of so-called organizational accidents. Having acquired the academic currency, the notion of organizational accidents with the emphasis of distributed causes of them, however, has given rise to a series of both epistemological and practical problems. Focused in this paper is the clash between this notion and our tendency of seeking for more localized causes, such as a particular person or a single incident. Also the question of legal responsibility challenges the assumption of this notion. By spotlighting these cases, this paper concludes the inherent limitation of our understanding of accidents caused by the organizational or distributed network of causes.
