Communication and Knowledge Networks as Complex Systems

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter R. Monge ◽  
Noshir Contractor
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Complex Systems ◽  
Systems Theory ◽  
Knowledge Networks ◽  
Social Success ◽  
Herbert Spencer ◽  
The Social ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Secure Networks ◽  
Wealth Of Nations

The concept of a system has a long and distinguished history in the social sciences. In fact, Mattelart and Mattelart (1998) claim that “the idea of society as an organism, that is, a whole composed of organs performing predetermined functions, inspired the earliest conceptions of a ‘science of communication’”. We begin this chapter with a brief historical overview of the major systems perspectives that have been utilized in social theory and research: structural-functionalism, cybernetics, and general systems theory. We then apply recent developments in complex systems theories to organizational networks. In doing so, we look at communication and knowledge networks from the perspective of agent-based modeling and self-organizing systems. Mattelart and Mattelart (1998) trace the early growth of systems thinking in the social sciences. Adam Smith’s (1776) classic work, The Wealth of Nations, postulated that a laissez-faire system, the division of labor, and channels of communication and transportation were crucial aspects of economic prosperity. The key to economic and therefore social success was the unrestricted circulation of messages, materials, and money through secure networks. According to Mattelart and Mattelart (1998), Francois Quesnay, a French physician and economist, published an economic chart (tableau economique) in 1758. “The chart offers a macroscopic vision of an economy of ‘flows’ in the form of a geometrical zigzag figure in which the lines expressing exchange between human beings and the land, as well as among the three classes making up society, cut across each other and become intertwined”. The Mattelarts note that Claude Henri de Saint Simon’s eighteenth-century work also applied systems theory to the concept of networks. Saint-Simons’s theory conceived of society as “an organic system, a bundle or fabric of networks.... He attributed strategic importance to the development of a system of communication routes”. Out of this background Herbert Spencer (1820–1903) developed the first integrated theory of society built on a direct analogy with biological systems.

scholarly journals Assemblage theory: coping with complexity in technology enhanced language learning

2019 ◽  
pp. 280-284
Author(s):  
Blair Matthews
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Complex Systems ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Assemblage Theory ◽  
The Social ◽  
Language Classroom ◽  
Language Classrooms ◽  
Theory Of Complexity

Language classrooms are complex systems, but theory often simplifies these processes making researching effectiveness difficult. Assemblage theory – a theory of complexity in the social sciences – allows us to examine complexity in the language classroom. In this paper, I present an account of the language classroom that captures the complexity, subjectivity, and temporality of technology enhanced language learning.

Environment and Health Research in China: The State of the Field

2013 ◽  
Vol 214 ◽  
pp. 255-282 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Holdaway
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Social Science ◽  
International Collaboration ◽  
Health Research ◽  
Social Science Research ◽  
Science Research ◽  
Environment And Health ◽  
The Social ◽  
Recent Developments

AbstractIn the context of this symposium, this article reviews social science research in the emerging field of environment and health in China, with a particular focus on the impacts of pollution. It begins with a discussion of the particular nature of China's environment-related health problems, distinguishing the different challenges presented by diseases of poverty, affluence and transition. It then reviews recent developments in policy and civil society with regard to environment and health, and the extent to which work in the social sciences has advanced our knowledge of these and of state–society interactions. The article concludes with some reflections on the need for and challenges of interdisciplinary and international collaboration in this area.

Introduction

2020 ◽  
pp. xxviii-30
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Bloxam ◽  
Ian Shaw
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
Heritage Management ◽  
Cultural Heritage Management ◽  
The Social ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Fresh Perspective ◽  
Research Questions

This chapter discusses a range of current debates into the ways in which Egyptologists are engaging with the problems and demands of moving towards greater collaborations across the social sciences if it is to remain a relevant discipline in its own right. Viewpoints from contributing authors are synthesized into a discussion of recent developments in the field from fresh research across both the archaeological and textual arms of the discipline. The volume considers the extent to which scholars need to be revising and re-thinking their research questions and moving towards greater collaborations within the discipline, and crucially outside of it. Moving the discipline forward is also about including voices outside of western discourses and into volumes such as this. The contributions from Chinese and Egyptian scholars therefore bring a fresh perspective to some current problems in Egyptological research particularly in cultural heritage management, museum curation, and investigating archaeological landscapes.

On Systems and International Regimes

1975 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 147-174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ernst B. Haas
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
International Relations ◽  
Systems Theory ◽  
Inverse Relationship ◽  
Science And Technology ◽  
International Regimes ◽  
International Action ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Creation

As the consequences of science and technology impinge more and more on international relations, states attempt to deal with the promise and dangers implicit in these consequences by the creation of international regimes. The nature and scope of such regimes are justified, in part, by the scientific and technological givens with which they are to deal. Increasingly, however, the process of justification is dominated by constructs and arguments taken from systems theory, thus mixing the epistemological styles of the natural and the social sciences. It is often not clear whether justification in terms of systems theory is rhetoric or based on demonstrated isomorphisms. The article seeks to answer this question by presenting a four-fold typology of systems theories together with their assumptions and relevance to the creation of international regimes. The article then examines three specific proposals for international action on science and technology, prepared under OECD auspices, in order to demonstrate the extent to which they rely on systems theory and to determine how persuasive the systemic justification is. The conclusion: there is an inverse relationship between the elaborateness of the systemic justification and the acceptability of the regime on logical, empirical, and moral grounds.

scholarly journals ¿Es posible la mano invisible?

2019 ◽  
pp. 213-247
Author(s):  
Martín Krause
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Evolutionary Psychology ◽  
Jel Classification ◽  
Invisible Hand ◽  
Large Field ◽  
Social Cooperation ◽  
Palabras Clave ◽  
The Social ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
The Invisible

One of the main contributions of economics to the social sciences, expressed in the famous metaphor of the “invisible hand”, ended up being questioned by a good part of the economists. Based on the assumption of an individual maximizer of monetary utility, the social cooperation in which it con- sists failed, and it was not possible to expect it to succeed. However, recent developments in various areas have provided new elements in favor of its pos- sibility, its sustainability over time, and its extension to larger groups. In this work we will consider the recent contributions related to this topic in Game The- ory, Experimental Economics, Evolutionary Psychology and the analysis of his- torical cases that help to elucidate the theory and confirm its concepts. It will be considered how these areas of the social sciences have contributed with new elements to the understanding of social cooperation and voluntary actions. It concludes by stating that the invisible hand failure should, at least, be ques- tioned, and that there is still a large field to be developed in the analysis of these spontaneous orders, although there have been great contributions in recent decades. Keywords: Invisible hand, social cooperation, Game Theory, Experimental Eco- nomics, Evolutionary Psychology JEL classification: A12, C71, C92, D71, D91, H41 Resumen: Una de las principales contribuciones de la economía a las ciencias sociales, expresada en la famosa metáfora de la “mano invisible”, terminó siendo cuestionada por buena parte de los economistas. En base al supuesto de un individuo maximizador de utilidad monetaria, la cooperación social en que ésta consiste fracasaba, no era posible esperar que tuviera éxito. No obstante, recientes desarrollos en diversas áreas han brindado nuevos elemen- tos en favor de la misma, su posibilidad, su sostenibilidad en el tiempo, su extensión a grupos de mayor tamaño. En este trabajo consideraremos las con- tribuciones recientes relacionadas con este tema en Teoría de los Juegos, Economía Experimental, Psicología Evolutiva y el análisis de casos históricos que contribuyen a dilucidar la teoría y confirmar sus conceptos. Se considerará cómo estas áreas de las ciencias sociales aportan nuevos elementos para la comprensión de la cooperación social y las acciones voluntarias. Se concluye planteando que su fracaso debería, al menos, ser puesto en duda, y que hay un gran campo a desarrollar todavía en el análisis de esos órdenes espontá- neos, aunque ha habido grandes contribuciones en las últimas décadas. Palabras clave: Mano invisible, cooperación social, teoría de juegos, economía experimental, psicología evolutiva Clasificación JEL: A12, C71, C92, D71, D91, H41

scholarly journals What is innovation? New lessons from biology

2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 343
Author(s):  
Sergio F. Martínez
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Biological Sciences ◽  
Complex Systems ◽  
20Th Century ◽  
Evolutionary Models ◽  
Sharp Separation ◽  
Path Creation ◽  
Recent Advances ◽  
The Social

During the 19thcentury, evolutionary models of innovation followed a famous thesis of continuity, according to which methods and explanatory patterns of biology should have an important say in the social sciences. In the 20th century, this thesis was considered unacceptable as part of the sharp separation of biology from the social sciences. Recent advances in the biological sciences suggest a way in which a version of the thesis of continuity can be reinstated, to suggest new ways of explaining innovation in the social sciences. Key kinds of innovation can be explained in terms of the evolution of robust complex systems, interpreted as processes of path creation.

scholarly journals Causes and Consequences of Coalitional Cognition

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mina Cikara
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Intergroup Dynamics ◽  
Change Over Time ◽  
Coalitional Psychology ◽  
The Social ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Category Labels ◽  
Over Time

What is a group? How do we know to which groups we belong? How do we assign others to groups? A great deal of theorizing across the social sciences has conceptualized ‘groups’ as synonymous with ‘categories,’ however there are a number of limitations to this approach: particularly for making predictions about novel intergroup contexts or about how intergroup dynamics will change over time. Here I join a growing chorus of researchers striving to systematize the conditions under which a generalized coalitional psychology gets activated—the recognition of another’s capacity for and likelihood of coordination not only with oneself but with others. First I review some recent developments in the cognitive processes that give rise to the inference of coalitions and group-biased preferences (even in the absence of category labels). Then I review downstream consequences of inferences about capacity and likelihood of coordination for valuation, emotions, attribution, and inter-coalitional harm. Finally I review examples of how we can use these psychological levers to attenuate intergroup hostility.

Racial reality and unreality1

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karim Murji
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Natural Sciences ◽  
Social Constructionist ◽  
Socially Constructed ◽  
The Social ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Constructionist Approach ◽  
The Many ◽  
The Relationship

This chapter explores the debates on what race is. For some time, the dominant social constructionist approach in the social sciences has insisted that the only proper way to regard race is by refuting any connection with biology. Attention to the many ways in which race is socially constructed has been important; but, while a construction is not ‘unreal’, there is a common further step in which race is thereby deemed to be not valid. The rejection of race tends to treat race as something that would be ‘real’ if it were located in science and biology. The chapter then shows how recent developments in the natural sciences and changing views on the relationship between the natural and social sciences problematise that view. Yet in opposition to post-race views, critical scholars can then be seen to draw on conventional categories of race to show that racialised inequality still matters.

After the cultural turn: For a textural sociology

2019 ◽  
Vol 67 (3) ◽  
pp. 552-567 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eduardo de la Fuente
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Organizational Studies ◽  
Georg Simmel ◽  
Cultural Research ◽  
The Social ◽  
Practice Turn ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Surface Patterns ◽  
Cultural Turn

This article proposes the social sciences consider texture – rather than text − as the important legacy of the ‘cultural turn’ in the social sciences. The article considers texture in the literal sense of surface-patterns, as well as texture as a metaphor for the ‘dynamic’ and hard-to-capture qualities of social life. The article draws on the philosopher Stephen C. Pepper and the anthropologist Tim Ingold, the ‘practice turn’ in organizational studies and recent developments in geography and cultural research to map out different textural frameworks. While sociologists have lagged behind their counterparts in other fields in embracing a textural sensibility, the article considers the writings of Georg Simmel and the Yale School of Cultural Sociology as prominent exceptions to that rule. The article concludes by encouraging sociologists to consider the textural as a way into a ‘theoretical’ – as against a purely ‘methodological’ conception – of the qualitative.

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