A CRITIQUE OF SOCIAL SYSTEMS THEORY

摘要

The effort to develop a general theory of systems emerged from the hard sciences, both asrna way to look for larger, cross-disciplinary principles and to search for concepts thatrnmight apply to non-physical areas of study. Hard science approaches and methods, suchrnas those of physics, have continued as the standard by which all other disciplines arernjudged, despite the obvious failure of these in the social arenas. The development of anrnadequate and effective approach to social systems is likely to require the inclusion ofrnother ways of knowing, possibly even more ancient approaches that were dismissed byrnscience along the way.