"The determination of the average man is not merely a matter of speculative curiosity; it may be of the most important service to the science of man and the social system. It ought necessarily to precede every other inquiry into social physics, since it is, as it were, the basis. The average man, indeed, is in a nation what the centre of gravity is in a body; it is by having that central point in view that we arrive at the apprehension of all the phenomena of equilibrium and motion." (Adolphe Quetelet, "A Treatise on Man and the Development of his Faculties", 1842)
"Social structures are the products of social synergy, i.e., of the interaction of different social forces, all of which, in and of themselves, are destructive, but whose combined effect, mutually checking, constraining, and equilibrating one another, is to produce structures. The entire drift is toward economy, conservatism, and the prevention of waste. Social structures are mechanisms for the production of results, and the results cannot be secured without them. They are reservoirs of power."
"Social organizations are flagrantly open systems in that the
input of energies and the conversion of output into further energy input
consists of transactions between the organization and its environment." (Daniel
Katz, "The Social Psychology of Organizations", 1929)
"For the state centralisation is the appropriate form of organisation, since it aims at the greatest possible uniformity in social life for the maintenance of political and social equilibrium. But for a movement whose very existence depends on prompt action at any favourable moment and on the independent thought and action of its supporters, centralism could but be a curse by weakening its power of decision and systematically repressing all immediate action. [...] Organisation is, after all, only a means to an end. When it becomes an end in itself, it kills the spirit and the vital initiative of its members and sets up that domination by mediocrity which is the characteristic of all bureaucracies." (Rudolf Rocker, "Anarcho-Syndicalism", 1938)
"Every social system is a functioning entity. That is, it is
a system of interdependent structures and processes such that it tends to
maintain a relative stability and distinctiveness of pattern and behaviour as
an entity by contrast with its - social or other - environment, and with it a
relative independence from environmental forces. It 'responds' , to be
sure, to the environmental stimuli, but is not completely assimilated to its
environment, maintaining rather an element of distinctiveness in the face of
variations in environmental conditions. To this extent it is analogous to an
organism." (Talcott Parsons, "Propaganda and Social Control", 1942)
"The technology is the independent variable, the social system the dependent variable. Social systems are therefore determined by systems of technology; as the latter change, so do the former." (Leslie White, "The Science of Culture", 1949)
"A social system consists in a plurality of individual actors interacting with each other in a situation which has at least a physical or environmental aspect, actors who are motivated in terms of a tendency to the 'optimization of gratification' and whose relation to their situations, including each other, is defined and mediated in terms of a system of culturally structured and shared symbols." (Talcott Parsons, "The Social System", 1951)
"A social system is a mode of organization of action elements relative to the persistence or ordered processes of change of the interactive patterns of a plurality of individual actors." (Talcott Parsons, "The Social System", 1951)
"Culture has been distinguished from the other elements of action by the fact that it is intrinsically transmissible from one action system to another from personality to personality by learning and from social system to social system by diffusion. This is because culture is constituted by 'ways of orienting and acting', these ways being 'embodied in' meaningful symbols." (Talcott Parsons, "Toward a general theory of action", 1951)
"The thing that distinguishes social systems from physical or
even biological systems is their incomparable (and embarrassing) richness in
special cases. Generalizations in the social sciences are mere pathways which
lead through a riotous forest of individual trees, each a species unto itself." (Kenneth
Boulding, "Evidences for an Administrative Science: A review of the
Administrative", Science Quarterly Vol. 1-2, 1958)
"An organization which depends solely upon its blueprints of
prescribed behavior is a very fragile social system." (Daniel Katz, "The
motivational basis of organizational behavior", Behavioral science, 1964)
"Negative feedback is the form normally encountered in the control of physical systems. Yet, positive feedback dominates in the growth and decline patterns of social systems." (Jay W Forrester, "Modeling the Dynamic Processes of Corporate Growth", 1964)
"Our social systems are highly nonlinear. It seems likely
that such nonlinearities, coupled with the unstable tendencies caused by amplifications and time delays, create the characteristic modes of behavior […]" (Jay
W Forrester, "Modeling the Dynamic Processes of Corporate Growth", 1964)
"System theory is basically concerned with problems of relationships, of structure, and of interdependence rather than with the constant attributes of objects. In general approach it resembles field theory except that its dynamics deal with temporal as well as spatial patterns. Older formulations of system constructs dealt with the closed systems of the physical sciences, in which relatively self-contained structures could be treated successfully as if they were independent of external forces. But living systems, whether biological organisms or social organizations, are acutely dependent on their external environment and so must be conceived of as open systems." (Daniel Katz, "The Social Psychology of Organizations", 1966)
"A system of opinions which, being founded on a system of
accepted values, determines the attitudes and behavior of men with respect to
desired objectives of development of the society, social group or individual." (Adam
Schaff, "Functional Definition, Ideology, and the Problem of the 'fin du
siècle' of Ideology, L'Homme et la Société, 1967)
"Trust is an important lubricant of a social system. It is extremely efficient; it saves a lot of trouble to have a fair degree of reliance on other people's word. Unfortunately this is not a commodity which can be bought very easily. If you have to buy it, you already have some doubts about what you have bought." (Kenneth Arrow, "The Limits of Organization", 1974)
"When you are confronted by any complex social system […] with things about it that you’re dissatisfied with and anxious to fix, you cannot just step in and set about fixing with much hope of helping. This realization is one of the sore discouragements of our century […] You cannot meddle with one part of a complex system from the outside without the almost certain risk of setting off disastrous events that you hadn’t counted on in other, remote parts. If you want to fix something you are first obliged to understand […] the whole system. […] Intervening is a way of causing trouble." (Lewis Thomas, "The Medusa and the Snail: More Notes of a Biology Watcher", 1974)
"In a biological or social system each holon must assert its individuality in order to maintain the system's stratified order, but it must also submit to the demands of the whole in order to make the system viable. These two tendencies are opposite but complementary. In a healthy system - an individual, a society, or an ecosystem - there is a balance between integration and self-assertion. This balance is not static but consists of a dynamic interplay between the two complementary tendencies, which makes the whole system flexible and open to change." (Fritjof Capra, "The Turning Point: Science, Society, and the Turning Culture", 1982)
"The world is a complex, interconnected, finite, ecological–social–psychological–economic system. We treat it as if it were not, as if it were divisible, separable, simple, and infinite. Our persistent, intractable global problems arise directly from this mismatch." (Donella Meadows, "Whole Earth Models and Systems", 1982)
"Organizations are (1) social entities that (2) are
goal-directed, (3) are designed as deliberately structured and coordinated
activity systems, and (4) are linked to the external environment." (Richard L Daft, "Organization Theory and Design", 1983)
"Markets are social organizations, structured and regulated
by more or less well-defined social rule systems." (Tom R Burns, "The shaping of
social organization", 1987)
"When it comes to very highly organized systems, such as a living cell, the task of modeling by approximation to simple, continuous and smoothly varying quantities is hopeless. It is for this reason that attempts by sociologists and economists to imitate physicists and describe their subject matter by simple mathematical equations is rarely convincing." (Paul C W Davies, "The Cosmic Blueprint: New Discoveries in Nature’s Creative Ability to Order the Universe", 1987)
"Coherence and harmony in relations and interactions between
the members of a human social system are due to the coherence and harmony of
their growth in it, in an ongoing social learning which their own social
(linguistic) operation defines and which is possible thanks to the genetic and
ontogenetic processes that permit structural plasticity of the members." (Humberto
Maturana, "The tree of Knowledge", 1992)
"There must be, however, cybernetic or homeostatic mechanisms for preventing the overall variables of the social system from going beyond a certain range. There must, for instance, be machinery for controlling the total numbers of the population; there must be machinery for controlling conflict processes and for preventing perverse social dynamic processes of escalation and inflation. One of the major problems of social science is how to devise institutions which will combine this overall homeostatic control with individual freedom and mobility." (Kenneth Boulding, "Economics of the coming spaceship Earth", 1994)
"First, social systems are inherently insensitive to most policy changes that people choose in an effort to alter the behavior of systems. In fact, social systems draw attention to the very points at which an attempt to intervene will fail. Human intuition develops from exposure to simple systems. In simple systems, the cause of a trouble is close in both time and space to symptoms of the trouble. If one touches a hot stove, the burn occurs here and now; the cause is obvious. However, in complex dynamic systems, causes are often far removed in both time and space from the symptoms. True causes may lie far back in time and arise from an entirely different part of the system from when and where the symptoms occur. However, the complex system can mislead in devious ways by presenting an apparent cause that meets the expectations derived from simple systems." (Jay W Forrester, "Counterintuitive Behavior of Social Systems", 1995)
"Second, social systems seem to have a few sensitive influence points through which behavior can be changed. These high-influence points are not where most people expect. Furthermore, when a high-influence policy is identified, the chances are great that a person guided by intuition and judgment will alter the system in the wrong direction." (Jay W Forrester, "Counterintuitive Behavior of Social Systems", 1995)
"Third, social systems exhibit a conflict between short-term and long-term consequences of a policy change. A policy that produces improvement in the short run is usually one that degrades a system in the long run. Likewise, policies that produce long-run improvement may initially depress behavior of a system. This is especially treacherous. The short run is more visible and more compelling. Short-run pressures speak loudly for immediate attention. However, sequences of actions all aimed at short-run improvement can eventually burden a system with long-run depressants so severe that even heroic short-run measures no longer suffice. Many problems being faced today are the cumulative result of short-run measures taken in prior decades." (Jay W Forrester, "Counterintuitive Behavior of Social Systems", 1995)
"Networks constitute the new social morphology of our societies, and the diffusion of networking logic substantially modifies the operation and outcomes in processes of production, experience, power, and culture. While the networking form of social organization has existed in other times and spaces, the new information technology paradigm provides the material basis for its pervasive expansion throughout the entire social structure." (Manuel Castells, "The Rise of the Network Society", 1996)
[systems dynamics:] "A field of study that includes a methodology for constructing computer simulation models to achieve better under-standing of social and corporate systems. It draws on organizational studies, behavioral decision theory, and engineering to provide a theoretical and empirical base for structuring the relationships in complex systems." (Virginia Anderson & Lauren Johnson, "Systems Thinking Basics: From Concepts to Casual Loops", 1997)
"In a closed system, the change in entropy must always be 'positive', meaning toward death. However, in open biological or social systems, entropy can be arrested and may even be transformed into negative entropy - a process of more complete organization and enhanced ability to transform resources. Why? Because the system imports energy and resources from its environment, leading to renewal. This is why education and learning are so important, as they provide new and stimulating input (termed neg-entropy) that can transform each of us." (Stephen G Haines, "The Managers Pocket Guide to Systems Thinking & Learning", 1998)
"[...] synergy is the consequence of the energy expended in creating order. It is locked up in the viable system created, be it an organism or a social system. It is at the level of the system. It is not discernible at the level of the system. It is not discernible at the level of the system’s components. Whenever the system is dismembered to examine its components, this binding energy dissipates." (J-C Spender, "Organizational Knowledge, Collective Practice and Penrose Rents", 1999)
"The tipping point is that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire." (Malcolm T Gladwell, "The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference", 2000)
"The theory of Tipping Points requires, however, that we reframe the way we think about the world. [...] We have trouble estimating dramatic, exponential change. [...] There are abrupt limits to the number of cognitive categories we can make and the number of people we can truly love and the number of acquaintances we can truly know. We throw up our hands at a problem phrased in an abstract way, but have no difficulty at all solving the same problem rephrased as a social dilemma. All of these things are expressions of the peculiarities of the human mind and heart, a refutation of the notion that the way we function and communicate and process information is straightforward and transparent. It is not. It is messy and opaque." (Malcolm T Gladwell, "The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference", 2000)
"Defined from a societal standpoint, information may be seen as an entity which reduces maladjustment between system and environment. In order to survive as a thermodynamic entity, all social systems are dependent upon an information flow. This explanation is derived from the parallel between entropy and information where the latter is regarded as negative entropy (negentropy). In more common terms information is a form of processed data or facts about objects, events or persons, which are meaningful for the receiver, inasmuch as an increase in knowledge reduces uncertainty." (Lars Skyttner, "General Systems Theory: Ideas and Applications", 2001)
"Chaos theory explains the ways in which natural and social systems organize themselves into stable entities that have the ability to resist small disturbances and perturbations. It also shows that when you push such a system too far it becomes balanced on a metaphoric knife-edge. Step back and it remains stable; give it the slightest nudge and it will move into a radically new form of behavior such as chaos."
"Organizations are complex social systems that sometimes
perform remarkably well and sometimes fail miserably. Organizational psychology
is a subfield within the larger domain of industrial/organizational psychology
that seeks to facilitate a greater understanding of social processes in
organizations. Organizational psychologists also seek to use these insights to
enhance the effectiveness of organizations - a goal that is potentially
beneficial to all." (Steve M Jex, "Organizational Psychology", 2002)
"A physical system is just that: a physical system. What is
systematized is matter itself, and the processes in which the system is
realized are also material. But a biological system is more complex: it is both
biological and physical — it is matter with the added component of life; and a
social system is more complex still: it is physical, and biological, with the
added component of social order, or value." (Michael Halliday, 2005)
"Social ecology is based on the conviction that nearly all of our present ecological problems originate in deep-seated social problems. It follows, from this view, that these ecological problems cannot be understood, let alone solved, without a careful understanding of our existing society and the irrationalities that dominate it. To make this point more concrete: economic, ethnic, cultural, and gender conflicts, among many others, lie at the core of the most serious ecological dislocations we face today—apart, to be sure, from those that are produced by natural catastrophes." (Murray Bookchin, "Social Ecology and Communalism", 2007)
"Any system, biological, economic, or social, that gets so encrusted that it cannot self-evolve, a system that systematically scorns experimentation and wipes out the raw material of innovation, is doomed over the long term on this highly variable planet." (Donella Meadows, "Thinking in Systems: A Primer", 2008)
"The butterfly effect demonstrates that complex dynamical systems are highly responsive and interconnected webs of feedback loops. It reminds us that we live in a highly interconnected world. Thus our actions within an organization can lead to a range of unpredicted responses and unexpected outcomes. This seriously calls into doubt the wisdom of believing that a major organizational change intervention will necessarily achieve its pre-planned and highly desired outcomes. Small changes in the social, technological, political, ecological or economic conditions can have major implications over time for organizations, communities, societies and even nations." (Elizabeth McMillan, "Complexity, Management and the Dynamics of Change: Challenges for practice", 2008)
"Enterprise engineering is an emerging discipline that studies enterprises from an engineering perspective. The first paradigm of this discipline is that enterprises are purposefully designed and implemented systems. Consequently, they can be re-designed and re-implemented if there is a need for change. The second paradigm of enterprise engineering is that enterprises are social systems. This means that the system elements are social individuals, and that the essence of an enterprise's operation lies in the entering into and complying with commitments between these social individuals." (Erik Proper, "Advances in Enterprise Engineering II", 2009)
"In short, synergy is the consequence of the energy expended in creating order. It is locked up in the viable system created, be it an organism or a social system. It is at the level of the system. It is not discernible at the level of the system. It is not discernible at the level of the system's components. Whenever the system is dismembered to examine its components, this binding energy dissipates." (J-C Spender, "Organizational Knowledge, Collective Practice and Penrose Rents", 2009)
"The real challenge to building a viable social system is the ability to create unity in diversity, meeting the varying interests of independent members operating in an interdependent whole. […] In the long run, the society and the individual either stand together or fall separately. A win/win relationship is achieved not through zero-sum or even compromise. For both of them to win requires reconceptualization of the nature and the relationship of the whole and the parts." (Jamshid Gharajedaghi, "Systems Thinking: Managing Chaos and Complexity A Platform for Designing Business Architecture" 3rd Ed., 2011)
"Complex systems defy intuitive solutions. Even a third-order, linear differential equation is unsolvable by inspection. Yet, important situations in management, economics, medicine, and social behavior usually lose reality if simplified to less than fifth-order nonlinear dynamic systems. Attempts to deal with nonlinear dynamic systems using ordinary processes of description and debate lead to internal inconsistencies. Underlying assumptions may have been left unclear and contradictory, and mental models are often logically incomplete. Resulting behavior is likely to be contrary to that implied by the assumptions being made about' underlying system structure and governing policies." (Jay W Forrester, "Modeling for What Purpose?", The Systems Thinker Vol. 24 (2), 2013)
"The universe of all things that exist may be understood as a universe of systems where a system is defined as any set of related and interacting elements. This concept is primitive and powerful and has been used increasingly over the last half-century to organize knowledge in virtually all domains of interest to investigators. As human inventions and social interactions grow more complex, general conceptual frameworks that integrate knowledge among different disciplines studying those emerging systems grow more important. Living systems theory (LST) instructs integrative research among biological and social sciences and related academic disciplines." (G A Swanson & James G Miller, "Living Systems Theory", 2013)
"Systems thinking is a discipline or process that considers how individual elements interact with one another as part of a whole entity. As an approach to solving problems, systems thinking uses relationships among individual elements and the dynamics of these relationships to explain the behavior of systems such as an ecosystem, social system, or organization." (Karen L Higgins, "Economic Growth and Sustainability: Systems Thinking for a Complex World", 2015)
"In the physics [entropy is the] rate of system´s messiness or disorder in a physical system. In the social systems theory - social entropy is a sociological theory that evaluates social behaviors using a method based on the second law of thermodynamics." (Justína Mikulášková et al, "Spiral Management: New Concept of the Social Systems Management", 2020)
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