Download or read book Beyond Theory written by Stephen Toulmin and published by John Benjamins Publishing. This book was released on 1996 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Action Research is one of the most practical and down-to-earth ways of doing research into working life. Beyond Theory draws on examples and actual cases to discuss action research within the framework of the modern, and postmodern, theory of science debate. While action research has been much criticized by the traditionalists, the book reflects a convergence between action research and positions emerging out of the critique of scientific traditionalism. Discussions between these two fields of knowledge, originally so very different, can enrich both. The book will be useful not only to researchers and academics but to anyone who is interested in the role and use of knowledge in social and organizational development.
Download or read book Beyond Systems Theory written by J. J. Thorp and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Handbook of Systems Sciences written by Gary S. Metcalf and published by Springer. This book was released on 2021-07-28 with total page 1443 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The primary purpose of this handbook is to clearly describe the current state of theories of systems sciences and to support their use and practice. There are many ways in which systems sciences can be described. This handbook takes a multifaceted view of systems sciences and describes them in terms of a relatively large number of dimensions, from natural and engineering science to social science and systems management perspectives. It is not the authors’ intent, however, to produce a catalog of systems science concepts, methodologies, tools, or products. Instead, the focus is on the structural network of a variety of topics. Special emphasis is given to a cyclic–interrelated view; for example, when a theory of systems sciences is described, there is also discussion of how and why the theory is relevant to modeling or practice in reality. Such an interrelationship between theory and practice is also illustrated when an applied research field in systems sciences is explained. The chapters in the handbook present definitive discussions of systems sciences from a wide array of perspectives. The needs of practitioners in industry and government as well as students aspiring to careers in systems sciences provide the motivation for the majority of the chapters. The handbook begins with a comprehensive introduction to the coverage that follows. It provides not only an introduction to systems sciences but also a brief overview and integration of the succeeding chapters in terms of a knowledge map. The introduction is intended to be used as a field guide that indicates why, when, and how to use the materials or topics contained in the handbook.
Download or read book General System Theory written by Ludwig von Bertalanffy and published by George Braziller. This book was released on 2015 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The classic book on a major modern theory
Download or read book Theory Beyond Structure and Agency written by Jean-Sébastien Guy and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2019-09-10 with total page 277 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book offers a solution for the problem of structure and agency in sociological theory by developing a new pair of fundamental concepts: metric and nonmetric. Nonmetric forms, arising in a crowd made out of innumerable individuals, correspond to social groups that divide the many individuals in the crowd into insiders and outsiders. Metric forms correspond to congested zones like traffic jams on a highway: individuals are constantly entering and leaving these zones so that they continue to exist, even though the individuals passing through them change. Building from these concepts, we can understand “agency” as a requirement for group identity and group membership, thus associating it with nonmetric forms, and “structure” as a building-up effect following the accumulation of metric forms. This reveals the contradiction between structure and agency to be a case of forced perspective, leaving us victim to an optical illusion.
Download or read book Complex Systems Chaos and Beyond written by Kunihiko Kaneko and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2011-06-28 with total page 284 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book, the first in a series on this subject, is the outcome of many years of efforts to give a new all-encompassing approach to complex systems in nature based on chaos theory. While maintaining a high level of rigor, the authors avoid an overly complicated mathematical apparatus, making the book accessible to a wider interdisciplinary readership.
Download or read book Engineering a Safer World written by Nancy G. Leveson and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2012-01-13 with total page 555 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A new approach to safety, based on systems thinking, that is more effective, less costly, and easier to use than current techniques. Engineering has experienced a technological revolution, but the basic engineering techniques applied in safety and reliability engineering, created in a simpler, analog world, have changed very little over the years. In this groundbreaking book, Nancy Leveson proposes a new approach to safety—more suited to today's complex, sociotechnical, software-intensive world—based on modern systems thinking and systems theory. Revisiting and updating ideas pioneered by 1950s aerospace engineers in their System Safety concept, and testing her new model extensively on real-world examples, Leveson has created a new approach to safety that is more effective, less expensive, and easier to use than current techniques. Arguing that traditional models of causality are inadequate, Leveson presents a new, extended model of causation (Systems-Theoretic Accident Model and Processes, or STAMP), then shows how the new model can be used to create techniques for system safety engineering, including accident analysis, hazard analysis, system design, safety in operations, and management of safety-critical systems. She applies the new techniques to real-world events including the friendly-fire loss of a U.S. Blackhawk helicopter in the first Gulf War; the Vioxx recall; the U.S. Navy SUBSAFE program; and the bacterial contamination of a public water supply in a Canadian town. Leveson's approach is relevant even beyond safety engineering, offering techniques for “reengineering” any large sociotechnical system to improve safety and manage risk.
Download or read book Ecological Communication written by Niklas Luhmann and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 1989-08-15 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Niklas Luhmann is widely recognized as one of the most original thinkers in the social sciences today. This major new work further develops the theories of the author by offering a challenging analysis of the relationship between society and the environment. Luhmann extends the concept of "ecology" to refer to any analysis that looks at connections between social systems and the surrounding environment. He traces the development of the notion of "environment" from the medieval idea—which encompasses both human and natural systems—to our modern definition, which separates social systems from the external environment. In Luhmann's thought, human beings form part of the environment, while social systems consist only of communications. Utilizing this distinctive theoretical perspective, Luhmann presents a comprehensive catalog of society's reactions to environmental problems. He investigates the spheres of the economy, law, science, politics, religion, and education to show how these areas relate to environmental issues. Ecological Communication is an important work that critically examines claims central to our society—claims to modernity and rationality. It will be of great importance to scholars and students in sociology, political science, philosophy, anthropology, and law.
Download or read book Theory Beyond Structure and Agency written by Jean-Sébastien Guy and published by Palgrave Macmillan. This book was released on 2020-09-20 with total page 277 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book offers a solution for the problem of structure and agency in sociological theory by developing a new pair of fundamental concepts: metric and nonmetric. Nonmetric forms, arising in a crowd made out of innumerable individuals, correspond to social groups that divide the many individuals in the crowd into insiders and outsiders. Metric forms correspond to congested zones like traffic jams on a highway: individuals are constantly entering and leaving these zones so that they continue to exist, even though the individuals passing through them change. Building from these concepts, we can understand “agency” as a requirement for group identity and group membership, thus associating it with nonmetric forms, and “structure” as a building-up effect following the accumulation of metric forms. This reveals the contradiction between structure and agency to be a case of forced perspective, leaving us victim to an optical illusion.
Download or read book Bringing Systems Thinking to Life written by Ona Cohn Bregman and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2011-01-07 with total page 440 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In a single volume, Bringing Systems Thinking to Life: Expanding the Horizons for Bowen Family Systems Theory presents the extraordinary diversity and breadth of Bowen theory applications that address human functioning in various relationship systems across a broad spectrum of professions, disciplines, cultures, and nations. Providing three chapters of never-before-published material by Dr. Bowen, the book also demonstrates the transcendent nature and versatility of Bowen theory-based social assessment and its extension into fields of study and practice far beyond the original psychiatric context in which it was first formulated including social work, psychology, nursing, education, literary studies, pastoral care and counseling, sociology, business and management, leadership studies, distance learning, ecological science, and evolutionary biology. Providing ample evidence that Bowen theory has joined that elite class of theories that have enjoyed broad application to social phenomena while lending credibility to the claim that Bowen theory is one of the previous and current centuries’ most significant social-behavioral theories. More than a “resource manual” for Bowen theory enthusiasts, this book helps put a new great theory on the intellectual landscape.
Download or read book Beyond Natural Selection written by Robert G. Wesson and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 1993 with total page 382 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: proposes an approach to evolution that is more in harmony with modern science than Darwinism or neo-Darwinism
Download or read book Beyond Equilibrium Theory written by M. Ross DeWitt and published by University Press of America. This book was released on 2000 with total page 372 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Beyond Equilibrium Theory is a fundamentally new interpretation of social reality that introduces theories of social formation and transformation, for micro- and macro-analysis of action systems and social movements. Equilibrium and conflict are viewed as societal variants rather than as ideal or natural states. Classical theorists are placed within a common theoretical framework, in an analysis of social order and social change as separate continua. Multiple path models trace changing patterns of partnering and power sharing. Hypotheses are tested with field-collected survey data, regression analysis of higher-order interactions, and comparisons of means adjusted for other effects. Researchers are provided with detailed methods of integrating theory and research, including nonlinear models and new logics of causality.
Download or read book Moving Beyond Modern Portfolio Theory written by Jon Lukomnik and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2021-04-29 with total page 175 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Moving Beyond Modern Portfolio Theory: Investing That Matters tells the story of how Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT) revolutionized the investing world and the real economy, but is now showing its age. MPT has no mechanism to understand its impacts on the environmental, social and financial systems, nor any tools for investors to mitigate the havoc that systemic risks can wreck on their portfolios. It’s time for MPT to evolve. The authors propose a new imperative to improve finance’s ability to fulfil its twin main purposes: providing adequate returns to individuals and directing capital to where it is needed in the economy. They show how some of the largest investors in the world focus not on picking stocks, but on mitigating systemic risks, such as climate change and a lack of gender diversity, so as to improve the risk/return of the market as a whole, despite current theory saying that should be impossible. "Moving beyond MPT" recognizes the complex relations between investing and the systems on which capital markets rely, "Investing that matters" embraces MPT’s focus on diversification and risk adjusted return, but understands them in the context of the real economy and the total return needs of investors. Whether an investor, an MBA student, a Finance Professor or a sustainability professional, Moving Beyond Modern Portfolio Theory: Investing That Matters is thought-provoking and relevant. Its bold critique shows how the real world already is moving beyond investing orthodoxy.
Download or read book Social Interaction Systems written by Robert Freed Bales and published by Transaction Publishers. This book was released on 2001-03-01 with total page 417 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Social Interaction Systems is the culmination of a half century of work in the field of social psychology by Robert Freed Bales, a pioneer at the Department of Social Relations at Harvard University. Led by Talcott Parsons, Gordon W. Allport, Henry A. Murray, and Clyde M. Kluckhohn, the Harvard Project was intended to establish an integrative framework for social psychology, one based on the interaction process, augmented by value content analysis. Bales sees this approach as a personal involvement that goes far beyond the classical experimental approach to the study of groups. Bales developed SYMLOG, which stands for systematic multiple level observation of groups. The SYMLOG Consulting Group approach was worldwide as well as interactive. It created a data bank that made possible a search for general laws of human interaction far beyond anything thus far known. In his daring search for universal features, Bales redefines the fundamental boundaries of the field, and in so doing establishes criteria for the behavior and values of leaders and followers. Bales offers a new "field theory," an appreciation of the multiple contexts in which people live. Bales does not aim to eradicate differences, but to understand them. In this sense, the values inherent in any interaction situation permit the psychologist to appreciate the sources of polarization as they actually exist: between conservative and liberal, individualistic and authoritarian, libertarian and communitarian. Bales repeatedly emphasizes that the mental processes of individuals and their social interactions take place in systematic contexts which can be measured. Hence they permit explanation and prediction of behavior in a more exact way than in past traditions. Bales has offered a pioneering work that has the potential to move us into a new theoretical epoch no less than a new century. His work holds out the promise of synthesis and support for psychologists, sociologists, and all who work with groups and organizations of all kinds.
Download or read book Creative Systems Theory written by Charles M. Johnston and published by Charles Johnston MD. This book was released on 2021-04-05 with total page 648 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is the place to go for a deep dive into the forward-thinking, multi-faceted ideas of Creative Systems Theory. From the book's back cover: "Creative Systems Theory brings big-picture, long-term perspective to understanding who we are and why we think and act in the ways that we do. It is pertinent equally to appreciating the past, teasing apart current cultural challenges, and making sense of what a vital human future will require of us. This is the definitive work on Creative Systems Theory and its implications. "At a practical level, Creative Systems Theory provides powerful tools for making effective choices in both our personal and our collective lives. More conceptually, it makes a major contribution to the history of ideas. It clarifies how, while modern age institutions, values, and ways of thinking have served us well, they cannot be sufficient for the tasks ahead. And it offers a comprehensive approach to understanding that reflects the more mature and encompassing kind of thinking that will become more and more essential in times ahead. "This volume brings together fifty years of committed inquiry and practical application. It is part guidebook, part memoir, part compilation, and part an effort to extend Creative Systems Theory's thinking just as far into the future as is possible."
Download or read book Hamiltonian Chaos Beyond the KAM Theory written by Albert C. J. Luo and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2011-01-04 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Hamiltonian Chaos Beyond the KAM Theory: Dedicated to George M. Zaslavsky (1935—2008)” covers the recent developments and advances in the theory and application of Hamiltonian chaos in nonlinear Hamiltonian systems. The book is dedicated to Dr. George Zaslavsky, who was one of three founders of the theory of Hamiltonian chaos. Each chapter in this book was written by well-established scientists in the field of nonlinear Hamiltonian systems. The development presented in this book goes beyond the KAM theory, and the onset and disappearance of chaos in the stochastic and resonant layers of nonlinear Hamiltonian systems are predicted analytically, instead of qualitatively. The book is intended for researchers in the field of nonlinear dynamics in mathematics, physics and engineering. Dr. Albert C.J. Luo is a Professor at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, USA. Dr. Valentin Afraimovich is a Professor at San Luis Potosi University, Mexico.
Download or read book Non Western International Relations Theory written by Amitav Acharya and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2009-12-22 with total page 253 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Introduces non-Western IR traditions to a Western IR audience, and challenges the dominance of Western theory. This book challenges criticisms that IR theory is Western-focused and therefore misrepresents much of world history by introducing the reader to non-Western traditions, literature and histories relevant to how IR is conceptualised.
