BCSSS

International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics

2nd Edition, as published by Charles François 2004 Presented by the Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science Vienna for public access.

About

The International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics was first edited and published by the system scientist Charles François in 1997. The online version that is provided here was based on the 2nd edition in 2004. It was uploaded and gifted to the center by ASC president Michael Lissack in 2019; the BCSSS purchased the rights for the re-publication of this volume in 200?. In 2018, the original editor expressed his wish to pass on the stewardship over the maintenance and further development of the encyclopedia to the Bertalanffy Center. In the future, the BCSSS seeks to further develop the encyclopedia by open collaboration within the systems sciences. Until the center has found and been able to implement an adequate technical solution for this, the static website is made accessible for the benefit of public scholarship and education.

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REFERENCE FRAMES (Evolving) 1)4)

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Reference frames-whether individual or socially more or less shared- are basically adaptive mental and behavioral devices, corresponding to specific situations.

However, fitness is not forever, precisely because situations do change. Any reference frame needs thus more or less frequent updating: it must be not only adapted, but also adaptive.

As observed for example by Th. KUHN in the case of scientific paradigms, such changes can be slow, difficult and even painful (in cases, they imply even impossible mental and/ or behavioral shifts for some people)

This necessity for change can lead either to dramatic discontinuities (mental troubles, revolutions), or to more or less peaceful transitions through psychological change in autopoietic ways or shifting consensus among people through conversation.

The present transition toward the "man-planet" system through so-called globalization would be possible without tragedies only through a deep evolutive reconstruction of individual and shared reference frames worldwide even if this is obviously a tall order.

→ Adaptability (or Adaptiveness); Consensus; Conversation; Framebraking; Learning (Systemic); Purpose in social systems; Social cybernetics; System (Self-modifying)

Categories

  • 1) General information
  • 2) Methodology or model
  • 3) Epistemology, ontology and semantics
  • 4) Human sciences
  • 5) Discipline oriented

Publisher

Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science(2020).

To cite this page, please use the following information:

Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science (2020). Title of the entry. In Charles François (Ed.), International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics (2). Retrieved from www.systemspedia.org/[full/url]

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