Recent papers in Methodological and Epistemological Pluralism
Two basic concepts of critical systems thinking (CST) are ‘discourse’ and ‘emancipation’. Both concepts appear to give rise to a number of confusions. In this paper the author seeks to clarify the meaning and importance of... more
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Two basic concepts of critical systems thinking (CST) are ‘discourse’ and ‘emancipation’. Both concepts appear to give rise to a number of confusions. In this paper the author seeks to clarify the meaning and importance of these two concepts as they are used in his Critical Systems Heuristics (CSH), in distinction to the way they are usually understood in the systems literature. Four main points are made:
1. An adequate practical conception of critical systems thinking today needs to be based on a discursive theory of critique rather than a framework of critical methodology choice.
2. A discursive systems approach cannot be adequately conceived without considering the role of the public sphere.
3. The much-discussed emancipatory orientation of critical systems thinking inheres in the methodological requirements of rational discourse rather than in a personal act of faith (an emancipatory commitment) on the part of the systems practitioner.
4. Contrary to present conceptions of methodological pluralism or ‘complementarism’, the importance of the emancipatory orientation cannot be restricted to a subclass of problem situations and corresponding methodologies, for the emancipatory orientation is constitutive of all critical inquiry and practice.
These critical considerations lead to a redefinition of critical systems thinking, and to a new view of reflective professional practice in general, as critically systemic discourse.
1. An adequate practical conception of critical systems thinking today needs to be based on a discursive theory of critique rather than a framework of critical methodology choice.
2. A discursive systems approach cannot be adequately conceived without considering the role of the public sphere.
3. The much-discussed emancipatory orientation of critical systems thinking inheres in the methodological requirements of rational discourse rather than in a personal act of faith (an emancipatory commitment) on the part of the systems practitioner.
4. Contrary to present conceptions of methodological pluralism or ‘complementarism’, the importance of the emancipatory orientation cannot be restricted to a subclass of problem situations and corresponding methodologies, for the emancipatory orientation is constitutive of all critical inquiry and practice.
These critical considerations lead to a redefinition of critical systems thinking, and to a new view of reflective professional practice in general, as critically systemic discourse.
- by Werner Ulrich
- •
Abstract: Paul K. Feyerabend argues that the science is only one way of the thought forms which is developed by human but it’s not a form to produce accurate information. According to him, the science is not a way of producing a single... more
Abstract: Paul K. Feyerabend argues that the science is only one way of the thought forms which is developed by human but it’s not a form to produce accurate information. According to him, the science is not a way of producing a single and universal information. Science is just one of the many tools which the human have invented to cope with their environment. He would rather the pluralist perspective which allows the alternative thoughts than the monist paradigm in the process of the producing information. Because the science is in one aspect a religion or ideology, and in an another aspect is only one of the applications like parapsychology, astrology, legend, moreover fortune telling. Claim of superiority which is used by the science in order to be rational and empirical is useless. This claim of the science among alternative forms of information has led the science to be strong, oppressive and dangerous which cannot be left alone in its present-day in the world.
Key Words: Disciplinary Pluralism, Theoretical Pluralism, Methodological
Pluralism.
Key Words: Disciplinary Pluralism, Theoretical Pluralism, Methodological
Pluralism.
- by Serdar SAYGILI
- •
In an era of economic globalization shaped by hegemonic capitalism, resistance movements introduce different alternatives for a life beyond capitalism. The powerful and dominant system logic criticizes such movements for being utopian... more
In an era of economic globalization shaped by hegemonic capitalism, resistance movements introduce different alternatives for a life beyond capitalism. The powerful and dominant system logic criticizes such movements for being utopian dreamers with no pragmatic sense of plausible social change.
The 'ontology of the possible' for emancipatory social change is dominated by the coloniality of power and epistemic violence of modernity. Time becomes a powerful measurement tool developed by Western clocks in order to measure the successes and failures of social movements and categorize their impact on social change.
Based on the analysis of an ethnographic research with the campaign for Marichuy in Mexico, I argue that this indigenous movement constructs a conception of time related to social change, which challenge the Western notion of a measurable evolutionary timeline. Such iconoclastic strategy of indeterminacy becomes their emancipatory potential, which envisions the possibilities for emancipatory social change.
The purpose of this study is to contribute to a global conversation with scholarship and activism. Through a combination of theoretical literature and ethnographic data material, this thesis intends to challenge the status quo conception of time horizons for change.
Key words:
Emancipatory social change, time horizons, social movements, indigenous resistances, concrete utopias, system critique, participatory ethnography, neocolonialism, ontology of the possible, indeterminacy, Marichuy, CNI, CIG, EZLN, Zapatismo
The 'ontology of the possible' for emancipatory social change is dominated by the coloniality of power and epistemic violence of modernity. Time becomes a powerful measurement tool developed by Western clocks in order to measure the successes and failures of social movements and categorize their impact on social change.
Based on the analysis of an ethnographic research with the campaign for Marichuy in Mexico, I argue that this indigenous movement constructs a conception of time related to social change, which challenge the Western notion of a measurable evolutionary timeline. Such iconoclastic strategy of indeterminacy becomes their emancipatory potential, which envisions the possibilities for emancipatory social change.
The purpose of this study is to contribute to a global conversation with scholarship and activism. Through a combination of theoretical literature and ethnographic data material, this thesis intends to challenge the status quo conception of time horizons for change.
Key words:
Emancipatory social change, time horizons, social movements, indigenous resistances, concrete utopias, system critique, participatory ethnography, neocolonialism, ontology of the possible, indeterminacy, Marichuy, CNI, CIG, EZLN, Zapatismo
- by CLARA NEPPER WINTHER
- •
- by Constance Russell
- •
- 8
The environmental scholar experience by school-age children, and the sensational reflections, generated by their stimuli; are interesting to stipulate as aesthetic quality of educational centres. New data collecting instruments are... more
The environmental scholar experience by school-age children,
and the sensational reflections, generated by their stimuli; are
interesting to stipulate as aesthetic quality of educational centres.
New data collecting instruments are necessary, to allow researchers
approach smaller scholar voices. From Arts based Research and by
using fostering creativity techniques, we propose an instrument
that combines: participant observation, like a way to get closer; the
interview and visual language, to express answers; and documental
analysis by categories, to obtain information.
The study shows the results of plural research, developed at 3 schools
in Alicante city. It categorizes the preferred places between early years.
The conclusions demonstrate the relation between aesthetic
pleasure, pedagogic activities which stimulate all senses, and
educational environment.
and the sensational reflections, generated by their stimuli; are
interesting to stipulate as aesthetic quality of educational centres.
New data collecting instruments are necessary, to allow researchers
approach smaller scholar voices. From Arts based Research and by
using fostering creativity techniques, we propose an instrument
that combines: participant observation, like a way to get closer; the
interview and visual language, to express answers; and documental
analysis by categories, to obtain information.
The study shows the results of plural research, developed at 3 schools
in Alicante city. It categorizes the preferred places between early years.
The conclusions demonstrate the relation between aesthetic
pleasure, pedagogic activities which stimulate all senses, and
educational environment.
- by Amparo Alonso-Sanz
- •
The only paper for which the motto is 'Coherence first and coherence second'. Meant as a grand complement to another paper titled 'Demonstrations of Degree Absolutism: Zero and Four Quarters Ontologies'.
- by Nathan Coppedge
- •
The theory and practice of educational administration and management have been arenas of competing intellectual traditions. Related literature elaborates on the strength and weaknesses of various research methods and practices, the... more
The theory and practice of educational administration and management have been arenas of competing intellectual traditions. Related literature elaborates on the strength and weaknesses of various research methods and practices, the corresponding epistemologies and, ultimately, underlying philosophies of science. This entry opens with a historiography of administration and management studies and the question of whether educational administration and management constitutes a field of study in itself, and, if this is indeed the case, what could possibly be the field’s conditio sine qua non. It is suggested that it has been the very co-existence and co-evolution of contentious administrative practices and theories that give way to the field, which continues to be withstood by a tension between scholarly pluralism and an intuitive/instinctive (hence, categorically irrational) belief that there must be one single greatest research framework-methodology, epistemology and best practice. To maintain a salutary tension between theory and practice, as well as among multiple epistemological traditions- which has historically been the main concern and contention in the field- educational administration and management must continue aiming at the betterment of education as a whole by means of rational, honest and liberal debates instead of intellectual exclusivism and isolation.
- by Jae Park
- •
Professional competence in applied disciplines such as OR/MS requires both technical expertise and critically reflective skills. Yet, a widespread misconception has taken hold of the OR/MS community: 'critical' and 'emancipatory' systems... more
Professional competence in applied disciplines such as OR/MS requires both technical expertise and critically reflective skills. Yet, a widespread misconception has taken hold of the OR/MS community: 'critical' and 'emancipatory' systems methodologies are opposed to 'hard' and and 'soft' ones as if they were sensible alternatives. Accordingly, adequate 'methodology choice' is now widely considered a key condition of reflective professional practice; critical systems thinking (CST) is understood to deal mainly with this issue. The present paper argues that this conception of CST is neither theoretically sound nor conducive to reflective practice. Its reflections lead to a reconstitution of CST, and to a new vision of reflective professional practice in general, as critically systemic discourse.
- by Werner Ulrich
- •
This article reviews the research methods and methodologies employed by South African sociological researchers when conducting research, as published in academic peer-reviewed journals during the period of 1990 to 2009. Specific attention... more
This article reviews the research methods and methodologies employed by South African sociological researchers when conducting research, as published in academic peer-reviewed journals during the period of 1990 to 2009. Specific attention was given to trends in terms of qualitative and quantitative methodologies employed, as well as sampling, data collection and data analysis methods utilised. The article addresses, among others, the concern expressed in the literature that an over-emphasis on one approach is unhealthy for the development of the social sciences in a country; and it explores whether such an over-emphasis occurred. Data were obtained from a stratified, systematic sample of 111 research articles sourced from various online databases, and both cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses were conducted. Data analysis primarily involved the use of descriptive statistics, but bivariate analysis and chi-square tests were also employed. The main findings of the research are that, from 1990 to 2009, both quantitative and qualitative methodologies were employed to an equal extent, while among sampling methods non-probability methods predominated. Both local and international collaboration increased over the years, and a quantitative methodology was significantly more likely when international collaborators were involved.
- by Isabel Basson
- •
- 5
This research demonstrates the relevance of the evaluative cycle and its diverse methodological designs in small and medium enterprise (SME) policy. We structure our arguments based on the most common phases of the cycle, namely policy... more
This research demonstrates the relevance of the evaluative cycle and its diverse methodological designs in small and medium enterprise (SME) policy. We structure our arguments based on the most common phases of the cycle, namely policy justification, needs, policy theory, implementation, impact and efficiency assessments. We use an in-depth case study of public assistance to an SME to illustrate how findings from these phases go beyond the results of the additionality practice in SME policy. We employ the findings as starting points to discuss several methodological designs for the evaluation of entire programmes, policies and systems.
- by Arturo Vega
- •
This research, conducted by the author when a Senior Researcher at Newcastle University, UK, was funded by a UK governance organisation to help them assess, integrate and improve their understanding of the governed population.... more
This research, conducted by the author when a Senior Researcher at Newcastle University, UK, was funded by a UK governance organisation to help them assess, integrate and improve their understanding of the governed population.
ABSTRACT: Governance organisations have been urged to develop more holistic evidence-based approaches with partners to better deal with issues affecting the governed population. This presupposes an understanding of the population, yet there has been little research work addressing how governance organisations come to understand their governed population, nor how this understanding can be improved upon within such organisations.
This case study examined in-depth how understanding of a governed population was developed within one UK local governance organisation and it explored how such understanding might be developed and improved through more holistic and evidence-based organisational learning within the organisation and its governance partnerships.
The research methodology involved placement within the governance organisation, participant observations on several projects and innovative initiatives, observations within, across, and outside the organisation, and also interviews with varied key stakeholders.
The study examined:
- stakeholder engagement and networks
- current and varied understandings of the population
- mechanisms actually used for developing understandings
- the influence of context on organisational learning
and analysed these to arrive at a recommendations to improve organisational understanding of the governed population.
In the case studied, significant strengths were found: including innovative past learning trials for development, extensive ongoing networking activities, and many varied and accumulating quantitative datasets available across partnerships.
However, entrenched organisational approaches and practices constrained the development of holistic evidence-based understanding, for instance: the absence of systematic maintained collective learning processes; weak recording and forgetting of understandings; methodological exclusion of stakeholders from the development of understanding; the relative neglect of qualitative data, explanations, investigations, interpretations, and reflexivity; and also implicit organisational acceptance of such limitations and low aspirations.
Nonetheless, untapped opportunities existed to enable change including: latent practitioner knowledge and innovative management champions, the desire for improvement and raised aspirations within learning networks, and the development potential of alterative learning approaches.
It was concluded that more holistic evidence-based understanding was possible, but required new learning approaches beyond those then in use in both local government or academia.
Recommendations are made to utilise and develop improved organisational learning approaches trialed and reported in the case study.
It is argued that the case study findings, conclusions, and recommendations may be applicable to other similar local governance organisations and partnerships that seek to better understand local populations, services and interventions.
The work was also submitted for, and awarded, an MPhil (at Newcastle University, supervised by Prof. Patsy Healy)
ABSTRACT: Governance organisations have been urged to develop more holistic evidence-based approaches with partners to better deal with issues affecting the governed population. This presupposes an understanding of the population, yet there has been little research work addressing how governance organisations come to understand their governed population, nor how this understanding can be improved upon within such organisations.
This case study examined in-depth how understanding of a governed population was developed within one UK local governance organisation and it explored how such understanding might be developed and improved through more holistic and evidence-based organisational learning within the organisation and its governance partnerships.
The research methodology involved placement within the governance organisation, participant observations on several projects and innovative initiatives, observations within, across, and outside the organisation, and also interviews with varied key stakeholders.
The study examined:
- stakeholder engagement and networks
- current and varied understandings of the population
- mechanisms actually used for developing understandings
- the influence of context on organisational learning
and analysed these to arrive at a recommendations to improve organisational understanding of the governed population.
In the case studied, significant strengths were found: including innovative past learning trials for development, extensive ongoing networking activities, and many varied and accumulating quantitative datasets available across partnerships.
However, entrenched organisational approaches and practices constrained the development of holistic evidence-based understanding, for instance: the absence of systematic maintained collective learning processes; weak recording and forgetting of understandings; methodological exclusion of stakeholders from the development of understanding; the relative neglect of qualitative data, explanations, investigations, interpretations, and reflexivity; and also implicit organisational acceptance of such limitations and low aspirations.
Nonetheless, untapped opportunities existed to enable change including: latent practitioner knowledge and innovative management champions, the desire for improvement and raised aspirations within learning networks, and the development potential of alterative learning approaches.
It was concluded that more holistic evidence-based understanding was possible, but required new learning approaches beyond those then in use in both local government or academia.
Recommendations are made to utilise and develop improved organisational learning approaches trialed and reported in the case study.
It is argued that the case study findings, conclusions, and recommendations may be applicable to other similar local governance organisations and partnerships that seek to better understand local populations, services and interventions.
The work was also submitted for, and awarded, an MPhil (at Newcastle University, supervised by Prof. Patsy Healy)
- by Trevor Wren BSc MA MPhil PhD MBA
- •
This study aimed to explore the experiences, responses and conceptualizations of sense of presence experiences in bereavement in terms of family meaning-making. A case study framework was chosen, using group and individual interviews and... more
This study aimed to explore the experiences, responses and conceptualizations of sense of presence experiences in bereavement in terms of family meaning-making. A case study framework was chosen, using group and individual interviews and ethnographically-derived observations in a father-bereaved family in the south of England. Interview data were analyzed by applying both phenomenological and social constructionist perspectives to the same data set. It was observed that there was a division between the mother, who had derived much personal benefit from sense of presence experiences, and the children, who dismissed the experiences as incompatible with their own worldviews and how they made sense of their father’s death.
- by Edith Maria Steffen
- •
- 18
This entry on 'Critical systems thinking' (CST), prepared for a major encyclopedia in the field of Operations Research and Management Science, offers a non-partisan, comparative account of CST's two major strands, CSH and TSI. A new,... more
This entry on 'Critical systems thinking' (CST), prepared for a major encyclopedia in the field of Operations Research and Management Science, offers a non-partisan, comparative account of CST's two major strands, CSH and TSI. A new, integrative understanding of CST emerges in which both strands, although in different ways, focus on enhancing the contextual sophistication of professionals.
- by Werner Ulrich
- •
How can we develop competence in research and professional practice? This essay tries to answer the question from the perspective of critical systems thinking, that is, through an approach that aims to promote reflective research and... more
How can we develop competence in research and professional practice? This essay tries to answer the question from the perspective of critical systems thinking, that is, through an approach that aims to promote reflective research and practice. The paper is written for research students and practitioners in different professional fields. It addresses them in a direct and personal way.
Note: This article is a considerably expanded version of the Lincoln School of Management Working Paper No. 22 of June 1998 (also available in this site).
A further-expanded and updated version was prepared for Ulrich's Bimonthly, July-August 2017 (Vol. 15, No. 4, 28 August 2017) and is equally available in the Academia.edu site, see Section 'Philosophy for Professionals – on Good practice,' entry 'Ulrich, W. (2017)'.
Note: This article is a considerably expanded version of the Lincoln School of Management Working Paper No. 22 of June 1998 (also available in this site).
A further-expanded and updated version was prepared for Ulrich's Bimonthly, July-August 2017 (Vol. 15, No. 4, 28 August 2017) and is equally available in the Academia.edu site, see Section 'Philosophy for Professionals – on Good practice,' entry 'Ulrich, W. (2017)'.
- by Werner Ulrich
- •
Community education and outreach programs should be evidence-based. This dictum seems at once warranted, welcome, and slightly platitudinous. However, the ‘‘evidence based’’ movement’s more narrow definition of evidence—privileging... more
Community education and outreach programs should be evidence-based. This dictum seems at once warranted, welcome, and slightly platitudinous. However, the ‘‘evidence based’’ movement’s more narrow definition of evidence—privileging randomized controlled trials as the ‘‘gold standard’’—has fomented much debate. Such debate, though insightful, often lacks grounding in actual practice. To address that lack, the purpose of the study presented in this paper was to examine what actually happens, in practice, when people support the implementation of evidence-based programs (EBPs) or engage in related efforts to make non-formal education more ‘‘evidence-based.’’ Focusing on three cases—two adolescent sexual health projects (one in the United States and one in Kenya) and one more general youth development organization—I used qualitative methods to address the questions: (1) How is evidence-based program and evidence-based practice work actually practiced? (2) What perspectives and assumptions about what non-formal education is are manifested through that work? and (3) What conflicts and tensions emerge through that work related to those perspectives and assumptions? Informed by theoretical perspectives on the intersection of science, expertise, and democracy, I conclude that the current dominant approach to making non-formal education more evidence-based by way of EBPs is seriously flawed.
- by Thomas Archibald
- •
- by Edith Maria Steffen
- •
- 4
This paper provides an analysis of Franz Brentano’s thesis that psychology employs a distinctive method, which sets it apart from physiology. The aim of the paper is two-fold: First, I situate Brentano’s thesis (and the broader... more
This paper provides an analysis of Franz Brentano’s thesis that psychology employs a distinctive method, which sets it apart from physiology. The aim of the paper is two-fold: First, I situate Brentano’s thesis (and the broader metaphysical system that underwrites it) within the context of specific debates about the nature and status of psychology, arguing that we regard him as engaging in a form of boundary work. Second, I explore the relevance of Brentano’s considerations to more recent debates about autonomy on the one hand and theoretical and/or methodological integration on the other. I argue that Brentano puts his finger on the idea that an integrated research process presupposes the existence of distinct methods and approaches, and that he highlights the philosophical challenge of accounting for such distinct methods. I suggest that Brentano’s ideas offer unconventional perspectives on current debates, in particular regarding first-person methods and the investigative process in cognitive science.
- by Uljana Feest
- •
- by Marzenna Jakubczak
- •
- 16
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