Application of Autopoietic Theory in Management

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Ph.D. Candidate of Industrial Management, University of Tehran, Iran

2 Prof., of Industrial Management, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

3 Associate Prof. in Public Administration, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Autopoietic theory was first used in the science of biology in order to define life and characteristics of a living existent while it encounters the environment. Principles used by a living existent in encountering environmental complexity and changes can also be used in management for the sake of developing functions of “organizations”. Besides, it can help introduce new methodologies, new theories and unveil the flaws and the missing parts of the previous studies. The present essay deals with introducing this theory and its applications in management and attempts to present some directions to be used for future researches through investigating experimental and conceptual researches done in this realm. For this purpose, 74 related articles were selected from reliable scientific databases and their main theme was extracted and analyzed afterwards. In addition, these articles were classified based on their empirical and conceptual nature. The results showed that Autopoietic theory has not been used much, neither scientifically or applicably, in the literature in the realm of management. However, due to the capabilities of such theory, it is recommended to use for management purposes as well.
 

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

Ambrozi, M. (2013). Autopoietic Approach to Team, Teamwork and Business Process. Economic and Social Development: Book of Proceedings.
Asghari Sarem, A., Danaee Fard, H., Fani, A.A., Gholipour, A. (2016). Understanding the Role of Organizational Storytelling in HRD: A Literature review. Journal of Public Administration, 8(1), 181-218. (in Persian)
Beer, S. (1979). Heart of Enterprise, Chichester. John Wiley and Sons
Beer, S. (1981) 2nd ed. Brain of the Firm, Chichester. John Wiley and Sons.
Bilson, A. (1997). Guidelines for a constructivist approach: Steps toward the adaptation of ideas from family therapy for use in organizations. Systems Practice, 10(2), 153-177.
Breite, R. & U. Koskinen, K. (2014). Supply chain as an autopoietic learning system. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 19(1), 10-16.
Brocklesby, J. & Mingers, J. (2005). The use of the concept autopoiesis in the theory of viable systems. Systems Research and Behavioral Science, 22(1), 3-9.
Brocklesby, J. (2011). From Building Environmental Representations to Structural Coupling—an Autopoietic Theory Perspective on the Theory and Practice of Strategic Management. Systems Research and Behavioral Science, 28(6), 618-630.
Brocklesby, J., Jones, D., & Riad, S. (2011). Theorising Language in Organisational Research: Three Views. Victoria Management School.
Capra, F. (2002). The Hidden Connections, Integrating The Biological, Cognitive, And Social Dimensions Of Life Into A Science Of Sustainability.
Cheong, P. H., Hwang, J. M., & Brummans, B. H. (2014). Transnational immanence: the autopoietic co-constitution of a Chinese spiritual organization through mediated communication. Information, Communication & Society, 17(1), 7-25.
Córdoba, J. R. & Midgley, G. (2006). Broadening the boundaries: An application of critical systems thinking to IS planning in Colombia. Journal of the Operational Research Society, 57(9), 1064-1080.
Córdoba, J. R. (2007). Developing inclusion and critical reflection in information systems planning. Organization, 14(6), 909-927.
Cornelissen, J. P. (2004). What are we playing at? Theatre, organization, and the use of metaphor. Organization Studies, 25(5), 705-726.
Creswell, J. (2008). Educational research: Planning, conducting and evaluating quantitative and qualitative research (3rd edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.
ElMaraghy, H., & ElMaraghy, W. H. (Eds.). (2006). Advances in design. Springer Science & Business Media.‏
Escobar, J. M. (2012). Autopoiesis and Darwinism. Synthese, 185(1), 53-72.
Espinosa, A., Harnden, R., & Walker, J. (2005). Cybernetics and participation: From theory to practice. Systemic Practice and Action Research, 17(6), 573-589.
Espinosa, A., Harnden, R., & Walker, J. (2008). A complexity approach to sustainability–Stafford Beer revisited. European Journal of Operational Research, 187(2), 636-651.
Garrido, P. (2009). Business sustainability and collective intelligence. The Learning Organization, 16(3), 208-222.
Geyer, F. (1992). Autopoiesis and Social Systems—. International Journal of General System, 21(2), 175-183.
Glanville, R. (2002). Second order cybernetics. Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems, EoLSS Publishers, Oxford, UK.
Glanville, R. (2004). The purpose of second-order cybernetics. Kybernetes, 33(9/10), 1379-1386.
Goldspink, C., & Kay†, R. (2003). Organizations as self-organizing and sustaining systems: a complex and autopoietic systems perspective. International Journal of General Systems, 32(5), 459-474.
Gomez, P., & Probst, G. J. (1989). Organizational closure in management: a complementary view to contingency approaches. Cybernetics and Systems: An International Journal, 20(4), 311-320.
Graham, P., & McKenna, B. (2000). A theoretical and analytical synthesis of autopoiesis and sociolinguistics for the study of organisational communication. Social Semiotics, 10(1), 41-59.
Gregory, A. J., & Jackson, M. C. (1992). Evaluation methodologies: a system for use. Journal of the Operational Research Society, 43(1), 19-28.
Hall, W. P. (2005). Biological nature of knowledge in the learning organization. The Learning Organization, 12(2), 169-188.
Iba, T. (2010). An autopoietic systems theory for creativity. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2(4), 6610-6625.
Iba, T. (2011). Autopoietic Systems Diagram for Describing Creative Processes. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 26, 30-37.
Ishikawa, A. (1999). Knowledge management, autopoiesis and apoptosis. Kybernetes, 28(6/7), 821-825.
Jackson, T. W. (2007). Applying autopoiesis to knowledge management in organisations. Journal of Knowledge Management, 11(3), 78-91.
Kay, R. (2001). Are organizations autopoietic? A call for new debate. Systems Research and Behavioral Science, 18(6), 461-477.
Kay, R. (2002). Autopoiesis and systems education: implications for practice. International Journal of General Systems, 31(5), 515-530.
Kay, R., & Cecez-Kecmanovic, D. (2003). Organizational knowledge and autopoiesis: Towards a new view. ECIS 2003 Proceedings, 52.
Kay, R., & Er, M. (2005). Autopoiesis & Mobile Technology Adoption. In Mobile Information Systems (pp. 303-310). Springer US.
Kellert, S. H. (2009). Borrowed knowledge: Chaos theory and the challenge of learning across disciplines. University of Chicago Press.
Kenny, V. (1992). On the subject of autopoiesis and its boundaries: Does the subject matter?. International Journal Of General System, 21(2), 187-196.
Kickert, W. J. (1993). Autopoiesis and the science of (public) administration: Essence, sense and nonsense. Organization Studies, 14(2), 261-278.
Klabbers, J. H. (2000). Learning as acquisition and learning as interaction. Simulation & Gaming, 31(3), 380-406.
Koppen, I. J. (1991). Environmentalmediation: An Example of Applied Autopoiesis? In Autopoiesis and configuration theory: New approaches to societal steering (pp. 143-150). Springer Netherlands.
Koskinen, K. U. (2009). Project‐based company's vital condition: structural coupling. An autopoietic view. Knowledge and Process Management, 16(1), 13-22.
Koskinen, K. U. (2010a). Organisational memories in project-based companies: an autopoietic view. The Learning Organization, 17(2), 149-162.
Koskinen, K. U. (2010b). Recursive view of the project-based companies' knowledge production. Journal of Knowledge Management, 14(2), 258-268.
Koskinen, K. U. (2013a). Business organizations' knowledge-production processes: an autopoietic approach. International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 21(2), 137-153.
Koskinen, K. U. (2013b). Observation's role in technically complex project implementation: the social autopoietic system view. International Journal of Managing Projects in Business, 6(2), 349-364.
Krogh, G. V., Roos, J., & Slocum, K. (1994). An essay on corporate epistemology. Strategic Management Journal, 15(S2), 53-71.
Limone, A., & Bastias, L. E. (2006). Autopoiesis and knowledge in the organization: Conceptual foundation for authentic knowledge management.Systems Research and Behavioral Science, 23(1), 39-49.
Luhmann, N. (1995). Social systems. Stanford University Press.
Luisi,P.(2003). Autopoiesis: a review and a reappraisal .Naturwissenschaften, 90(2), 49-59.
Luz Méndez, C., Coddou, F., & Maturana, H. R. (1988). The bringing forth of pathology. The Irish Journal of Psychology, 9(1), 144-172.
Magalhaes, R. (2011). Re‐interpreting Organization Design in the Light of Enacted Cognition Theory. Systems Research and Behavioral Science,28(6), 663-679
Magalhães, R., & Sanchez, R. (2009). Autopoiesis in organization theory and practice (Vol. 6). Emerald Group Publishing.
Maturana, H (2002). Autopoiesis, structural coupling and cognition: a history of these and other notions in the biology of cognition. Cybernetics &Human Knowing, 9(3-4), 5-34.
Maturana, H. (1988, October). Ontology of observing: The biological foundations of self consciousness and the physical domain of existence. In Conference workbook: Texts in cybernetics (Vol. 1).
Maturana, H. R. (1974). Cognitive strategies. Cybernetics of cybernetics. Biological Computer Lab (BCL) Report 73–38, dated May 1974}, 10, 7-15.
Maturana, H. R., & Poerksen, B. (2004). The view of the systemicist: A conversation. Journal of Constructivist Psychology,, 17(4), 269-279.
Maturana, H. R., & Varela, F. J. (1987). The tree of knowledge: The biological roots of human understanding. New Science Library/Shambhala Publications.
Maturana, H. R., & Varela, F. J. (1991). Autopoiesis and cognition: The realization of the living (Vol. 42). Springer Science & Business Media.
Maula, M. (2000). The senses and memory of a firm-implications of autopoiesis theory for knowledge management. Journal of Knowledge Management, 4(2), 157-161.
Meynell, F. (2005). A second-order approach to evaluating and facilitating organizational change. Action Research, 3(2), 211-231.
Mingers, J. (1989a). An introduction to autopoiesis—implications and applications. Systems Practice, 2(2), 159-180.
Mingers, J. (1989b). An introduction to autopoiesis: A reply to Fenton Robb's comment. Systems practice, 2(3), 349-351.
Mingers, J. (1992). The problems of social autopoiesis. International Journal of General System, 21(2), 229-236.
Mingers, J. (1995). Self-producing systems: Implications and applications of autopoiesis. Springer Science & Business Media.
Mingers, J. (1997). Systems typologies in the light of autopoiesis: a reconceptualization of Boulding's hierarchy, and a typology of self‐referential systems. Systems Research and Behavioral Science, 14(5), 303-313.
Mingers, J. (2004). Can social systems be autopoietic? Bhaskar's and Giddens’ social theories. Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour, 34(4), 403-427.
Mollayousefi, M., Rezaee Mostaghim, R. (2014) Francis Galton’s theory of eugenics, Science and religion research, 5(1):91-114. (in Persian)
Morgan, G. (2006). Images of organization, Sage Publications, US.
Murray, J. B., Evers, D. J., & Janda, S. (1995). Marketing, theory borrowing, and critical reflection. Journal of Macromarketing, 15(2), 92-106.
Oswick, C., Fleming, P., & Hanlon, G. (2011). From borrowing to blending: Rethinking the processes of organizational theory building. Academy of Management Review, 36(2), 318-337.
Parboteeah, P., & Jackson, T. W. (2007). An autopoietic framework for organisational learning. Knowledge and Process Management, 14(4), 248-259.
Parboteeah, P., & Jackson, T. W. (2011). Expert evaluation study of an autopoietic model of knowledge. Journal of Knowledge Management, 15(4), 688-699.
Paul Beyes, T. (2005). Observing observers. Von Foerster, Luhmann, and management thinking. Kybernetes, 34(3/4), 448-459.
Plass, J. L., & Salisbury, M. W. (2002). A living-systems design model for web-based knowledge management systems. Educational Technology research and development, 50(1), 35-56.
Radosavljevic, M. (2008). Autopoiesis vs. social autopoiesis: critical evaluation and implications for understanding firms as autopoietic social systems. International Journal of General Systems, 37(2), 215-230.
Razeto-Barry, P. (2012). Autopoiesis 40 years later. A review and a reformulation. Origins of Life and Evolution of Biospheres, 42(6), 543-567.
Reid, D. A., & Mgombelo, J. (2015). Survey of key concepts in enactivist theory and methodology. ZDM, 47(2), 171-183.
Reynolds, M. (2005). Churchman and Maturana: Enriching the notion of self-organization for social design. Systemic Practice and Action Research, 17(6), 539-556.
Robb, F.F. (1985). Towards a Better Scientific Theory of Human Organizations. Journal of the Operational Research Society, 463-466.
Robb, F. F. (1989). The application of autopoiesis to social organizations: A comment on John Mingers' reply. Systemic Practice and Action Research, 2(3), 353-360.
Robb, F. F. (1992). Autopoiesis and supra-human systems. International Journal Of General System, 21(2), 197-205.
Schwaninger, M., & Grösser, S. N. (2012). Operational Closure and Self‐Reference: On the Logic of Organizational Change. Systems Research and Behavioral Science, 29(4), 342-367.
Scott, B. (2004). Second-order cybernetics: an historical introduction. Kybernetes, 33(9/10), 1365-1378.
Sice, P., & French, I. (2004). Understanding humans and organisations: Philosophical implications of autopoiesis. Philosophy of Management, 4(1), 55-66.
Skovvang Christensen, K., & Kaasgaard Bang, H. (2003). Knowledge management in a project-oriented organization: three perspectives. Journal of Knowledge Management, 7(3), 116-128.
Ulrich, H., & Probst, G. (1984). Self-organization and management of social systems: Insights, promises, doubts, and questions (Vol. 26). Springer Science & Business Media.
Van Assche, K., & Verschraegen, G. (2008). The limits of planning: Niklas Luhmann's systems theory and the analysis of planning and planning ambitions. Planning theory, 7(3), 263-283.
Varela, F. (1984). Two principles for self-organization. In Self-organization and management of social systems (pp. 25-32). Springer Berlin Heidelberg.
Varela, F. G., Maturana, H. R., & Uribe, R. (1974). Autopoiesis: the organization of living systems, its characterization and a model. Biosystems, 5(4), 187-196.
Varela, F., & Thompson, E. & Rosch, E. (1991). The embodied mind: Cognitive science and human experience. MIT press.
Vaudelin, J. P., & Devise, O. (2006). Creating organizational reality: The pivotal role of leadership. IFAC Proceedings Volumes, 39(3), 785-790.
Veld, R. J. (1991). Autopoiesis, configuration and steering: Impossibility theorem or dynamic steering theory. Autopoiesis and Configuration Theory: New Approaches to Societal Steering, 3-17.
Veld, R. J., Schaap, L., Termeer, C. J., & Van Twist,  (1991). Autopoiesis and configuration theory: new approaches to societal steering. Springer Science & Business Media.
Venzin, M., Von Krogh, G., & Roos, J. (1998). Future research into knowledge management. Knowing in firms: Understanding, managing and measuring knowledge, 26-66.
Von Foerster, H. (1984). Principles of self-organization—in a socio-managerial context (pp. 2-24). Springer Berlin Heidelberg.
Whetten, D. A., Felin, T., & King, B. G. (2009). The practice of theory borrowing in organizational studies: Current issues and future directions. Journal of Management, 35(3), 537-563.
Whitaker, R. (1995). Self-organization, autopoiesis, and enterprises.  Available in: http://www.enolagaia.com/RW-ACM95-Main.html.
Whitaker, R. (1996). A Tutorial in Autopoiesis. Available in: The Observer Web, online at: www. informatik.umu.se/~ rwhit/Tutorial.htm.
Yolles, M., & Fink, G. (2015). A general theory of generic modelling and paradigm shifts: part 1–the fundamentals. Kybernetes, 44(2), 283-298.
Zeleny, M. (1980) Autopoiesis, Dissipative Structures, and Spotaneous social orders. West view Press: Boulder, Co.
Zeleny, M. (2005). Human systems management: Integrating knowledge, management and systems. World Scientific.
Zeleny, M., & Hufford, K. D. (1991). All autopoietic systems must be social systems (living implies autopoietic. But, autopoietic does not imply living): An application of autopoietic criteria in systems analysis. Journal of social and biological structures, 14(3), 311-332.
Zolo, D. (1990). Autopoiesis: Critique of a postmodern paradigm. Telos, 86, 61-80.
Journal of Public Administration
Volume 9, Issue 3
2017
Pages 427-462

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics