The Autopoiesis of Social Systems: Assessing Luhmann's Theory of Self-Reference

• Published in: Systems research and behavioral science Vol. 14; no. 2; p. 83
• Main Author: Bailey, Kenneth D
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chichester John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01-03-1997
• Subjects: Analysis; Autopoiesis; Luhmann, N; Social aspects; Social systems
• ISSN: 1092-7026

This paper explicates Luhmann's self-referential theory of autopoiesis. Luhmann shows how social systems work in self-reproducing fashion to define and perpetuate themselves. This process of autopoiesis depends heavily upon binary coding. Systems which define themselves in a unitary fashion face the problem of tautology (`legal is legal'). Systems thus turn to dichotomies or binary coding to define themselves (`legal is not illegal'). This in turn can lead to the problem of paradox (when something is defined in terms of what it is not), so that the systems are seen in Luhmann's theory as utilizing procedures both for `de-tautologizing' and `de-paradoxing' themselves. This paper shows that Luhmann's paradigm holds great promise for solving current problems of social theory and for moving theory forward. This is illustrated by applying Luhmann's theory to two empirical examples: law and ecology. Keywords Self-reference; autopoiesis; communication; binary coding; paradox; law; ecology