A Relational Framework for Complexity and Complex Thinking

Abstract

In this chapter, we make a brief presentation of the ontological and epistemological assumptions of a relational worldview that provide the grounds for a relational conceptualisation of complexity and complex thinking and for bridging and integrating different perspectives. We discuss the role of the observer in the construction of Complexity and its implications for how to define and think about the complex. We highlight the role of the nature of the coupling between the Observer and the world in producing knowledge and guiding the action of the Observer. From a relational perspective on complexity, we proceed with a discussion of the relative status of statements about complexity and the role of numerous constraints in the construction of knowledge, including the observer’s own structural determination. We discuss the implications of a relational worldview for making judgments about complexity, namely the complexity of the thinking.