From a social systems theory perspective, globalisation can be conceptualised as an evolutionary social process. By fusing systems theories, evolutionary theories, and organisation theories, globalisation becomes apparent as a historical social process, which encompasses the emergence and reproduction of social systems such as firms or other organisations within the wider process of the globali...

The social sciences have traditionally been quite week in terms of formulating scientific cause-and-effect theories that would be useful for making predictions. In recent years, however, a number of theories with predictive potential have come up. The article applies a number of such theories from diverse areas including economics, history, systems theory and evolutionary psychology in an attem...

From a social systems theory perspective, globalisation can be conceptualised as an evolutionary social process. By fusing systems theories, evolutionary theories, and organisation theories, globalisation becomes apparent as a historical social process, which encompasses the emergence and reproduction of social systems such as firms or other organisations within the wider process of the globali...

This paper presents an alternative perspective on theory in Information Systems (IS). We argue that the orthodox view of theory as modelistic representation does not fulfil the criteria for ideal theory when applied to IS viewed as a social sciences. By looking to what theory does rather than what theory is, we open the possibility for an alternative kind of theory that makes the human world co...

From a social systems theory perspective, globalisation can be conceptualised as an evolutionary social process. By fusing systems theories, evolutionary theories, and organisation theories, globalisation becomes apparent as a historical social process, which encompasses the emergence and reproduction of social systems such as firms or other organisations within the wider process of the globali...

Soft Systems Methodology (SSM) is a potentially powerful tool for improving the management of the complex social systems aspect of Information Systems. Yet if it is to be employed effectively IS managers need to understand the theory of social systems that makes SSM a meaningful practical approach. However finding out about that social theory is not straightforward. It is 20 years since the fir...

1 Introduction This panel focuses on issues of designing information systems to both account for, and better support, the increasingly social functions that computer-based technologies play. The goal of this panel is to serve as a forum to advance and discuss initial principles for what we are calling the social design of information systems. By social design we mean to emphasize that the prese...