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标题：The Epistemological Implications of Critical Complexity Thinking for Operational Research
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作者：Hennie Kruger ; Anné Verhoef ; Rika Preiser 等
期刊名称：Systems
电子版ISSN：2079-8954
出版年度：2019
卷号：7
期号：1
页码：5-24
DOI：10.3390/systems7010005
出版社：MDPI Publishing
摘要：Classical operational research (OR) is mainly concerned with the use of mathematical techniques and models used in decision-making situations. The basic assumptions of OR presuppose that the structure of the world is one of order and predictability. Although this positivistic approach produces significant results when levels of certainty and initial conditions are stable, it is limited when faced with an acknowledgement of the complex nature of the real world. This paper aims to highlight that by drawing on a general understanding of complexity theory, classical OR approaches can be enriched and broadened by adopting an epistemology based on the assumption that the underlying mechanisms governing the world are complex. It is argued that complexity theory (as interpreted by the philosopher Paul Cilliers) acknowledges the complex nature of the real world and helps to identify the characteristics of complex phenomena. By aligning OR epistemologies with the acknowledgment of complexity, new modelling methods could be developed. In addition, the implications for knowledge generating processes through boundary setting, as well as the provisional nature of such knowledge and what (ethical) responsibilities accompany the study of complex phenomena, will be discussed. Examples are presented to highlight the epistemological implications of complexity thinking for OR.
关键词：complexity theory; operational research; epistemology; philosophy of operational research complexity theory ; operational research ; epistemology ; philosophy of operational research