A Brief View on Systems Approaches in Human Ecology

In several conferences organized by the Germen Society for Human Ecology (DGH) and in sessions in conferences of the Society for Human Ecology (SHE) different paradigms regarding knowledge integration and responsibilities are considered. There are several approaches, that can be organized in a system of system methods (Keys) having their roots in different scientific disciplines. Especially the social science context and the natural science context bring forth different views on the role of the observer. An important issue is whether the endeavour aims at systems engineering or systems intervention.

In Human Ecology, some „schemes“ are of influence, e.g. the POET-scheme (Population, Organization, Ecology, Technology) or the Steiner triangle (Environment, Society, Human Beings), with which the complexity of problem situations in human ecology could be handled. Other well-known approaches work with the System Dynamics methodology. In all these conceptions, the role of the observer is either ignored as an independent entity, included as an inherent part of the system, or conceptualized as an influential system component, e.g. on a meta-level, responsible for necessary differentiations, like, for example, the fundamental divide between system and environment.

We will start with the variety of system approaches and discuss how they are related to concepts of the observer and the challenges that second-order cybernetics is raising.