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Membership | Wolfson College, University of Cambridge
I am honoured to be joining Wolfson College, a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, as a Visiting Fellow today! See you at Wolfson, for instance for our Niklas Luhmann Reading Group meeting in mid-April.
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Release | Virtual special Issue on “Guiding Distinctions of Management and Organisation Research”
Virtual special Luhmann Conference 2024 issue of Management Revue on the theme of “The Guiding Distinctions of Management and Organisation Research” Introduction Steffen Roth, Lars Clausen, Margit Neisig, and Augusto Sales: Guiding Distinctions of Management and Organisation Research. An Introduction, Management Revue, Vol. 36 No. 1, 39357. Contributions This virtual special issue of Management Revue…
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Event | Niklas Luhmann Reading Group at the University of Cambridge
Niklas Luhmann Reading Group: Session 4 Date: 14th of March 2025. Time: 14:00-17:00 GMTVenue: University of Cambridge, Faculty of Education, 184 Hills Rd, Cambridge CB2 8PQ, United Kingdom Please check talks.cam for details and updates. This session’s topic: Action Society is often imagined as a collective of acting and interacting individuals. Social order, in this…
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Release | Special Luhmann Conference double issue of SRBS on “Environments” and “Guiding distinctions”. Observed with social systems theory
Special Luhmann Conferences 2023 and 2024 double issue of Systems Research and Behavioral Science on “Environments” and “Guiding distinctions”. Observed with Social Systems Theory The proofs of the full special double issue are available for download here (PDF 8.2 Mb), while the issue is also available on the official SRBS website. Luhmann Conference 2023: Environments:…
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Release | Value Plurality and Multifunctional Commensuration in Organisation: A Systems-Theoretical Approach
Abstract: This article aims to challenge the prevailing economic bias in studies of organised valuation and commensuration by exploring the broader plurality of values that organisations must manage. The article draws on social systems theory in the tradition of German sociologist Niklas Luhmann to conceptualise organisations as multifunctional systems of decisions that pertain to and…
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CFP | Luhmann Conference 2025 in Cambridge
Call for papers to the Luhmann Conference 2025 Topic: Programmes. Observed with social systems theory Venue: University of Cambridge, United Kingdom Submission deadline (abstracts): 15 May 2025Conference dates: 09-12 September 2025Pre-conference dinner: 08 September 2025 Supported by the Next Society Institute at Kazimieras Simonavicius University, European Sociological Association and the Inter-University Centre Dubrovnik. To download this Call for Papers, please click…
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Release | Guiding distinctions of social theory: results from two online brainstormings and one quantitative analysis of the ISA Books of the XX Century corpus
Abstract: In this paper, we report on the results of two online brainstormings that have collected over 480 and over 219 guiding distinctions of social theory, respectively. We draw on the results of these brainstormings as well as on a quantitative analysis of the Top 100 sociological groundworks as listed in the ISA Books of the XX…
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Release | The matrix reloaded. A revised framework for the inference of the four basic forms of social differentiation
Abstract: This paper revisits and refines Niklas Luhmann’s framework for understanding social differentiation, addressing unresolved ambiguities in his original theory. Luhmann’s approach, which initially identified three core forms of social differentiation—segmentation, stratification, and functional differentiation—expanded to include a fourth form, centralization. By critically examining the theoretical underpinnings and limitations of Luhmann’s distinctions, this study shows…
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Release | The state as creative destroyer. A systems perspective on entrepreneurship by organised monopolies on violence
Abstract: This article explores the concept of state entrepreneurship, particularly focusing on its darker aspects when states act as creative destroyers. This study employs a systems-theoretical approach to develop a comprehensive framework for understanding the nature of statehood and its role in driving disruptive innovation. The research design includes an analysis of cases of state-mandated…
