The Sociological Semantics of Complex Systems

Abstract

The concept of complex systems is one of the most common and abused by sociological semantics. Both complexity and system are epistemological terms which contribute to reshape the scientific research design and conceptual frames. Nevertheless, complexity and system are often used by everyday life in several misleading ways: for example complex is often meant by common sense as a synonym for difficult, complicate, hard to understand, obscure and system is used by common sense as a synonym of “way “ or mechanism and is often geographically rooted (the Italian political system, for instance). Common sense generates misleading uses and affects public opinion about the understanding of science. This paper is not focused on the history and evolution of the concept of complex system it rather is aimed at reconstructing this concept in the current sociological depistemology to let complex systems fully express their revolutionary and reconfigurational powers for social and political science research