Showing papers in "Systems Research and Behavioral Science in 2005"

Systemic development at Hawkesbury: some personal lessons from experience

Abstract: One of the most significant and enduring ideas associated with the systems initiatives at Hawkesbury has been the inter-connections that were made there between systemic acts of development in the 'concrete world' and the abstract 'epistemic developments' of the actors who participate in them. Each is seen to be constitutive of the other in a profoundly systemic manner, with 'concrete events' being both influenced by and an influence on 'abstract ideas'. The embrace of critical experiential strategies, which themselves are regarded as essentially systemic and reflexive in nature, has been a central feature of the pedagogies, research processes, and engagement strategies that have been designed to better facilitate this inter-connection. As calls for more sustainable and equitable forms of development gather momentum across the globe, and the citizenry become increasingly engaged with issues that are seen to pose significant systemic global risks, the need for collective, communicative experiential strategies as systemic discourse, becomes evident.

System and environment: notes on the autopoiesis of modern society

Abstract: To describe the basic characteristics of modern society, two levels should be distinguished: the structural and the cultural level. According to the late Talcott Parsons, the dominant value pattern of modern society is the cultural pattern of instrumental activism. What is valued in modern society is not passive adjustment to the exigencies of the environment, but increasing the freedom of action within the environment, and ultimately control over the environment. It is no longer adaptation to the environment, but adaptation of the environment to social needs. On the structural level, new patterns of societal differentiation have emerged. According to Niklas Luhmann, the pattern which characterizes modern society is one of functional differentiation. Functional subsystems impose their particular perspective on the world. The environment is perceived through different lenses (e.g. through a political, legal, economic, educational or scientific lens). These different perceptions are incommensurable. As a consequence, society cannot control its overall impact on the environment. Its structural and cultural characteristics limit its sensitivity vis-a-vis the environment. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Webs of significance: the work of Geoffrey Vickers

Abstract: This paper is a personal account by Peter Checkland of his correspondence with Geoffrey Vickers in the years before Vickers' death and the discussions they had about the relationship between systems ideas and real-world experience. Professor Checkland demonstrates how the model he created of the appreciative process reflects those discussions, and how it may be used as a basis for making sense of the world we live in. He provides numerous examples to demonstrate the way in which the model may be applied in very different situations. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Systemic action research for postgraduate education in agriculture and rural development

Abstract: This paper discusses the theory of Systemic Action Research and its use in postgraduate research education, in the context of agriculture and rural development. The paper discusses what systems thinking is and introduces the concepts of Systemic Development. This is followed by an argument for a paradigm shift in how agriculture is viewed, and an associated shift in education from teaching to learning. The core ideas of action research are then described and illustrated by two case studies drawn from PhD research projects supervised by the authors. Introducing the ideas of technical, practical, and emancipatory action research, the paper further expands upon these concepts of action research, illuminated by two additional PhD projects. Overall the paper demonstrates the usefulness of Systemic Action Research as the basis for postgraduate research to deal with real contextual issues in their true complexity, and in a holistic way. In this process, genuine participation and the encouragement of diversity are seen as rights rather than as means to greater research efficiency, thus giving power to people to act through the generation of knowledge by critical reflection. Copyright # 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A transdisciplinary learning approach to foster convergence of design, science and deliberation in urban and regional planning

Abstract: In this paper we look at relationships between design, science and deliberation in urban and regional planning. Each of these activities can be used to inform policy, either in isolation or in different forms of combinations. The combinations usually involve hierarchies, which use the framework of one activity to integrate the others. Such hierarchies create an unbalance among the three activities, resulting in a competition for the integration monopoly, and therefore ineffective cooperation. There is a lack of theory that would allow us to combine these three activities in an equivalent way. Based on experiences in the Delft Interfaculty Research Program ‘The Ecological City’, we propose a transdisciplinary model, which conceives design, science and deliberation as learning processes that follow the same sequence of creative, descriptive and normative steps. From a learning perspective, design, science and deliberation are complementary and can therefore be integrated in a group learning process. The learning model assigns roles to the different activities and supports the planning team in establishing a common orientation and adapting the methods to a common goal. Applications have shown that the transdisciplinary learning model only works if the participants work with articulated methods, if the limitations of these methods are made explicit, and if the participants accept the superiority of common learning over disciplinary rigour, which involves all participants engaging in both an integrating and a serving role. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Anticipatory systems and time: a new look at Rosennean complexity

Abstract: Robert Rosen claimed that life, as a property of a living system (an organism), is not caused by the physical nature of what it is composed of but, rather, is a consequence of complex organization of a certain type in a material system. In other words, the causal basis of life is a matter of relational causality rather than physical, material causality. Living systems are characterized by a unique set of behaviors and capabilities. Among these is the ability to employ information encoded into the organization itself as a means of maintaining system stability in an ever changing environment. This encoded information can allow organisms to act in a way that Rosen described as characteristically model-based behavior. He theorized that the encoded information can act as a set of internal predictive models which pertain to both the internal environment of the system and the external environment, as well as to the relational interactions between the two, and which actually guide system behavior. Collectively, such guidance amounts to an anticipatory mode of system control. Rosen concluded that encoded information is an integral aspect of any living system's organization and, based on the relation of this information to organismic behavior, he categorized all living organisms as anticipatory systems. In this paper, we review Robert Rosen's seminal ideas about complexity, causality, and life in biological systems. Because anticipatory behavior, by definition, involves multiple encodings of time, we concentrate our focus on exploring the nature of anticipatory systems and examine the new information these ideas reveal about time and evolution. We discuss the consequences of these ideas on science as a whole and argue that a change in scientific perspective and approach is a necessity for understanding biological systems. This, of course, includes the nature and physiology of human beings, as well. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Learning to appreciate learning systems for environmental decision making - a 'work-in-progress' perspective.

Abstract: This paper explains how and why the author engaged with the work of Sir Geoffrey Vickers and found it highly relevant to researching learning systems for environmental decision making at the start of the twenty-first century. Key areas of Vickers' work reviewed are his ethical concerns that relate to what we refer to today as ecological sustainability, his insights into systems thinking, his concept of an appreciative system and his distinctions concerning learning.

The researcher of human systems is both choreographer and chorographer

Abstract: The paper will refer to research work that illustrates the researcher as chorographer (one practised in the art of systematic description of regions) and choreographer (one practised in the design of dance arrangements) of the emotions. The authors experienced this transformation when they developed and tested a conversational model of learning and change based on the biological systems work of Chilean scientist Humberto Maturana. Hawkesbury Agricultural College (which became part of the University of Western Sydney in 1989) was a fertile field for research and consulting that understood learning as change taking place in a relational space, over time, and as a consequence of engagements shaped by the participants' emotions. The use of participatory and collaborative methods to bring about change demanded an explanatory system that located the usefulness of these practices in what was understood as the biology of living systems and cognitive science.

Negotiated order and network form organizations

Abstract: Throughout the 20th century, the industrial age roots of hierarchical top-down planning and command-and-control supervision have been the foundations for management thinking. At the beginning of the 21st century, many futurists and systems thinkers have widely declared that businesses must equip themselves to be more responsive to rapidly changing environments. Dynamic, knowledge-based businesses require that rigid forms of business governance give way to networked forms. Since many successful businesses have shifted from autonomous independent enterprises to building alliances and inter-organizational relationships, we advocate a renewed examination of negotiated order and a focus on the fluidity enabled by it. The traditional advantages of legal order are being outweighed by its inherent rigidity. Under conditions of rapid change, maintaining an internally consistent set of rules, essential to legal order, is inefficient and relatively ineffective. Systems of negotiated order are characterized by situational coordination of interests, flexible definitions of desired end states, and spontaneous initiatives by interested stakeholders. We examine the development of the Linux community and its negotiated system of self-governance, and offer three additional business examples that suggest how negotiated order may provide a platform for stakeholders to innovatively leverage the dynamics of the contemporary environment. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Life and simple systems

Abstract: This last decade has seen the publication of an extensive literature describing, cataloguing and analyzing the ‘emergence’ of complexity. This seems very strange. The creation of a complex assembly is comparatively easy—the difficult job is to generate simplicity from it. So much is this the case, that the only context within which it takes place is that of life itself. Although we naturally imagine life as a dynamic process rather than as a static structure, both of these are critical to its survival. Continuously expanding multi-element assemblies finally lose their cohesion, and split up into separate parts, or restructure themselves to redress their stability by generating a simplified umbrella level of operation. In large organisms this process may repeat itself, thus creating a multilevel self-correlating operational hierarchy. It is not obvious how the associated generation of simplicity is initiated, but it appears that such a self-correlating hierarchy is itself alive. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Vortical postmodern ethnography: introducing a complexity approach to systemic social theorizing

Abstract: This paper reflects on theory evolution from the perspective of considering the role that complexity science might have in social theorizing and research. We assume that just as human society is complex, dynamic, interdependent, and with future states emerging with reference to complex histories, so too are human explanations and theories. With reference to a complexity approach to postmodern ethnography, that of vortical postmodern ethnography, we make manifest the dynamic and interdependent nature of theory building, with human actor/observers and discourse evolution. We suggest that a complexity perspective on social research and theorizing may be most valuable for its role in bringing about alternative descriptions, rather than promoting certain interventions. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Theory and practice of soft systems methodology: a performative contradiction?

Abstract: Dissatisfied with the approach of systems engineering, Checkland set himself the task of seeing if system ideas could help tackle the messy problems of management. In the course of doing so, he developed a new, soft systems approach. It differs from the hard approach, first, in the nature of its methodology and, second, in its use of the word system. Messy problems can best be handled by a soft systems methodology (SSM). And the word ‘system’ is no longer applied to the world, but to the process of our dealings with the world: the word ‘system’ does not refer to real systems in the world. The aim of this contribution is to show that the realism that is presupposed by and implicit in the practice of model application in SSM contradicts the ‘philosophical theory’ of SSM, in which it is denied that we refer with our concepts and conceptual models to concept-independent things in the world. A central tool in achieving this aim is the Wittgensteinian distinction between language (‘how we speak’) and discourse (‘what we say’), between the meaning of the words we use and the truth of the statements we make. This tool enables us to avoid both the semantic objectivism of the metaphysical realist, according to whom the meaning of our words is determined by the things we refer to, and the ontological subjectivism of the constructivist, according to whom we do not think and speak about mind and concept-independent things in the world. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Fifty years of systems science: further reflections

Abstract: This paper was delivered as the Presidential Address for the 48th International Society for the Systems Sciences Annual Conference in Pacific Grove, California. The full theme of the 2004 conference of ISSS was Fifty Years of Systems Science: Honoring Tradition, Embracing the Future. This main theme was accompanied by two sub-themes of ‘Integration’ (or ‘Unification’), and ‘Continuity’. This paper follows the conference theme by discussing the original goals and challenges facing the founders of the Society 50 years ago, as well as our contemporary goals and challenges. The year 2004 marked 50 years since the precursor organization of the International Society of Systems Science held its first meeting. In an earlier paper I outlined 10 goals of systems science, along with 10 challenges that we face in attaining these goals. Five of these goals were the original goals of the founders of ISSS, as enunciated in 1954. I added five additional contemporary goals to the original five goals of the founders. Pursuant to the sub-theme of continuity, the present papers completes the task set forth in the prior paper by discussing how systems science in general, and ISSS in particular, can overcome the 10 challenges that confront us. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A systems approach to entropy change in political systems

Abstract: It is the relative balance of both adaptability and level of political support that determine the entropy of a political system as a whole. When the level of political support is low, the entropy of the political system increases. The entropy is higher if the system cannot cope with environmental stresses. Although these ideas remain fairly abstract, we can indirectly measure the relative state of the entropy in a given system. First, adaptability determines the outer entropy change of the system, which refers to the capability of the system to survive in the face of environmental fluctuations. This depends on such qualities of the system as proper use of knowledge and information, flexibility of the system, and timely boundary control. Second, the level of spontaneous political support is the critical factor affecting the inner entropy change of the system. It can typically be assessed by examining the specific indicators or items in terms of threefold levels of a political system. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Identifying those on board ‘the moving train’: towards a stakeholder‐focused methodology for organizational decision making

Abstract: The paper draws significantly on the proposition that the stakeholder concept is an appropriate way of acknowledging socio-political aspects of organization decision making. Stakeholder analysis is proposed as a means of reconciling organization concern for control of system outputs with potentially conflicting expectations of other stakeholder groups inside and outside the organization. The paper's hypothesis is that the incorporation of stakeholder perspectives in decision-making processes will enhance effectiveness, employee motivation and organizational justice as system outputs. The viability of the method is demonstrated by its application within a stakeholder analysis of performance management in knowledge-based organizations. Evidence from the case study, together with recent developments in systems theory and OD, is used to develop a viable systems stakeholder model of performance management that can achieve an appropriate balance between effective management, good governance and organizational justice in knowledge-based organizations of the twenty-first century. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Combining a systems framework with epidemiology in the study of emerging infectious disease

Abstract: Boulding's Skeleton of Science (a systems framework) is used to demonstrate first that several levels of disciplines are necessary for holistic research, and secondly that this can be applied to addressing issues concerning emerging infectious disease (EID) A literature review gathered a list of possible contributing risk factors for EID Those factors were matched to the levels of disciplines in Boulding's Skeleton of Science to show that different risk factors must be studied by a combination of disciplines to adequately address the occurrence of infectious disease An analysis of one international health policy document is also included to determine the range of disciplines represented in that document Using a multidisciplinary (systemic) approach demonstrated advantages that complement and overcome the limitations of modern epidemiology Recommendations for the inclusion of a multidisciplinary epidemiological approach are made, followed by some reflections on the conclusions drawn from this research, and suggestions for future work Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

The role of contestable concepts in transdisciplinary management of water in the landscape

Abstract: There is a growing recognition of the need for frameworks for environmental management which transcend disciplinary boundaries while building upon established approaches to applied research which have recognized legitimacy and utility. This paper investigates ways of thinking about practical transdisciplinarity in cases of integrated environmental and landscape management. A brief review is first presented of systemic conceptions which can inform our transdisciplinary practice, including ‘civic science’ and a recognition of contestable concepts. This is followed by a discussion of current approaches to inquiry and management of lived-in environments and landscapes, particularly that of integrated catchment management (ICM). Three case studies at different scales are then described to highlight the importance of core ‘contestable concepts’ around which transdisciplinary dialogues can occur. The first case study is that of the question of ‘risk’ in relation to the Hawkesbury Water Reuse Scheme, on the Hawkesbury campus of the University of Western Sydney. The second case study is that of ‘investment’ in stormwater and wastewater management in the Hawkesbury–Nepean River Catchment, in Western Sydney. The third case study is of the question of ‘meta-methodology’ when developing cases of ICM in China which build on both international experiences and the local context. The final section engages with transdisciplinarity as a contestable concept itself. The breadth of fields of inquiry engaging with this notion are briefly identified, along with some key examples of emerging concepts and language which may be broadly applicable to cases of environmental and landscape management. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The use of the concept autopoiesis in the theory of viable systems

Abstract: This paper examines the application and usage of the idea of autopoiesis—a theory of living systems—within the context of viable systems theory. In recent years the term autopoiesis has extended beyond the domain of cellular biology where it originated and is now used extensively across a range of different disciplines, fields of enquiry, and professional practice. The paper seeks to provide clarification of a distinction between viable and autopoietic systems that appears to have become somewhat clouded as a result of the transfer of ideas and terminology from one domain to another. Copyright # 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The practice of information system development and use: a dialectical approach

Abstract: The society of today is characterized by a change rate higher than ever before caused by an enormous amount of information. To be able to handle this situation in our professional life as well as in our spare time, it is necessary to have efficient computer-based information systems to store and process information. More and more complex information systems are therefore developed and implemented but instead of reaching the intended facilitation and making the business more efficient, the complexity has become so high that users sometimes experience increased difficulty and reduced efficiency. The nature of information in a context of system development is discussed from a theoretical point of view. An empirical study concerning different perceptions of information of 376 respondents is presented. The results are subdivided into categories found in the theoretical study. As a result of our study, models are created to illuminate important factors to consider in the interaction between computer-based information systems and human information systems represented by developers and end-users. We conclude that it is very important to be aware of the differences between different perceptions of information, and to work consciously to unite user and developer practices into one integrated view as a basis for system development. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The ideal of autonomy from the viewpoint of functional differentiation/integration of society†

Abstract: This article is an attempt to explain the reasons why autonomy has acquired today such a remarkable position in philosophic and political discourse as well as in political and social practice As a proponent of the system paradigm, I am far away from an idealistic humanism, which would attribute the range of a social ideal such as autonomy to the human, independent spirit On the contrary, regarding autonomy as an evaluative criterion for the decisions of many social systems (for example, of politics and economy, but also of education and health), I would argue that it should be examined in the context of the operations of these systems, in case the causes of its power should be clarified For that reason, I use the analytical tool of functional differentiation/integration of society based mainly on Luhmann's theory about social systems, yet without adopting the Luhmannian model regarding the binary codes of system self-reference By replacing the mechanism of binary coding of Luhmann with a group of values spread in the social functional systems by the ‘orders of discourse’ (as Foucault understands them), I would suggest reconsidering the Luhmannian theory of functional differentiation if we want to approach effectively the social phenomena of our era The view of this paper for autonomy as an intersystem evaluative criterion for the system's choices could be corroborated by applying the revised model Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Project management methodology for stimulating strategic communication in Japan

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, it is to justify that a combination of soft systems methodology (SSM), SWOT analysis and strategy maps of balanced scorecard (BSC) provides a suitable methodology for stimulating strategy communication. This combination can be utilized as a project management methodology for ill-structured, problematic situations. Secondly, it is to discuss an application of this multimethodology in a Japanese company. Despite the absolute necessity, almost no systems methodologies for strategic consultation have been theorized so far. This paper describes a systems-based methodology called soft systems methodology for strategy communication (SSM-SC). SSM-SC employs SSM as well as SWOT and BSC maps for integrating thoughts and languages of the participants. An application of SSM-SC in a leading Japanese manufacturing company is described to illustrate the manner in which the combination promotes strategy communication. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Information versus inertia: a model for product change with low inertia

Abstract: The design of a new product is a result of the competence resource available to the company. Developing the competence resources is an organizational learning process going from the individual through the group level to the organization. If the competence resource reacts relatively slowly to meet requests in the demand from the company customers for changed knowledge in its products, it has a high inertia. Inertia comes from an unwillingness to learn new competences and is detrimental to the operative flexibility of the company. Managing the company for lowest possible inertia when dealing with a change in the product design requires managerial actions at all levels. Realizing the need for a strategic change in the competence resource, the management will take actions to start a learning process. By informing all levels about their vision for the change and by creating the enabling conditions for the learning process, they can decrease inertia. Starting a learning process requires management to provide concurrent information of different forms to suit each of the three systems levels. Each individual must be convinced of the reason for change of competence, and how it can be learned and composed to the desired product. This requires a good information structure and an existing culture of common terms and values. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Integrative research as appreciative system

Abstract: This paper develops an appreciative method for the management and regulation of integrative research. It distinguishes product from process and emphasizes the value of processes. In human systems, historical events (states) sometimes change the balance of probabilities so that processes are never the same again. Many historical events are manifest as changing beliefs that lead to new behaviours. This irreversible change (innovation) often begins with an increase in the epistemic openness or appreciative setting of communities. As knowledge is exploited, however, appreciative settings become fixed; beliefs are ‘locked-in’ or reified and recognizable epistemic communities form. Integrative research (i) involves two or more epistemic communities, often with mutually irreconcilable beliefs and (ii) requires small, well-managed, ephemeral groups and sympathetic regulation. Institutional constraints are explored with reference to national and supranational research agencies and their practices. Copyright # 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Beyond system internals: expanding the scope of Living Systems Theory

Abstract: Social systems theory has long focused primarily on the internal relations of systems. There was initially very good reason for this, as it was necessary to spell out the inner workings of a social system in detail in order to understand it. Now, however, as noted by Luhmann, it is time to move beyond internals, to an analysis of system-external relations. Miller's Living Systems Theory is used to illustrate the early emphasis not only on system internals, but on vertical relations as well. The next logical (and sorely needed) step is to analyze simultaneously not only internal links within a given social system, but also external links between two or more systems. The basic typology for this endeavor is a fourfold model of links: (1) internal–vertical; (2) internal–horizontal; (3) external–horizontal; and (4) external–vertical. The four types of links are listed in the order that they have been previously recognized. Thus, while internal–vertical links were recognized in the part–whole analysis of classical functionalism, external–vertical links remain virtually invisible in social systems theory. The increasing number and rapidity of interactions between social systems, particularly electronic information and money flows, assure that social systems theorists cannot continue to neglect such links if they wish to claim contemporary relevance for their work. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Nested institutions and the retardation of the adaptive process

Abstract: New institutionalism, constituting a middle-range theory in the social sciences over the past decade, has failed to explain the ways whereby an institutional change takes place Viewing the world through a lens that targets the institution alone, adherents of the approach focus chiefly on the logic of institutional persistence, that is, embeddedness A critical analysis of the notion of new institutionalism, from a systems perspective, shows that the embeddedness becomes the very source of institutional change The established institution, the members of which adhere to the continuity that the institution embodies, cannot escape exposure to complex systemic and environmental changes That is, the institution, which is nested in a system, cannot but experience a retardation of the adaptive process The retardation results in institutional change and, furthermore, often precedes a systemic transformation, depending upon the significance of the institution within a given system Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Geoffrey Vickers: philosopher of responsibility

Abstract: In this article I discuss Geoffrey Vickers' ideas from the perspective of moral and political philosophy. His thought is presented through three key terms, which I suggest can encapsulate his philosophy: (i) our human capacity to respond aptly to our situation; (ii) the analysis of modern society in terms of institutions; and (iii) the moral importance of responsibility to the maintenance of human culture and cooperation.

An emerging model of a systems agriculturalist

Abstract: This paper describes the development of a conceptual model of agriculture at the Faculty of Agriculture, Hawkesbury Agricultural College, during the early 1980s. The model was a tool in a learning/researching process that was driven by the increasing complexity of problems/issues facing Australian agriculture over that period. The path took us from seeing agriculture as a science discipline-focused, mechanistic view of agriculture to a systemic model that incorporated people as an essential component. The phases that we went through included: ‘agriculture as a production activity’, ‘agriculture as applied ecology’, ‘agriculture as a mechanical (hard) system’, and ‘agriculture as a human activity system’. Each phase was incorporated into the next so that the final model was able to be usefully used in approaching on-farm scientific and technical issues, managerial and information flow/communication issues, and social and cultural issues. It also placed farming as an activity within the wider social and biophysical environment, which encouraged study of the impact of agriculture on the soil and water resources as well as the fate of rural communities. The model was generated through a process of action research and thus was consistent with the growing educational philosophy of the Faculty. It was a collaborative process that drew on the expertise of members of the Faculty and on a wide range of literature. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Knowledge Resources: Critical Systems Thinking, Viable System Model and Gifts

Abstract: The importance of knowledge as a resource and asset for organizations and society has been well researched in the social science and management literature Both the critical systems approach and the viable system model have been used as foundations for managing knowledge This note advocates a third approach to managing knowledge: a framework based on knowledge exchange that is closer to the theory of ‘gifts’ Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Human systems and global governance

Abstract: Many of the trends identified by Geoffrey Vickers are now clearly visible in the intensification of globalizing dynamics, yet the implications of these developments for human security and sustainability have still not been grasped adequately. The most pertinent and extensive literature in the social sciences concerning political and organizational arrangements at the highest levels of human organization is the study of global governance. However, the many themes and perspectives that comprise this literature tend toward sectoral speciality, or intra-community theoretical debates. If we are to engage Geoffrey Vickers' insightful and now pressing range of questions, global governance theorists might do best to ask, ‘What would an adequate global governance be the governance of?’ Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.