Operational constructivism
As a form of constructivism , operative constructivism deals with the classic problem of how knowledge is possible, although knowledge has no independent access to reality outside of it: “Constructivist theories claim that cognitive systems (e.g. fireflies or humans; d A.) are not able to differentiate between the conditions of the existence of real objects and the conditions of their knowledge, because they do not have knowledge-independent access to such real objects. "
For Niklas Luhmann , recognizing means observing, i.e. differentiating and designating. Through the recursive process of operating, the difference between system and environment is always generated in the operating system itself: “The primary reality lies, the cognition may reflect on itself as it will, not in“ the outside world ”, but in the cognitive operations self".
In this sense, there are neither things nor events in the environment : everything that can be observed is the own contribution (= construction) of the observer , the operating system. This therefore also applies to the knowledge of a difference between reality and construction. Knowledge thus leads back to distinctions , which in turn lead back to distinctions, etc.
This means that an “ ultimate reason ” is no longer applicable. However, this deliberation does not allow any conclusions to be drawn about the non-reality of the environment. But neither does it allow the conclusion that there is nothing outside of the cognitive system. In Luhmann's words: “Operational constructivism in no way doubts that there is an environment. Otherwise the concept of the system boundary, which presupposes that there is another side, would have no meaning. The thesis of operational constructivism does not lead to a 'loss of the world', it does not deny that there is reality. But it presupposes the world not as an object, but as a horizon in the sense of phenomenology . So unreachable. And therefore there is no other option than: to construct reality and possibly: to observe observers how they construct reality. "
literature
- Ernst von Glasersfeld : Radical Constructivism, Ideas, Results, Problems 1998, ISBN 3-518-28926-8
- Niklas Luhmann : Knowledge as Construction, 1988.
- Niklas Luhmann: The reality of the mass media. 2nd, expanded edition. Opladen: Westdeutscher Verlag, 1996.
- Heinz von Foerster : view and insight. Attempts at an operational epistemology, 1985.
- Daniel Dorniok: From operational constructivism to Luhmann's system theory, 2007, ISBN 3-638-70513-7