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Dealing with Diversity

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Critical Systems Thinking

Abstract

Interests within the systems community have turned during the last decade toward a consideration and an importation of ideas emanating from what might be termed “Continental” philosophers. I refer, of course, to interest in the work of Habermas and, to a lesser degree, of Foucault, Derrida, Lacan, and Lyotard (see, e.g., Cummings, 1994; Flood, 1989a Flood, 1989b Flood, 1989c, Flood, 1990a Flood, 1990b Flood, 1990c; Fuenmayor, 1985, Fuenmayor, 1990a, Fuenmayor, 1990b, Fuenmayor, 1991; Gregory, 1990, Gregory, 1992; Jackson, 1982, Jackson, 1983, Jackson, 1985a, Jackson, 1985b, Jackson, 1987a, Jackson, 1987b, Jackson, 1989, Jackson, 1990, Jackson, 1991a, Jackson, 1991b; Levy, 1991; Midgley, 1990, Midgley, 1991, Midgley, 1992a, Midgley, 1992b, Midgley, 1994; Mingers, 1980, Mingers, 1992; Oliga, 1988, Oliga, 1990a Oliga, 1990b Oliga, 1990c, Oliga, 1991; Payne, 1992; Ulrich, 1983, Ulrich, 1988; Valero-Silva, 1994, Valero-Silva, 1995a, Valero-Silva, 1995b, this volume; Wooliston, 1990, Wooliston, 1991a,Wooliston, 1991b—other contributors are listed by Oliga, 1988, Oliga, 1991). The main questions for contemporary systems practitioners, especially those whose field of intervention is organizations and communities, have emerged from the sheer range of approaches that are available for responding to problems, problematics, messes, or problem situations.

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Gregory, W. (1996). Dealing with Diversity. In: Flood, R.L., Romm, N.R.A. (eds) Critical Systems Thinking. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-585-34651-9_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-585-34651-9_3

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