Complex Adaptive Systems and Spontaneous Emergence

Abstract

This paper introduces concepts associated with complex adaptive systems (cas), linking those concepts at some points to economic planning. The paper begins (section 1) with an informal description of the notion of a cas and then (section 2) discusses the critical role of “building blocks” in understanding cas. Using these ideas, the paper goes on (section 3) to discuss the phenomenon of “emergence”, wherein the whole of the system’s behaviour goes beyond the simple sum of the behaviours of its parts. The body of the paper (sections 4 through 6) looks at the role of modelling in predicting the behaviour of cas, examining the kinds of model that will serve this purpose. The paper concludes (section 7) with a brief discussion of the relevance of these ideas to economic planning.