What is self-organization? Processes, principles and theory of self-organization

The question of what self-organization is, is very interesting. Let's consider it in this article. Self-organization of systems is an irreversible process that results in the interaction of its various participants in the emergence of more efficient structures.

The study of society and nature shows that many open complex formations, which consist of a large number of subsystems, are capable, under specific conditions, of evolution and self-organization.

History of the study of self-organization

For social and natural processes, the importance of self-organization has been studied, even on the theological or abstractly philosophical level, since the time of Aristotle. Hundreds of works were written about how our world works, what is the root cause of the stability and integrity of the universe, which has existed for billions of years. This problem became especially urgent in the last century, in the second half. This is due to the development of cybernetics.

Cybernetic understanding

In philosophy for a long time dominated the view of this process as inherent only in living systems phenomenon. Self-organization in nature, for example, is an organism, a living cell, a biological population. Watch the flock of birds, ants or bees, and you will understand what it is.

The cybernetic understanding of self-organization, that is, its definition as a hierarchical centralized structure, where information from the bottom comes from the feedback channel only as an end result, but decides only at the top, was unable to reflect the actual functioning of systems, its complexity, and create models for explaining processes, Which occur in complex associations.

Nonclassical approach

Inside cybernetics, in the second half of the 1950s, a non-classical direction emerged, created to study various systems (self-organization of matter, society). Within its framework, a mechanism was proposed which is closer to synergistic than to cybernetic (which is considered to be classical). N. Wiener, founder of cybernetics, became one of the nonclassicists who studied the principle of self-organization. In the twentieth century, at the beginning of the 1960s, ML Tsetlin, a Soviet scientist, wrote that if management were viewed as an address from top to bottom, then the system would be very complicated. Automata, if given the rules of the game, find the necessary actions themselves, without the need for instructions. This, in his opinion, is the principle of self-organization.

Synergetics as a discipline

The discipline of synergetics, which appeared in the West, was established by 1975 as a new direction in science, very promising, greatly expanding the range of various self-organization processes previously studied by cybernetics. In the works of this direction it can be noted that self-organization as a phenomenon is regarded as universal for both inanimate and living systems. It is with the introduction of the term "synergetics" into science that two main approaches to research have been noted: synergistic and cybernetic. These two concepts differ primarily in regard to the purposefulness of systemic behavior, which is observed when there are processes of self-organization.

Differences between the synergistic and cybernetic approach

The cybernetic approach presupposes the existence of a predetermined goal, to which the system itself, on which it organizes itself, strives. A synergistic approach does not require a goal. From his point of view, self-organization is manifested as an effect of cooperation between various elements of the system.

Common in two approaches

Both synergetics and cybernetics attach paramount importance to such a notion as "management," pursuing different goals. Cybernetics develops methods and algorithms that allow you to control this system so that it operates in a pre-defined manner. In the process of experiment, various control parameters change in a certain way in the synergetics, and self-organization is investigated as a reaction to them, that is, to the various states into which the system passes under the influence of such control levers. That is, under the action of a certain governing body, a cybernetic system is organized, and in the synergistic one, the control parameters are not directly affected by its behavior. They only trigger the mechanism of internal self-organization. In both synergistic and cybernetic systems, behavior seems to be purposeful, but in the former case the system chooses the path of development to a higher organization, and in the second, this goal is pre-determined.

Synergetics and self-organization

Today the meaning of the word "self-organization" is close to the notion of "synergetics". They are often used in science as synonyms. In fact, both these concepts study the way in which space and time arise organization from chaos (self-organization processes) and opposite phenomena (self-organization processes) that can be observed in systems of any nature that are complex, open, nonequilibrium and dynamic. Both of the above-mentioned mechanisms (synergetic and cybernetic) have a single basis: connections that spontaneously arise between elements, allowing to create structures, organization in the system at the expense of local interactions taking place without any control commands.

The tendency of a self-organizing system

Initially, speaking about the phenomenon of self-organization, present in complex systems, they are expected to strive for homeostatic stability, preservation of integrity. It is possible to note the following main tendency existing in the behavior of some self-organizing association: to be as far as possible from the state of chaos, maximum entropy, equilibrium. Synergetics, on the other hand, argue that there is no development without instability, it occurs through chance, stress. Crises and instability contribute to the selection and identification of the best. The economic crisis, for example, disciplines, organizes, enables young and active people to get ahead, and lazy and weak - to give them a place in the market. A system that can be considered good, as it were, knows the boundaries, possible in this area of instability, permissible stochasticity, and introduces itself according to some laws into a state that activates the mechanisms of self-organization. That is, it struggles with entropy, risking.

Self-organization of some system is a process of changing its characteristics (or state), taking place without a definite, purposeful beginning, regardless of the sources of the goal setting. The causes that cause it can be internal or external. This is typical for such phenomena as self-organization in nature, society or inanimate systems. You can also talk about the elements of this process.

Set of mechanisms of self-organization

We found out what self-organization is in nature, inanimate systems and society. What are its mechanisms? The totality of all mechanisms of self-organization includes selection, heredity, variability. This is what NN Moiseyev, an academician, calls the market. It is he who offers many options, and stability, system laws and selection principles choose the most effective ones. The market, according to Moiseyev, studied by Ricardo and Smith, is a special case of the so-called market of the universe. Nature could not come up with another scheme. Therefore, people went along the already beaten track, because the other simply did not exist: the logic by which the economy of nature and the human economy self-organize is common.

Types of self-organization

Sometimes scientists distinguish the social, biological and technical varieties of self-organization, believing that their mechanisms are based on different principles:

- social (self-organization of society) is based on a certain social program of harmonization of relations, including laws, values and priorities that change over time;

- the biological is based on the species conservation program (genetic), as well as on selection, heredity and variability (the Darwinian triad);

- technical relies on a program that automatically changes a certain algorithm of actions under changing conditions (autopilot, homing missiles, etc.).

Finding out what self-organization is, knowing the existing relationship between it and the organization in social systems is the most important task of science. In any company, a company, together with purposeful management, carried out with the help of plans, documents, instructions, instructions, normative acts, there are always processes of self-organization that are related to the properties of the system as a whole, with certain synergistic effects. So how much should this self-organization be? Are there any general principles, is there an opportunity, with the help of practical knowledge and a modern language, to develop recommendations on this matter?

Self-organization in social systems

It is known that the more rigid the management system, the less space for self-organization and creativity. But, letting the elements of the system float freely, we will not be able to achieve our goal. Self-organization of society, on the one hand, is achieved through unauthorized activities, informal cooperation. But on the other - thanks to the well-organized, purposeful actions of the managers, with the help of the clearly defined goal.

So, what is self-organization in society? In social systems, evolution involves the following:

- Presence of a definite goal in advance, to which the system independently strives, self-organizing around this task. The priorities of innovative development, creative approach, professional growth, as well as enhancing the prestige of the relevant work activity play a big role.

- Adaptability, variability and flexibility of management structures. Administrative methods are being superseded by socio-psychological methods. Modern networked flexible structures enhance existing synergies, thereby increasing the overall effect. Hierarchical rigid leave small possibilities for self-organization. It manifests itself in the fact that small independent units are not connected in daily activities by bureaucratic structures that prevent the coordination of decisions on the vertical and horizontal.

- Decentralization, diversification, increasing the productivity of an individual participant, the involvement of everyone in making management decisions, as well as labor motivation.

- Use for various purposes of information transfer, production capacity, know-how, knowledge, etc.

- Self-control, self-education, self-education. At the firm, certain conditions must be created for this.

- Self-development, necessary for the transition of the organization to a new level (change of structure, development of a new goal, accumulation of information about the structure).

We examined what is self-organization, its definition, specifics and types. As you can see, this common term today refers to phenomena in living and nonliving systems. That is, the self-organization of matter and society are in many respects similar. This process is very interesting as a universal property of systems.