MALK4000-401 Complexity, Science and Society Course description

Admission to the study program

On successful completion of the course, the student has the following learning outcomes

classified as knowledge and skills:

Knowledge

The student

¿ can describe and discuss societal influences that support a complexity perspective

¿ can describe and discuss complexity as a scientific approach

¿ can describe and discuss dualism as a philosophical perspective, and the effect of dualism in an applied setting

¿ can describe reductionism; emergence; critical mass; consilience; the unity of science, and other concepts from complexity science

¿ can give examples of analyses of the same phenomenon at different levels of reduction

¿ can describe and discuss differences in antagonistic and complementary professional approaches to the same phenomenon

¿ can describe and discuss the principle of selection at different levels of complexity

Skills

The student

¿ can analyze networks as the structure of complex adaptive systems

¿ can identify nodes and hubs, assessing the robustness and vulnerability of Networks

¿ can identify category mistakes and discuss mentalism and evolutionary approaches

¿ can cite sources and arrange a reference list according to the current standard from APA

¿ can use EndNote for citations and references in written assignments

Complexity, networks, selection at different levels of complexity, unity of knowledge, dualism, natural scientific methods, levels of reduction and choice of analytical units.

The course will include lectures, discussions, individual reports and seminars.

Students submit 4 written assignments, each with maximum 3 pages including references,

according to the deadlines in the course schedule.

Exam content: Learning outcomes

Form of examination: Individual written examination with invigilation, 4 hours

Examiners: One internal and one external examiner

Grading scale: A grading scale of A (highest) to F (lowest) where A to E is a pass grade and

F is a fail grade.

Examination support materials

None

Syllabus

Axelrod, R. M. & Cohen, M. D. (1999). Harnessing complexity: Organizational implications of a scientific frontier . New York: Free Press. [Also available as eBook: https://login.ezproxy.hioa.no/login?url=http://www.hioa.eblib.com/EBLWeb/patron?target=patron&extendedid=P_903703_0 ]

*Bar-Yam, Y. (1997). Dynamics of complex systems . Boulder, CO: Westview Press [Also available as eBook: http://necsi.org/publications/dcs/index.html (kap. 0)]

*Bohr, N. (1954). The philosophical writings of Niels Bohr: Vol. 2. Essays 1932-1957 on atomic physics and human knowledge . Woodbridge, Conn.: Ox Bow Press. [Unity of knowledge, s. 67-82]

*Gjøtterud, K. (1989). Kan New Age trekke veksler på et paradigmeskifte i moderne fysikk? (Report Series nr. 89-23). Oslo: Fysisk institutt, Universitetet i Oslo.

*Mayr, E. (1997). This is biology: The science of the living world . Cambridge, Mass.: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press. [Utdrag]

*Sandaker, I. (2006). How should behavior analysis interact effectively with the social sciences? Behavior and social issues, 15 (1), 81-91. doi:10.5210/bsi.v15i1.346 [Electronic Version: http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.hioa.no/docview/229305016?rfr_id=info%3Axri%2Fsid%3Aprimo ]

*Sandaker, I. (2010). Et seleksjonsperspektiv på atferdsendring og læring i systemer. I S. Eikeseth, & F. Svartdal (Red.), Anvendt atferdsanalyse: Teori og praksis (2. utg., s. 470-485). Oslo: Gyldendal akademisk. [16 s.]

Schneider, S. M. (2012). The Science of consequences: How they affect genes, change the brain, and impact our world . Amherst, N.Y: Prometheus Books. [Also available as eBook: https://login.ezproxy.hioa.no/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=731614&site=ehost-live ]

Snow, C. P. (1959). The two cultures and the scientific revolution . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [Also available as eBook: https://login.ezproxy.hioa.no/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=928032&site=ehost-live ]

Wilson, E. O. (1998). Consilience: The unity of knowledge . New York: Knopf. [Also available as eBook: https://login.ezproxy.hioa.no/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=883082&site=ehost-live ] [Kap. 1-5]

Notes

* available in Fronter

(Literature list last updated: 2016-08-09 in the APA 6th style, lmb/Library Kjeller)