Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between Husserl’s phenomenology and soft systems. An important idea arising from the action research programme at the University of Lancaster is the notion of soft systems. The concept of soft systems, that distinguished it from other systems (holistic) thinking of the time, was the conscious link between soft systems thinking and phenomenology. Phenomenology is that the realm of intentional consciousness that enables the phenomenologist to develop a radically unprejudiced justification of his (or her) basic views of the world and of himself and explore their rational interconnections. Similarly, in soft systems, it is acknowledged that reality is formed by sensation and fashioned by experience. It is not exclusively a process of thought (although this may shape how we process our experience), for us the world exists as the result of a subjective appreciation of it. In Part 1, the author explores how phenomenology informs soft systems theory and practice through the work of Husserl and some of those that influenced him and were influenced by him. In Part 2, the author explores a possible relationship between Husserl and Gadamer as a possible intellectual grounding for organisational inquiry.

Design/methodology/approach

The research was conducted by examining published material relating to the development of soft systems ideas and Husserl's phenomenology.

Findings

An analysis of the ideas within the material suggests that phenomenology can be considered as a underpinning the notion of soft systems

Research limitations/implications

There is difficulty tracking down important papers that recorded the development of soft systems (i.e. 1970–1990) as Lancaster University had disposed of all issues. However, the author tracked down a source and was able to use this material as part of the research. In addition to helping research the origins of the idea, it also provides a paper trail for other researchers interested in these ideas.

Practical implications

Tracing the published material relating to soft systems necessitated visits to several universities as many of the important papers where no longer held by the University of Lancaster library.

Social implications

It seems apposite that the ideas behind soft systems are resurrected as they offer an alternative way of thinking about complexity – which the modern world seems increasingly creating

Originality/value

There is a lack of research into soft systems as the publications describing the Lancaster research programme have centred around soft systems methodology (SSM). Checkland remarked a decade or so ago that said SSM should be taken as given and other ideas explored. There is little evidence that the soft ideas have been explored outside variations of SSM, this paper is intended to encourage more research into ‘soft’ systems.

中文翻译：

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胡塞尔的现象学可以提供软系统的知识框架吗？（第一部分）

目的

本文的目的是探讨胡塞尔现象学与软系统之间的关系。兰开斯特大学行动研究计划提出的一个重要思想是软系统的概念。软系统的概念将其与当时的其他系统（整体）思考区分开来，是软系统思考与现象学之间的有意识联系。现象学是意图意识的领域，它使现象学家能够对他（或她）对世界和他本人的基本观点提出根本上没有偏见的理由，并探索它们之间的合理联系。同样，在软系统中，人们认识到现实是由感觉形成的，并由经验形成的。它不是专门的思考过程（尽管这可能影响我们处理经验的方式），对我们来说，世界的存在是主观欣赏它的结果。在第1部分中，作者探讨了现象学如何通过Husserl的工作以及一些对他有影响并且受他影响的工作，为软系统理论和实践提供信息。在第2部分中，作者探讨了Husserl和Gadamer之间可能存在的关系，作为组织探究的可能知识基础。

设计/方法/方法

该研究是通过检查与软系统思想发展和胡塞尔现象学有关的已出版材料进行的。

发现

对材料中思想的分析表明，现象学可以被认为是软系统概念的基础。

研究局限/意义

由于兰开斯特大学已处理所有问题，因此很难追踪记录软系统发展（即1970–1990）的重要论文。但是，作者追踪了一个来源，并能够将这种材料用作研究的一部分。除了帮助研究该想法的起源之外，它还为对这些想法感兴趣的其他研究人员提供了论文线索。

实际影响

由于要跟踪与软系统有关的已出版材料，因此有必要访问几所大学，因为兰开斯特大学图书馆不再拥有许多重要论文。

社会影响

似乎合适的是，软系统背后的思想已经复活，因为它们提供了一种替代性的复杂性思考方式，现代世界似乎越来越多地在创建这种方式。

创意/价值

由于描述Lancaster研究计划的出版物都围绕软系统方法论（SSM），因此缺乏对软系统的研究。Checkland在大约十年前发表评论说，应该将SSM视为既定做法，并探索其他想法。几乎没有证据表明软思想已经在SSM的变体之外进行了探索，本文旨在鼓励对“软”系统进行更多研究。