Autoreferenza del senso ed evoluzione delle idee: il contributo della teoria dei sistemi sociali alla sociologia del sapere

Social systems theory is epistemologically based on the circular self-reference of its arguments. From the standpoint of sociology of knowledge this may be conceived of as the outcome of the self-reference of meaning. The main hypothesis is that evolution enhances autological descriptions of society. For instance, the theory of evolution itself actually is the outcome of theoretical evolution. The following article deals with a case study, the idea of system, and tries to suggest some reflections about values and limits of sociological theory employing the conceptual equipment of system theory.