BOUNDARY OF EQUAL ADVANTAGE
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(1) |
| ID | ◀ 325 ▶ |
| Object type | General information, Human sciences, Methodology or model |
In K. BOULDING's words: “… any organization in competition with others will find that its advantage in the interaction diminishes as it goes away from some kind of ”home base“, so that at some point the advantages of any further expansion fall to zero”.
BOULDING adds: “… the concept could easily be generalized. It is these boundaries of equal advantage which really define the niches of an ecological system” (1972, p.69-70).
The respective boundary of equal advantage tends to be more or less geometrically regular for competing or cooperating systems, as shown by W. CHRISTALLER and A. LÖSCH (see hexagonal space filling).
This seems to be a rather general result of structuration by dissipation.
It is also probably related to a problem of length of lines of communication, as the distance from the center of the system increases: the possible expansion of political or economic systems must submit to BOULDING's boundaries of equal advantage.