EIGEN
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(1) |
| ID | ◀ 1039 ▶ |
| Object type | Methodology or model |
A German word whose meaning is “Self”.
The German prefix “eigen” means “own” and is now used in various composite words, all of them introduced by von FOERSTER (1976, p.93) and related to the the self-reproductive properties of autopoietic systems, endowed with organizational closure. von FOERSTER wants to emphasize the self-reference nature of systemic processes and functions.
He even states in a paper in German that “Leben ist ein Eigenprocess” (1992, p.82), and adds: “ A living being is a self perpetuating, autonomous and organizationally closed being”.
This basic characteristic was confirmed later on by H. MATURANA, F. VARELA and R. URIBE's biological research and simultaneously extended to psychology and sociology under the guise of constructivist concepts.(E.von GLASERSFELD, in P. WATZLAWICZ (Ed), 1992).
We thus have “Eigen-algorithms, Eigen-value, Eigen-behavior, Eigen-elements, Eigen-functions, Eigen-operators, Eigen-processes” and, in communication, “Eigen-feedbacks”, which become the origin of “conversation” and consensus through progressive agreement on perceptions, meanings and concepts.
In all cases, “Eigen-situations” need to be carefully harmonized with their own origins (autogenesis) and all transformations and evolutive changes, like adaptativeness and emergence of higher levels of complexity.