Complexity and Co-Evolution: Continuity and Change in Socio-Economic Systems - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 184542140X ISBN 13: 9781845421403

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd, 2006

Synopsis

This book applies ideas and methods from the complexity perspective to key concerns in the social sciences, exploring co-evolutionary processes that have not yet been addressed in the technical or popular literature on complexity.

Authorities in a variety of fields - including evolutionary economics, innovation and regeneration studies, urban modelling and history - re-evaluate their disciplines within this framework. The book explores the complex dynamic processes that give rise to socio-economic change over space and time, with reference to empirical cases including the emergence of knowledge-intensive industries and decline of mature regions, the operation of innovative networks and the evolution of localities and cities. Sustainability is a persistent theme and the practicability of intervention is examined in the light of these perspectives.

Specialists in disciplines that include economics, evolutionary theory, innovation, industrial manufacturing, technology change, and archaeology will find much to interest them in this book. In addition, the strong interdisciplinary emphasis of the book will attract a non-specialist audience interested in keeping abreast of current theoretical and methodological approaches through evidence-based and practical examples.

About this title

About the Author

Edited by Elizabeth Garnsey, former Reader in Innovation Studies and Fellow, Clare Hall, University of Cambridge, UK and James McGlade, Senior Research Scientist, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain and Research Associate, Clare Hall, University of Cambridge, UK

From the Back Cover

`Complexity theory first emerged three decades or so ago, but
only recently has its potential relevance for the study of social and
economic phenomena really begun to be recognised. This timely collection of
essays clearly demonstrates, both conceptually and empirically, how
complexity theory ideas can provide considerable insight into how
socio-economic systems - cities, societies, industries, technologies and
economies - evolve and adapt over time. It is essential reading for anyone
interested in how order and evolution emerge out of the seemingly chaotic
socio-economic world around us.' Ron Martin, University of Cambridge, UK.

`I read Complexity and Co-Evolution with real pleasure. These authors have
done the near impossible - they have made the concepts of a new and
evolving science accessible to people who can apply it in practical ways.
The clarity of writing reflects the sort of confidence only the truly
informed can muster, for they need no jargon to cover confusions. Their
mastery allows them to present the essentials in simple, unadorned forms
and through genuinely illustrative examples. Any manager or director trying
to navigate dynamic markets can use this book to learn new ways of
thinking, explore new possibilities, and study historical experiences.'
Robert Artigiani, United States Naval Academy.

`Current thinking about evolutionary dynamics increasingly relies on
co-evolution, and co-evolution increasingly implies complex dynamics of one
sort or another. This volume brings together a capable and well-balanced
group of thinkers on these topics who explore these deeply related concepts
with up-to-date and advanced tools and concepts. For anyone wishing to
learn about the latest developments in these rapidly developing areas, this
book is highly recommended.' J. Barkley Rosser Jr., James Madison
University, USA.

From the Inside Flap

This book applies ideas and methods from the complexity
perspective to key concerns in the social sciences, exploring
co-evolutionary processes that have not yet been addressed in the technical
or popular literature on complexity.

Authorities in a variety of fields - including evolutionary economics,
innovation and regeneration studies, urban modelling and history -
re-evaluate their disciplines within this framework. The book explores the
complex dynamic processes that give rise to socio-economic change over
space and time, with reference to empirical cases including the emergence
of knowledge-intensive industries and decline of mature regions, the
operation of innovative networks and the evolution of localities and
cities. Sustainability is a persistent theme and the practicability of
intervention is examined in the light of these perspectives.

Specialists in disciplines that include economics, evolutionary theory,
innovation, industrial manufacturing, technology change, and archaeology
will find much to interest them in this book. In addition, the strong
interdisciplinary emphasis of the book will attract a non-specialist
audience interested in keeping abreast of current theoretical and
methodological approaches through evidence-based and practical examples.

Edition details

• Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd
• Publication date: 2006
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 184542140X
• ISBN 13: 9781845421403
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 232
• Editor: Garnsey Elizabeth, McGlade James