Interdisciplinarity and complexity: An evolving relationship*

Abstract

In recent decades, the ideas of interdisciplinarity and complexity have become increasingly en-twined. This convergence invites an exploration of the links and their implications. The implica-tions span the nature of knowledge, the structure of the university, the character of problem solv-ing, the dialogue between science and humani-ties, and the theoretical relationship of the two underlying ideas. Both interdisciplinarity and complexity are mod- ern ideas. However, the underlying concepts of interdisciplinarity- breadth and general knowl-edge, integration, and synthesis- are ancient. Orga-nized programs date to the opening decades of the twentieth century, in social science research and the core curriculum and general education movements. Precedents for the idea of complexity are traced to the early twentieth century, in disciplines such as biol-ogy and philosophy. The new science of complexity, though, developed in the latter half of the century. In recent decades, the two ideas have become increasingly entwined. The link between the two ideas was evident in the earliest major theories about interdisciplinarity. At WKHìUVWLQWHUQDWLRQDOFRQIHUHQFHRQLQWHUGLVFLSOLQDU\\ research and higher education, Erich Jantsch called for a new approach capable of fostering judgment in “complex and dynamically changing situations ” (1972: 102). Indicative of the era, the organizing languages of Jantsch’s model of the system of education and innova-tion were logic, cybernetics, planning, general systems theory, and organizational theory. A decade later, S. Smirnov (1984) identified “system-complex inter-disciplinarity ” as one of the main ontological forms of interdisciplinary development in modern science. Smirnov believed the discovery of systems-forming and system-organizing links and regularities among distinct diverse departments, parts, and elements held the promise of elaborating a common theoretical