The Problem of Complexity in Luhmann's Work: The Neo-Humanistic Perspective

Niklas Luhmann was an author who combined the history of European sociology with originality. Today it is difficult to determine which aspect of his paradigm left a deeper mark. His contribution to the conceptualization of some processes—such as the autopoiesis of the social system and the notion, now perhaps overused, of self-referentiality—maintains significant topicality. His collaboration (even if in conflict) with Frankfurt School’s Habermas on the outcomes of technology in social systems attests to the ideological neutrality of his systemic approach. This paper will deal with the sociological context in which Luhmann’s research has been developed and disseminated. The work focuses on specific characteristics of Luhmann’s themes: the concept of system; the behaviorist dynamics of the first and second orders; the structure of contingency (both single and double); and the fundamental problems of complexity.