Equity at the Edge of Chaos: Applying Complex Adaptive Systems Theory to Higher Education

Autor/inn/en	Ueland, Jeffrey S.; Hinds, Teri Lyn; Floyd, Nancy D.
Titel	Equity at the Edge of Chaos: Applying Complex Adaptive Systems Theory to Higher Education
Quelle	In: New Directions for Institutional Research, (2021) 189-192, S.121-138 (18 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0271-0579
DOI	10.1002/ir.20356
Schlagwörter	Equal Education; Higher Education; Systems Approach; Educational Change; Social Networks; Resistance to Change; Sustainability; Minnesota + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Hochschulbildung; Hochschulsystem; Hochschulwesen; Systemischer Ansatz; Bildungsreform; Social network; Soziales Netzwerk; Nachhaltigkeit
Abstract	Complex adaptive systems (CASs) theory provides a framework for understanding how systems of multiple, independent, and intelligent agents interact with each other in a nested and overlapping set of environments to create both a whole that has an identity apart from any of its individual components as well as a setting in which simple cause-and-effect relationships are rarely linear or predictable. CASs are resilient and ever-evolving, adapting both to internal and external stimuli according to both tacit and explicit rule structures to move continually toward the better realization of an ideal state as defined by those rules. Managing change within CAS requires capitalizing on moments of disruption, sometimes referred to as the edge of chaos, to guide the system toward a different, more desired state. Higher education institutions and systems can easily be described as meeting the criteria for CAS, containing multiple layers of both hierarchical and collegial networks that seem at times to stubbornly resist transformative change, while simultaneously adapting and evolving. This article will use Minnesota State's Equity 2030 strategic priority and efforts to implement a shared understanding of data democratization as examples to explain the application of CAS theory to higher education and discuss how applying transition management approaches from the CAS literature has the potential to lead to long-term and sustainable structural change. (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www.wiley.com/en-us
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01