STEERING SOCIETIES?

A survey of political philosophy from Antiquity to present times, and of more recent efforts to create a thoroughly planned society, leads to the conclusion that history does not give an unambiguous answer to the question whether or not macro-social planning is possible. From an analytical rather th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Kybernetes 1984-03, Vol.13 (3), p.133-139
Main Author: MASUCH, MICHAEL
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:A survey of political philosophy from Antiquity to present times, and of more recent efforts to create a thoroughly planned society, leads to the conclusion that history does not give an unambiguous answer to the question whether or not macro-social planning is possible. From an analytical rather than a historical viewpoint, the concept of planning turns out to be ill-defined and to have many implicit surplus-meanings that are supposed to distinguish it from similar decision-related activities, but do not really do so. The planning paradox is inescapable: Perfect planning implies perfect prediction, which in turn implies a deterministic universe that leaves no room for planning. While the cost-benefit ratio of planning efforts increases during periods of rapid social change, for reasons that are explained, the author nevertheless concludes that a tenacious pro-steering bias exists as a result of human cognitive dispositions towards balanced thinking, linear thinking, asymmetric attribution of success and satisficing.
ISSN:0368-492X
DOI:10.1108/eb005683