Social Human Complexity and Global Challenges: Theoretical, Methodological and Empirical Contributions for Transformative Change

David S. Byrne, Emma Uprichard and Gill Callaghan

Complexity, 2026, vol. 2026, 1-14

Abstract: This paper advances a framework for complexity-informed action research as a mode of governance for addressing the contemporary polycrisis in socio-ecological systems. It argues that knowledge is not merely representational but possesses causal power in shaping future system trajectories and that research and governance are inseparable, recursive practices. Transformation involves imagining desired futures, and transformative knowledge is created in action within complex socio-ecological systems. Building on complexity theory and participatory action research, the paper identifies organic intellectuals within governance institutions as key agents of transformation and positions grey literature as a primary and underutilised knowledge base for understanding and intervening in real governance processes. We argue for action research based on collaboration between individual and collective actors in civil society through the construction of scenarios built on narratives. Scenario narratives of path-dependent pasts and desired futures are causally effective fields of action that structure possibilities for collective agency. Narrative scenario construction is shown to operate through recursive bottom-up and top-down dynamics, enabling the co-production of desired futures across institutional and civil-society actors. The paper proposes the city-region as a critical governance scale at which participatory scenario building can most effectively integrate situated knowledge, professional expertise and institutional capacity. Narrative scenario-based action research is therefore presented not as a supplement to policy or technical modelling, but as a distinct governance practice capable of reshaping attractor landscapes and opening pathways towards more equitable and sustainable socio-ecological futures.

Date: 2026
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hin:complx:1588585

DOI: 10.1155/cplx/1588585

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