The International Society for the Systems Sciences (ISSS) is a worldwide organization for systems sciences. The overall purpose of the ISSS is: :"to promote the development of conceptual frameworks based on general system theory, as well as their implementation in practice. It further seeks to encourage research and facilitate communication between and among scientists and professionals from various disciplines and professions at local, regional, national, and international levels." Initially conceived in 1954 as the ''Society for the Advancement of General Systems Theory'', and started in 1955/56, the Society for General Systems Research became the first interdisciplinary and international co-operation in the field of

systems theory Systems theory is the interdisciplinary study of systems, i.e. cohesive groups of interrelated, interdependent components that can be natural or human-made. Every system has causal boundaries, is influenced by its context, defined by its structu ...

and systems science. In 1988 it was renamed to the International Society for the Systems Sciences.

History

The society was initiated in 1954 by biologists

Ludwig von Bertalanffy Karl Ludwig von Bertalanffy (19 September 1901 – 12 June 1972) was an Austrian biologist known as one of the founders of general systems theory (GST). This is an interdisciplinary practice that describes systems with interacting components, appl ...

and

Ralph Gerard Ralph Waldo Gerard (7 October 1900 – 17 February 1974) was an American neurophysiologist and behavioral scientist known for his wide-ranging work on the nervous system, nerve metabolism, psychopharmacology, and biological basis of schizophrenia ...

, economist

Kenneth Boulding Kenneth Ewart Boulding (; January 18, 1910 – March 18, 1993) was an English-born American economist, educator, peace activist, and interdisciplinary philosopher.David LatzkoKenneth E. Boulding Commentsat personal.psu.edu. Accessed 24 April 200 ...

, and mathematician

Anatol Rapoport Anatol Rapoport ( uk, Анатолій Борисович Рапопо́рт; russian: Анато́лий Бори́сович Рапопо́рт; May 22, 1911January 20, 2007) was an American mathematical psychologist. He contributed to genera ...

at the Stanford

Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences The Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (CASBS) is an interdisciplinary research lab at Stanford University that offers a residential postdoctoral fellowship program for scientists and scholars studying "the five core social a ...

. They called a meeting at the

American Association for the Advancement of Science The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is an American international non-profit organization with the stated goals of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific respons ...

meeting in Berkeley in 1954. At this meeting, attended by seventy people, the society was conceived as the ''Society for the Advancement of General Systems Theory''. The next year Boulding, Gerard and Rapoport started working with

James Grier Miller James Grier Miller (19167 November 2002, California) was an American biologist, a pioneer of systems science and academic administrator, who originated the modern use of the term "behavioral science", founded and directed the multi-disciplinary ...

at the Mental Health Research Institute of the University of Michigan. There the society got underway as "Society for General Systems Research". The statement of the mission of the society was formulated with the following four objectives: * to investigate the isomorphy of concepts, laws, and models in various fields, and to help in useful transfers from one field to another * to encourage the development of adequate theoretical models in areas which lack them * to eliminate the duplication of theoretical efforts in different fields * to promote the unity of science through improving the communication among specialists. In the 1960s local chapters were established in Boston, New York, San Francisco, Washington D.C, and Florida. Annual meetings were held in the winter, and annually a General Systems Yearbook was published. Periodical articles were published in the society's journal ''Behavioral Science'', and additionally "The Bulletin" offered regional and thematic publications. In 1971 the Society had 1100 individual and 6 institutional members, and a membership in some societies affiliated with the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In 1988, the society was renamed the 'International Society for the Systems Sciences' (ISSS). to "reflect its broadening scope".

Activities

Important activities of the Society are: * the '' General Systems Yearbook'' * the ''General Systems Bulletin'' * the Special Integration Groups A listing of the Special Integration Groups (SIGs) gives an idea of the themes of ongoing development in the Society:

Presidents

Among the Presidents of ISSS have been foremost scientists from several fields and countries, including some Nobel laureates: * Roelien Goede, 2022-2023 * George Mobus, 2021-2022 * Delia MacNamara, 2020-2021 * Shankar Sankaran, 2019-2020 * Peter D. Tuddenham, 2018-2019 *

David Rousseau David Rousseau (born 1960) is a British systems philosopher, Director of the Centre for Systems Philosophy, chair of the Board of Trustees of the International Society for the Systems Sciences (ISSS), a Past President of the ISSS (2017-2018), a ...

, 2017-2018 * Ockie Bosch, 2016-2017 *

John Kineman John Jay Kineman (born 1949) is an American physical scientist and Theoretical ecology, theoretical ecologist, affiliated with the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, Cooperative Institute for Research in the Environmental ...

, 2015-2016 *

Ray Ison Raymond L. (Ray) Ison (born 3 July 1952, Bathurst, NSW, Australia) is an Australian-British cybernetician, systems scholar/scientist, and Professor of Systems at the Open University in the UK. He is currently President of the International Fede ...

, 2014-2015 *

Gerald Midgley Gerald Robert Midgley (born 1960) is a British organizational theorist, professor of systems thinking, director of the Centre for Systems Studies at the University of Hull, and past president (2013-2014) of the International Society for the Syst ...

, 2013-2014 * Alexander Laszlo, 2012–2013 *

David Ing David Ing (born 1957) is a Canadian systems scientist, business architect, management consultant, and marketing scientist. He served as president of the International Society for the Systems Sciences (2011-2012). Ing was employed by IBM Cana ...

, 2011-2012 *

Jennifer Wilby Jennifer M. Wilby (born 1953) is an American and UK management scientist, and past director of the Centre for Systems Studies, and a senior lecturer and researcher in management systems and sciences in The Business School, University of Hull. Sh ...

, 2010-2011 * Allenna Leonard, 2009-2010 * Timothy F. H. Allen, 2008-2009 *

Gary Metcalf Gary S. Metcalf (born 1957) is an American systems scientist, organizational theorist, management consultant, and university professor. He has served as president of the International Federation for Systems Research 2010-2014. Biography Raised ...

, 2007-2008 *

Kyoichi Kijima Kyoichi Jim Kijima (木嶋恭一, born 1951) is a Japanese systems scientist and professor of Decision Systems Science at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. Biography Jim Kijima received an M.A. from Tokyo Institute of Technology in 1976 and a ...

, 2006-2007 *

Debora Hammond Debora Hammond (born 1951) is an American historian of science, former Provost and Professor Emerita of Interdisciplinary Studies of the Hutchins School of Liberal Studies at the Sonoma State University. She is known as author of the 2003 book ' ...

, 2005-2006 *

Enrique Herrscher Enrique G. Herrscher is an Argentine economist, systems scientist and professor at the University of Buenos Aires. Biography Herrscher has received a B.A. in strategic modelling from the London Business School, and an M.A. in administration and ...

, 2004-2005 *

Kenneth D. Bailey Kenneth Dillon Bailey (October 21, 1910 – September 26, 1942) was a United States Marine Corps officer who posthumously received the Medal of Honor for heroic conduct during action during the Battle of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands. He ...

, 2003 *

Alexander Christakis Alexander (Aleco) Christakis ( el, Αλέξανδρος Χρηστάκης; born 1937) is a Greek American social scientist, systems scientist and cyberneticist, former faculty member of several Universities, organizational consultant and member o ...

, 2002 *

Michael C. Jackson Michael Christopher Jackson OBE (born 1951) is a British systems scientist, consultant and Emeritus Professor of Management Systems and former Dean of Hull University Business School, known for his work in the field of systems thinking and mana ...

, 2001 *

Harold G. Nelson Harold Glea Nelson (born March 4, 1943) is an American architect, consultant and former Nierenberg Distinguished Professor of Design in the School of Design at Carnegie Mellon University. In 2001, he served as president of the International Soc ...

, 2000 *

Peter Corning Peter Andrew Corning (born 1935) is an American biologist, consultant, and complex systems scientist, Director of the Institute for the Study of Complex Systems, in Seattle, Washington. He is known especially for his work on the causal role of s ...

, 1999 *

Béla A. Bánáthy Béla Antal Bánáthy (born 1943 in Budapest, Hungary) is an American systems scientist, who teaches part-time at the International Systems Institute at the Saybrook Graduate School. Biography Bánáthy received his Bachelor of Science, B.S. f ...

, 1998 *

G. A. Swanson Gale Alden (G.A.) Swanson (Jan 12, 1939 - July 3, 2009) was an American organizational theorist, and Professor of Accounting at Tennessee Technological University, known for his accounting theories based on James Grier Miller’s general living ...

, 1997 *

Yong Pil Rhee Yong Pil Rhee (December 10, 1932 – March 23, 2004) was a Korean political scientist, systems scientist and professor and chairman of the board of trustees at the Seoul National University, South Korea. He was one of the first systems theorists ...

, 1996 *

Ervin Laszlo Ervin may refer to: *Ervin (given name) *Ervin (surname) *Ervin Township, Howard County, Indiana, one of eleven townships in Howard County, Indiana, USA See also * Justice Ervin (disambiguation) * Earvin * Ervine * Erving (disambiguation) * Erwan ...

, 1995 * J. Donald R. de Raadt, 1994 * Harold A. Linstone, 1993 * Ian I. Mitroff, 1992 *

Howard T. Odum Howard Thomas Odum (September 1, 1924 – September 11, 2002), usually cited as H. T. Odum, was an American ecologist. He is known for his pioneering work on ecosystem ecology, and for his provocative proposals for additional laws of thermod ...

1991 *

Len R. Troncale Lenard Raphael Troncale (born 1943) is an American biologist, systems theorist, Professor Emeritus of Cellular and Molecular Biology, and former Director of the Institute for Advanced Systems Studies at the California State Polytechnic University. ...

, 1990 *

C. West Churchman Charles West Churchman (29 August 1913 – 21 March 2004) was an American philosopher and systems scientist, who was Professor at the School of Business Administration and Professor of Peace and Conflict Studies at the University of California ...

1989 *

Ilya Prigogine Viscount Ilya Romanovich Prigogine (; russian: Илья́ Рома́нович Приго́жин; 28 May 2003) was a physical chemist and Nobel laureate noted for his work on dissipative structures, complex systems, and irreversibility. Biogra ...

, 1988 *

Russell L. Ackoff Russell Lincoln Ackoff (February 12, 1919 – October 29, 2009) was an American organizational theorist, consultant, and Anheuser-Busch Professor Emeritus of Management Science at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. Ackoff was a pion ...

, 1987 *

Peter Checkland Peter Checkland (born 18 December 1930, in Birmingham, UK) is a British management scientist and emeritus professor of systems at Lancaster University. He is the developer of soft systems methodology (SSM): a methodology based on a way of syste ...

, 1986 * John A. Dillon, 1985 *

Bela H. Banathy Bela may refer to: Places Asia *Bela Pratapgarh, a town in Pratapgarh District, Uttar Pradesh, India *Bela, a small village near Bhandara, Maharashtra, India *Bela, another name for the biblical city Zoara * Bela, Dang, in Nepal * Bela, Janakpur, ...

, 1984 *

Karl Deutsch Karl Wolfgang Deutsch (21 July 1912 – 1 November 1992) was a social and political scientist from Prague. He was a professor at MIT, Yale University and Harvard University, as well as Director of Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin (International Insti ...

, 1983 * John N. Warfield, 1982 *

George Klir George Jiří Klir (April 22, 1932 – May 27, 2016) was a Czech-American computer scientist and professor of systems sciences at Binghamton University in Binghamton, New York. Biography George Klir was born in 1932 in Prague, Czechoslovakia. ...

, 1981 * Robert Rosen, 1980 *

Brian R. Gaines Brian R. Gaines (born c. 1938) is a British scientist, engineer, and Professor Emeritus at the University of Calgary. Biography Gaines received his Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy from Trinity College, Cambridge, and ...

, 1979 *

Richard F. Ericson Richard Ferdinand Ericson (1919–1993) was an American organizational theorist, professor emeritus of management and director of the Interdisciplinary Systems and Cybernetics Project, Program of Policy Studies in Science and Technology at George ...

, 1978 *

Geoffrey Vickers Sir (Charles) Geoffrey Vickers, VC (13 October 1894 – 16 March 1982) was an English lawyer, administrator, writer and pioneering systems scientist. He had varied interests with roles at different times with the London Passenger Transport Board ...

, 1977 *

Heinz von Foerster Heinz von Foerster (German spelling: Heinz von Förster; November 13, 1911 – October 2, 2002) was an Austrian American scientist combining physics and philosophy, and widely attributed as the originator of Second-order cybernetics. He was twice ...

, 1976 *

Kjell Samuelson Kjell Samuelson (1932–4 February 2018) was a Sweden, Swedish systems scientist, Sci-Tech consultant, Professor Emeritus at the Stockholm University and Royal Institute of Technology, and a pioneer of Systems Science & Cybernetics, Communications ...

, 1975 *

Gordon Pask Andrew Gordon Speedie Pask (28 June 1928 – 29 March 1996) was an English author, inventor, educational theorist, cybernetician and psychologist who made contributions to cybernetics, instructional psychology, experimental epistemology and ed ...

, 1974 *

, 1973 *

Margaret Mead Margaret Mead (December 16, 1901 – November 15, 1978) was an American cultural anthropologist who featured frequently as an author and speaker in the mass media during the 1960s and the 1970s. She earned her bachelor's degree at Barnard Co ...

, 1972 *

Stafford Beer Anthony Stafford Beer (25 September 1926 – 23 August 2002) was a British theorist, consultant and professor at the Manchester Business School. He is best known for his work in the fields of operational research and management cybernetics. Bi ...

, 1971 * Bertram Gross, 1970 * Lawrence Slobodkin, 1969 * Milton Rubin, 1968 * John Milsum, 1967 *

Peter Caws Peter J. Caws (May 25, 1931 - April 20, 2020) was a British American philosopher and administrator, and University Professor of Philosophy and Professor of Human Sciences at the George Washington University. Biography Peter Caws was born in Sou ...

, 1966 *

, 1965 * W. Ross Ashby 1962-64 * Charles A. McClelland 1959-61 *

Kenneth E. Boulding Kenneth Ewart Boulding (; January 18, 1910 – March 18, 1993) was an English-born American economist, educator, peace activist, and interdisciplinary philosopher.David LatzkoKenneth E. Boulding Commentsat personal.psu.edu. Accessed 24 April 200 ...

, 1957–58

Sir Geoffrey Vickers Memorial Award

The Sir Geoffrey Vickers Memorial Award is an annual award in memory of Sir

for outstanding student papers at the pre-doctoral level in the field of the systems sciences. A listing of recipients:International Society for the Systems Sciences: Student Awards
/ref>

References

External links

Homepage
of the International Society of Systems Science
ISSS
introduction on the IFSR website {{authority control Organizations established in 1954 Systems science societies