Dialogic Principle
Updated 2026-08-22
INTRODUCTION
English translation pending.
CORE DEFINITION
Edgar Morin's dialogic principle holds that two apparently contradictory or opposed logics can coexist and complement each other instead of cancelling: order and chaos, competition and cooperation, the individual and the whole. It asks us to break the either-or habit and hold the tension between opposites in complex systems, because removing either pole distorts a system that the tension itself sustains.
SCAFFOLDING EFFECT
Reduce cognitive load
- List both poles: when facing an either-or argument, write out both sides before choosing. - Find coexistence: look for the conditions under which the opposites complement rather than cancel. - Keep the tension: in policy or management, preserve both poles instead of forcing a single winner.
Anchor fast decisions
Complex systems stay viable through the interaction of opposed tendencies; order organizes and chaos renovates, so each pole supplies what the other cannot. Cancelling one removes the renewal or the structure the other needs, and the dialogue between them, not either alone, is what keeps the system adaptive.
MINIMUM ACTION
In progress 0/1Practice this model in one real situation:
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Source support: Explicit
- zh.wikipedia.orghttps://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%96%B9%E6%B3%95verified
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