The built environment as a complex system

Abstract

The lack of a recognized theoretical disciplinary base for the built environment has been noted on a number of occasions. The field holds the promise of being interdisciplinary, but requires the development of a common epistemological construct. It has been proposed that a unified theory of the built environment may require that the built environment be understood as a complex social–ecological system. It will argued, however, that the challenge is more fundamental; that development of an adequate model would require convergence of the ideas of interdisciplinarity and complexity, with concomitant epistemological as well as ontological considerations. The application of whole-system theory to the built environment is explored with special reference to the identification of boundaries and modularities in different domains and the implications for a taxonomy of the built environment. The development of a theoretical base for the field as a whole would facilitate axiological decision-making in the built environment and also inform both curriculum design and research strategy in the subject area.