Scientific Communication Observed with Social Systems Theory. An Introduction and Outlook to Pure Science for Society

Abstract

In this article, we introduce the reader to a social systems-theoretical concept of science, with particular emphasis on the role of theorising within a functionally differentiated society. Six cases are presented that demonstrate how social systems theory serves as both theory and method, thereby offering an insightful super-theoretical framework relevant to both conceptual and empirical studies. We conclude that social systems theory facilitates the pursuit of science for science’s sake by effectively challenging persistent self-confusions of society with politics or any other subsystem of society. As a result, the artificial distinction between science for the sake of science and science for the sake of society is overcome, and science for sake of society simply represents a return of science to its own function.