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The Idea of Self-Organization

What is Self-organization?

Self-organization is the spontaneous creation of order without external
guidance or command.

The 'self-' involved is any group of actors performing as a group under
their own initiative. Examples, people reacting to an emergency and
spontaneously seeking to help under their own initiative, activists
forming a pressure group to promote social change.

The order involved is group action around a commonly agreed
objective or problem to be dealt with. Example, digging people out of a
collapsed building, forming a 'bucket chain' to douse a fire in a
burning building, or banding together to defend a community against

a sudden attack by marauders.

Effect of Persistence over Time

If such self-organized order addresses an ephemeral issue, such as our
helping pull victims out of a collapsed building example, then after the
need disappears the order will disperse.

On the other hand, if the need persists and the order is retained to

address it over time, it will formalize. Our temporary self-defense
group becomes a town militia with the characteristics of a bounded
system (goal, a hierarchy of command). Over time, new integrative
levels will appear, regiments and a Ministry of Defense. At each

layering of structure, the total multi-layer system imposes order on the
lower levels through 'downward causation' and develops path
dependence in its communal life (e.g., regimental traditions). Our self-

organizing group is now deeply buried in structure and is internally
and externally regulated (command structure, cultural prohibitions on

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