Charles Peirce's 'retroduction' is a form of hypothesis generation that takes its place alongside deduction and induction as forms of enquiry and logical inference. It is the only one of the three that can generate innovation and advance knowledge. It is fundamentally tied to open systems theory and the world hypothesis of contextualism. In particular, retroduction is founded in ecological learning, our ability to directly extract meaningful knowledge about our world. Ecological learning and retroduction define the logic of discovery. This ability arises from adaptation through a process of coevolution rather than natural selection. The implication of this adaptation is that no firm barriers can be drawn between common sense and scholarly knowledge, nor between researcher and researched when the researched are human systems. There are three choices of relationship between action researchers and their researched human systems, only one of which - collaboration - respects the intrinsic nature of the people involved.
2007. Analysis, synthesis, systems thinking and the scientific method: rediscovering the importance of open systems. Systems Research and Behavioral Science 24:2 ► pp. 143 ff.
Barton, John, John Stephens & Tim Haslett
2009. Action Research: Its Foundations in Open Systems Thinking and Relationship to the Scientific Method. Systemic Practice and Action Research 22:6 ► pp. 475 ff.
de Guerre, Donald W., Daniel Séguin, Alicia Pace & Noel Burke
2013. IDEA: A Collaborative Organizational Design Process Integrating Innovation, Design, Engagement, and Action. Systemic Practice and Action Research 26:3 ► pp. 257 ff.
Dutta, Koushik
2023. Exploring Digital Multisided Platforms: A Systems Thinking Approach. Systemic Practice and Action Research 36:6 ► pp. 851 ff.
Emery, Merrelyn
2004. Open Systems Theory. In Dynamics of Organizational Change and Learning, ► pp. 43 ff.
Emery, Merrelyn
2010. Refutation of Kira & van Eijnatten's critique of the Emery's open systems theory. Systems Research and Behavioral Science 27:6 ► pp. 697 ff.
Pruett, Marsha Kline, Tamra Y. Williams, Glendessa Insabella & Todd D. Little
2003. Family and legal indicators of child adjustment to divorce among families with young children.. Journal of Family Psychology 17:2 ► pp. 169 ff.
Richardson, Rudy & Eric Hans Kramer
2006. Abduction as the type of inference that characterizes the development of a grounded theory. Qualitative Research 6:4 ► pp. 497 ff.
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