The Social Labs Revolution

7Steps Toward a Theory of Systemic Action

There is nothing so practical as a good theory.

—Kurt Lewin

When the first astronauts went through their paces in the high deserts around Edwards Air Force Base, they were reluctant instruments of what Heinrich Heine calls “men of thought.” They were asked by the “white-coats” to do things that made little sense to them. From time to time they protested against being treated like experimental chimpanzees and pushed back. Ultimately, however, they made their grudging peace with the fact that they were subjects in a vast experiment based on theories they did not know.

Much of the BAU behavior is the product of theory, most of it long forgotten or remembered only by specialists. If we are to come up with ...