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mechanistic worldview:
The whole is the sum of its part, so that in order to understand a system, we should take it apart into its basic constituents.
complexity theory:
Processes of system dynamics exist on a collective level, and it may be impossible to reduce them into the dynamics of individual constituents.
fractals:
Really "basic" constituents do not exist, because any level may exhibit a degree of complexity similar to the whole system.
implications:
One should not try to model an organization in terms of a rigid structure of fixed basic units. Instead, it is worthwhile to study the dynamical web of actual interconnections, that generates the emergence of collective structures within the organization.
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