Structures of Ideological Systems Programming. The Case of Sustainability in Prices
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: ABSTRACT This paper aims to demonstrate Niklas Luhmann's systems theory and its concept of ideologies as a general framework for analysing the actual implementation of normative ideas in modern society. Using the example of sustainable pricing within the economic system, it shows how values can be established at the programmatic level of function systems in order to regulate the binary codes of those systems. In this way, an interplay across different structural layers becomes visible, in which ideologies such as sustainability introduce dynamic orders of relevance and thereby constitute the orientational framework of a system. Luhmann's systems‐theoretical concept of ideology thus proves to be a useful tool for analysing complex and evolving social patterns of orientation, which should be further complemented by additional theoretical concepts such as structural layering.
DOI: 10.1002/sres.70050
Author: Kristoffer Klement
Institution: Bielefeld University
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,190
OpenAlex ID: W7147309258