Emergence as a science

Emergence—the phenomenon by which novel, coherent structures arise from the interactions of simpler parts—has long been studied across physics, chemistry, biology, philosophy, sociology, and organization science. Yet despite decades of research, scholars have struggled to agree on a single theory that explains it. Now, in a paper published in Frontiers in Complex Systems, Benyamin Lichtenstein of the University of Massachusetts Boston argues that the breadth of emergence demands something larger than a theory: it requires a full science, within which many theories can be explored, tested, and integrated over time.

Lichtenstein’s cross-disciplinary analysis, published on 1 December 2025, identifies nine distinct Prototypes of emergence, each reflecting a unique aspect or context in which the phenomenon is expressed. These range from phase transitions and quantum protectorates in condensed matter physics, through chemical and computational emergence, to interactional, biological, collaborative, dissipative, and generative emergence in social systems. Together, the Prototypes provide a scaffolding for organizing knowledge about emergence across levels of analysis, from molecular fusion to the self-organization of the global economic network.

The classic definition of emergence—a whole greater than the sum of its parts—captures something essential, but Lichtenstein draws on more formalized definitions from scholars such as Fulmer and Ostroff, De Wolf and Holvoet, and Goldstein to identify the defining characteristics of the phenomenon. These include macro properties not found in the system’s components, coherence, dynamical change over time, unpredictability in principle, interactional complexity, and radical novelty. Two further characteristics—supervenience and Goldstein’s concept of self-transcending constructions—remain debated, with some scientists dismissing downward causation as suggesting a mysterious force not permitted in natural science.

Within particular Prototypes, decades of research have produced law-like patterns. In computational emergence, Kauffman’s NK landscapes yield a Law of Interdependence: as the interdependence between elements of a system increases, the performance landscape becomes more rugged. In the dissipative structures prototype, Swenson described a Law of Maximum Entropy Production, whereby an open system far from equilibrium chooses the pathway that maximizes local entropy production—empirically, through the emergence of a dissipative structure that creates order. These lawful regularities suggest that a science of emergence could progressively identify broader principles across its many facets.

Lichtenstein proposes four empirically confirmed Principles of Generative Emergence, which extends the dissipative structures paradigm into social systems. First, generative emergence occurs only when the system is in disequilibrium—when agents leave the status quo and explore new possibilities with unknown potential. Second, successful emergence dramatically increases the capacity of the system and its agents, as shown by Prigogine’s thermodynamic systems, a bees nest hosting up to 60,000 bees, or Smith’s pin factory producing a hundredfold more pins than workers acting separately. Third, strong containers—the material and energetic constraints that shape a system’s behavior—are highly correlated with the emergence of new order. Fourth, emergence involves the complementarity of process and outcome: any given emergent is not fixed but continuously emerges, as a forest is ‘forest-ing’ itself through every leaf and tree and creature.

The implications of a science of emergence extend into leadership, entrepreneurship, and sustainability. In leadership, applying the Prototypes reveals how leadership occurs in every interaction, how collaborations can be strengthened, and how generative emergence is increasingly central to complexity leadership theory. Leaders can learn from the Principles: operating outside the norm to push the boundaries of the system, and building strong containers through clear agreements, accountability, and shared responsibility that empower the team.

In entrepreneurship, the creation of a new enterprise is a paradigmatic case of generative emergence, in which an organization emerges as a social entity with agency through the activities of its agents. Lichtenstein proposes a hypothesis for nascent entrepreneurs: the more an entrepreneur produces the four key dynamics of generative emergence—disequilibrium, capacity increase, strong containers, and attention to both process and outcome—the more likely their efforts will lead to a positive emergence event and the successful launch of their enterprise. While the theory has gained confirmation in several studies, it has not yet undergone a controlled test, though the groundwork has been laid for pursuing this approach more fully.

In sustainability, the metaphor of facets—each holding one clear view of an emergent—together expressing the full scope of the phenomenon, suggests categorizing the hundreds of specific initiatives around the world into twenty or so necessary areas. This would connect many people and networks interested in the same general issue, and focusing attention onto those approaches is much more likely to gain visible progress in each area, building momentum for further success. Lichtenstein grounds this claim in two major studies on resolving the climate crisis, offering theoretical leverage and a measure of hope toward starting to resolve the global polycrisis.

Lichtenstein acknowledges limitations, in particular a bias toward positive emergences, with one building on the next. However, the outcomes of emergence are never predictable, and an emergence can dissolve an organization as much as it can create one. Although this does not invalidate the claims, it speaks to the need to more formally examine generative emergence and test the veracity and viability of its principles. As a science, emergence would be pluralistic, constructive, and integrative in the long term, structured through a set of Prototypes that together encompass all tangible expressions of the phenomenon. Each Prototype provides access to emergence and its emergents, and is a container for combined knowledge—so that, fittingly, the science of emergence may continue to emerge.

Subject of Research: Emergence as a science

Article Title: Emergence as a science

Article References: Lichtenstein, B. (2025). Emergence as a science. Frontiers in Complex Systems, 3, Article 1667670. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcpxs.2025.1667670

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.3389/fcpxs.2025.1667670

Keywords: Emergence, science, scientific research, peer-reviewed research, research findings, science news