The concept of open and closed society was originally proposed in 1932 by the French philosopher Henri Bergson. Today we will look at the features, advantages and disadvantages, as well as the meanings of these terms.
In the next decade, it was developed by the British philosopher of Austrian origin, Karl Raimund Popper. He presented these ideas in his most famous book, The Open Society and Its Enemies. Also, this classification can be applied to organizations.
An open society is synonymous with freedom and individualism, while the main characteristics of a closed society are orientation and collectivism. These two positions represent extremes that rarely exist in their pure form today. Popper published his work in 1944, so it should be considered in a historical context, but it has not yet lostits importance.
What is the difference between a closed society and an open one? The differences became apparent in the post-war period. This was due mainly to political reasons. The Western world represented mainly open societies, the East - on the contrary. But a similar division, as well as a mixture of these two types, can be noticeable in our time. Most of the Arab and African developing countries can be mentioned as a good example of more closed societies, and the US and Western European countries as a more open example.
Basis for classification
Following Popper's theory, Gebert and Burner distinguish between open and closed societies based on three different dimensions:
- anthropological;
- social;
- cognitive.
The anthropological dimension concerns the question of whether a person is a subject or an object. To what extent is he able to influence society and its structures?
Social describes the position of an individual in society. It determines whether there are predetermined social positions of its members, whether individual ones are realized by themselves or are they part of the whole?
The focus of the cognitive dimension is the fallibility or infallibility of human cognition. These criteria make it possible to distinguish between an open society and a closed society.
Combination of two types
It is considered possible and quite common that a society is open and closed in different dimensions at the same time. Japan is a good example for such a society. This country tends toopen pole in the anthropological and cognitive dimension. From a social point of view, she shows a more collectivist and withdrawn pattern.
Open type
The historical example of a free and individualistic open society in Popper's theory is ancient democratic Athens and the philosophy of Socrates. This type of society can be described using anthropological, social and cognitive dimensions as follows:
- Anthropological component: the social reality of an open society is created by conventions that must be constantly negotiated by its members in order to meet current requirements. Unlike the closed type, its norms are not like the immutable laws of nature, deterministic and stable. The open type shows a voluntary structure of organization and formation of norms and rules, although the content of conventions and social laws is not voluntary.
- Social component: in an open society, each member has equal rights and equal value, although they are all individuals with different interests. Therefore, because of their multiplicity, it is necessary to have a regulatory mechanism. Democracy, for example, can act in this capacity in an open society, while in a closed society this role will be performed by the duties imputed by the authorities, most often by a dictatorship. Social mobility, individuality and diversity of opinion are the main aspects of an open society. The central place in this case is not the we alth of the entire team, but the self-realization of the individual.
- Cognitivecomponent: an open society is trying to expand its level of knowledge by falsifying existing theories. According to Popper, a scientific theory cannot be tested. Human knowledge is characterized by temporality and error. Therefore, the theories and systems they have developed should always be open to criticism and improvement.
Pros and cons of an open society
The potential benefits of openness are the belief in the manageability of society and its processes, freedom, equal chances for the development of its participants, innovation and the constant search for better solutions while allowing access to different ideas. Disadvantages may include loss of control over society and its members, lack of orientation, power struggles, selfishness, and longevity of decisions.
Closed type
Popper compared the ideals of this society - orientation and collectivism - with the central statement in the philosophy of Plato and life in the ancient oligarchic Sparta. The characteristics of a closed society with respect to three dimensions are as follows:
- Anthropological: in the closed type there is no difference between the laws of nature and social rules. The result of this immutability and definition of social reality is that, on the one hand, the citizen can rely on the existing order, but, on the other hand, he is helpless if the rules threaten him. It is often characterized by authoritarianism and dependency. In this case, a deterministic view of ideal norms and values is proposed,regulating people's lives.
- Social: A closed society can be compared to an organism. Each body has its own responsibilities and complements the others. Its position is predetermined and cannot be changed. This means that if someone finds himself in a subordinate position, he will remain so all his life. In this case, there will be no conflicts between different classes, because every citizen works for the common good. Therefore, such a conglomeration can be described as very harmonious.
- Cognitive: The basis for this dimension in this case is the idealistic philosophy that human knowledge is more or less error-free. As a result, it is assumed that it is possible to discover the truth through proper research using already proven knowledge. This can be seen as an attempt to explain the future in terms of the past, which means building on existing knowledge and recreating unshakable dogmas.
Pros and cons
Social stability, obedience, protection from failure, harmony in relationships and confidence in orientation are some of the main advantages of closed societies. They also have their drawbacks, such as the dogmatism of the ideology, the rigidity of the social system and the position of its members, and, as a result, dissatisfaction.
Characteristics of organizations
The features that characterize an open and closed society, to a certain extent, are also suitable for other categories. Open andclosed types of organizations differ in how they manage their internal and external affairs, based on different philosophical dogmas. Based on Popper's theory, their characteristics can be demonstrated through the analysis of some components.
Organizational culture can be broadly defined as a complex entity that includes knowledge, beliefs, arts, law, morals, customs, and any abilities and habits acquired by an individual as a member of an organization. It provides a framework within which its members can operate. Leadership must also adapt to this structure. At the same time, it changes or stabilizes the open or closed nature of the organization through interaction.
Manual
A universal definition of organizational leadership could be: the ability of an individual to influence, motivate and enable others to contribute to the effectiveness and success of the organizations of which they are members. A leader can be defined as a member of a group whose influence on group relationships, outcomes, or decision-making is significantly greater than the average member.
Leadership style has a great influence on the characteristics of an enterprise. Open and closed organizations differ in how they manage their employees.
In particular, a leader with open characteristics will assume that the employee has control over the situation in the organization. Closed manual prefers usingdirectives.
Open and closed joint-stock companies
A similar classification can be found in the economy. Definitions of the basic concepts allows you to find out how a closed joint-stock company differs from an open one.
In the first case, we are talking about an organization whose shares are distributed only among the founders or other predetermined persons.
In the second case, members have the right to alienate their shares without asking the consent of their other holders.
Differences between open and closed joint stock companies are also as follows. For the first type, there are no restrictions on the number of shareholders, for the second, the maximum number is 50 people. If it is exceeded during the year, it is necessary to transform it into an open joint stock company (that is, into an open joint stock company). The difference between them is also in the order of issuance and placement of shares: public for OJSC and limited for CJSC.
