TRIVIALIZATION AND EMPIRICITY

Relying on von Foerster's distinction between trivial and non-trivial machines, this paper discusses some crucial arguments for a constructi vist concept of 'empiricity'. The concept 'empirical' is oriented towa rds (social) knowledge and knowledge-constructing operations instead o f objects or reality, thus following the strategy of systems theory to replace the subject/object difference by the difference system/enviro nment. Consequently, scientific empirical research is located at the l evel of second-order observation in the social system science.