The Role of Emergence in Service Systems

Abstract

It has been recognized that a service systems perspective, informed by service-dominant logic, provides a dynamic approach for studying value co-creation. According to this view, value is the increase in the viability of the system in which actors co-create value. A construct from systems theory – emergence – can be of particular interest in contributing to and detracting from systems viability. Emergence is related to the nonlinear interactions characterizing systems’ elements that can give rise to novel and unpredictable properties not contained in the elements. This paper relates emergence to service systems based on the service-dominant logic and systems theory literature. Such issues can be useful for service science scholars to identify new research avenues for service systems.