An exploration of three emancipatory themes within OR and systems thinking

This paper pursues the current debate about emancipation as one of the principal tenets of critical OR. It highlights some conceptual ambiguities involved in the notion of emancipation and so attempts to multiply the possibilities for an emancipatory approach to OR. The paper will explore three different emancipatory themes, one which understands the concept of emancipation in terms of a democratic discourse, a second which views it in terms of the cultivation of different virtues and values, and a third which questions the very essence of ethics and emancipation. Central to this analysis is a concern for the methodological implications of these three themes, and the current neglect of emancipatory methodologies for OR practice.