Complexity, network theory, and the epistemological issue

The aim of this paper is contributing to refine the conceptual framework of complexity. At first, the paper focuses on one of the topical areas of complexity research, i.e. network theory, but uses this for drawing the attention to more general issues. The underlying assumption is that scientific and philosophical research might complement each other, and that this is especially crucial for the advancement of complexity. The paper suggests three ways for refining the scheme of complexity: (i) analyzing it at the right level, i.e. not focusing on single principles or theories (e.g. network theory), but rather on the overall frame; (ii) including both ontological and epistemological considerations; (iii) recognizing how the epistemological implications of complexity foster the adoption of a pluralist stance in scientific research (and beyond).