[{"title":"Service through communication—Conceptualizing service systems with Luhmann’s systems theory","publisher":"Springer Science and Business Media LLC","date_created":"2026-04-21T13:13:02Z","year":"2026","quality_controlled":"1","issue":"1","ddc":["380"],"keyword":["Service system","Service ecosystem","Systems theory","Service research"],"language":[{"iso":"eng"}],"abstract":[{"lang":"eng","text":"Service research has evolved into an interdisciplinary research field that bridges diverse disciplines, including information systems (IS) and marketing. Nearly two decades ago, the service system concept was introduced as a foundational abstraction in service research, drawing on ideas from the service-dominant logic (S-D logic) of marketing. Despite its widespread adoption in service research, particularly in the IS discipline, the service system concept lacks a solid theoretical foundation. This has resulted in conceptual ambiguity and overlap with related constructs, such as service ecosystems. Moreover, it has largely remained a static analytical lens, insufficiently capturing dynamic service phenomena, including value co-creation and co-destruction, as well as the emergence of institutional arrangements. To address these limitations, we propose Luhmann’s systems theory (LST) as a robust framework for conceptualizing service systems as autopoietic (self-creating) systems, in which communication serves as the fundamental mechanism that drives value co-creation. We derive five theoretical propositions from this re-conceptualization that clarify conceptual ambiguity and allow researchers to explore dynamic service phenomena in greater depth. Given LST’s general approach, our conceptualization provides a theoretically grounded, interdisciplinary foundation for advancing service research."}],"file":[{"creator":"dabe","date_created":"2026-04-21T13:14:30Z","date_updated":"2026-04-21T13:14:30Z","file_name":"Service is Communication - EM Paper.pdf","access_level":"closed","file_id":"65477","file_size":2793039,"content_type":"application/pdf","relation":"main_file","success":1}],"publication":"Electronic Markets","main_file_link":[{"open_access":"1","url":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s12525-026-00889-w.pdf"}],"doi":"10.1007/s12525-026-00889-w","oa":"1","date_updated":"2026-04-21T13:18:35Z","author":[{"first_name":"Daniel","last_name":"Beverungen","full_name":"Beverungen, Daniel"},{"last_name":"Poeppelbuss","full_name":"Poeppelbuss, Jens","first_name":"Jens"},{"full_name":"Hemmrich, Simon","last_name":"Hemmrich","first_name":"Simon"},{"first_name":"Taskeen","last_name":"Iqbal","full_name":"Iqbal, Taskeen"}],"volume":36,"jel":["L80"],"citation":{"chicago":"Beverungen, Daniel, Jens Poeppelbuss, Simon Hemmrich, and Taskeen Iqbal. “Service through Communication—Conceptualizing Service Systems with Luhmann’s Systems Theory.” <i>Electronic Markets</i> 36, no. 1 (2026). <a href=\"https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-026-00889-w\">https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-026-00889-w</a>.","ieee":"D. Beverungen, J. Poeppelbuss, S. Hemmrich, and T. Iqbal, “Service through communication—Conceptualizing service systems with Luhmann’s systems theory,” <i>Electronic Markets</i>, vol. 36, no. 1, Art. no. 37, 2026, doi: <a href=\"https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-026-00889-w\">10.1007/s12525-026-00889-w</a>.","ama":"Beverungen D, Poeppelbuss J, Hemmrich S, Iqbal T. Service through communication—Conceptualizing service systems with Luhmann’s systems theory. <i>Electronic Markets</i>. 2026;36(1). doi:<a href=\"https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-026-00889-w\">10.1007/s12525-026-00889-w</a>","apa":"Beverungen, D., Poeppelbuss, J., Hemmrich, S., &#38; Iqbal, T. (2026). Service through communication—Conceptualizing service systems with Luhmann’s systems theory. <i>Electronic Markets</i>, <i>36</i>(1), Article 37. <a href=\"https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-026-00889-w\">https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-026-00889-w</a>","short":"D. Beverungen, J. Poeppelbuss, S. Hemmrich, T. Iqbal, Electronic Markets 36 (2026).","bibtex":"@article{Beverungen_Poeppelbuss_Hemmrich_Iqbal_2026, title={Service through communication—Conceptualizing service systems with Luhmann’s systems theory}, volume={36}, DOI={<a href=\"https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-026-00889-w\">10.1007/s12525-026-00889-w</a>}, number={137}, journal={Electronic Markets}, publisher={Springer Science and Business Media LLC}, author={Beverungen, Daniel and Poeppelbuss, Jens and Hemmrich, Simon and Iqbal, Taskeen}, year={2026} }","mla":"Beverungen, Daniel, et al. “Service through Communication—Conceptualizing Service Systems with Luhmann’s Systems Theory.” <i>Electronic Markets</i>, vol. 36, no. 1, 37, Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2026, doi:<a href=\"https://doi.org/10.1007/s12525-026-00889-w\">10.1007/s12525-026-00889-w</a>."},"intvolume":"        36","publication_status":"published","publication_identifier":{"issn":["1019-6781","1422-8890"]},"has_accepted_license":"1","article_type":"original","article_number":"37","file_date_updated":"2026-04-21T13:14:30Z","project":[{"name":"SHAPE : Gestaltung von Dienstleistungsentwicklungsprozessen und lnnovationspartnerschaften mit Unternehmen","_id":"1250"}],"_id":"65476","user_id":"59677","department":[{"_id":"195"},{"_id":"534"}],"status":"public","type":"journal_article"}]