System as a causal force

This essay provides a conceptual analysis of systems and systemic causation. Using data from the OECD nations, it also provides a plausible case for several examples of systemic causation. Nations with the same cultural systems, that is, same cluster of cultural values, are shown to have the same clusters of institutions that define their economic system. In turn, these economic systems are shown to have corresponding sets of economic/social performance outcomes which compose the performance systems. I present evidence that causal forces most likely underlie such correlations and, moreover, that such causation is not between the individual characteristics of the clusters but rather between the systems themselves.