Heuristic Potential of Methodological Approaches to the Study of 'Nature – Society' System

The relevance of the study is due, on the one hand, to the growing infl uence of society on nature, often leading to environmental problems, and, on the other hand, to insuffi cient understanding of the role of the natural foundations of human social behavior. The purpose of the article is to analyze the main methodological approaches to the study of the “nature – society” system and their potential for obtaining new knowledge. The article uses a historical approach: the well-known methodologies for studying this system are analyzed as they are introduced into scientifi c circulation, as well as a comparative approach: similarities and differences between the analyzed methodologies and the degree of their heuristicity are revealed. The article analyzes the methodological schemes by E. V. Girusov, V. A. Kobylyansky, N. D. Subbotina, E. Yu. Zakharova and others. The foreign authors K. Fuchs, R. Rees and R. Hambleton were selected, as their views, on the one hand, are very close to the theories of domestic specialists on this issue, on the other hand, they complement them. The authors conclude that almost all of the above methodological approaches are heuristic, they can be used to obtain new knowledge in this area of research. We suggest that these methodologies can be used to study a new phenomenon ‒ a digital system. The study is also of practical importance, as it argues that it is necessary to use these methodologies in the appraisal of social and technical projects.