Perceptual habitability: from observing systems to observer formation in second-order cybernetics

Purpose Second-order cybernetics shifted attention from observed systems to observing systems, highlighting the role of the observer in the construction of knowledge. However, less attention has been devoted to the processes through which observers are formed. This article explores how audiovisual environments may afford observational practices compatible with complex systems and introduces the concept of perceptual habitability as a way of addressing this question. Design/methodology/approach The study adopts a qualitative and conceptual approach that combines second-order cybernetics, systems theory, complexity studies, 4E/enactive cognition, and media theory. Using theory as method and abductive analysis, Attack on Titan (2013–2023) is examined as a theoretically productive case through close reading. The analysis focuses on informational opacity, distributed observation, observation–action recursion, multiple observational regimes, and the failed approximation of the ideal of total observation. Findings The findings suggest that Attack on Titan does not merely represent complexity as a thematic object. Rather, it constructs perceptual conditions that invite viewers to engage with uncertainty, partial information, distributed knowledge, competing perspectives, and action under incomplete knowledge. Through these configurations, the series may function as an environment of perceptual habitability, making available observational affordances compatible with complex systems. Research limitations/implications The study is conceptual and qualitative in nature and therefore does not provide empirical evidence regarding the effects of audiovisual environments on viewers. The concept of perceptual habitability is proposed as a theoretical tool and requires further examination through comparative studies and empirical research. The article nevertheless suggests that observer formation may represent an important yet underexplored dimension of systems theory and second-order cybernetics. Practical implications The article suggests that audiovisual environments may provide opportunities for engaging with observational practices compatible with complex systems. This perspective may be relevant for educational, training, and communication contexts in which individuals are required to engage with uncertainty, distributed information, opacity, and multiple perspectives. The concept of perceptual habitability may provide a useful framework for examining how media environments support such forms of engagement. Social implications Contemporary societies increasingly require citizens to engage with complex socio-technical and ecological systems characterized by opacity, distributed causality and uncertainty. By focusing on observer formation, the article highlights the potential role of media environments in making available forms of observation compatible with complexity. Understanding the conditions through which observers may learn to navigate uncertainty may therefore have broader implications for public engagement with technological, environmental, and social challenges. Originality/value The article introduces the concept of perceptual habitability as an extension of second-order cybernetics. By shifting attention from observing systems to the environments through which observational practices may be afforded, exercised, and rendered habitable, it contributes to discussions in cybernetics, systems theory, complexity studies, 4E cognition, and media research. More broadly, it proposes observer formation as a relevant theoretical problem for understanding contemporary forms of complexity.