Institutional Adaptation and Public Good Civilization: The Institutional Logic of Systemic Correction—A System Logic Framework for Institutional Learning, Social Homeostasis, and Civilizational Adaptation

The first six papers in the System Logic series established systemic adequacy, boundary and time, local optimization and systemic failure, feedback and systemic correction, the Systemic Impact Ledger, and the System Logic of social cooperation from private good to public good. Together, these papers point to a central question: in a complex society, how can institutional design align individual private-good pursuits with public-good directions, and how can institutions perceive disequilibrium, organize public good, and continuously correct themselves? This paper proposes a System Logic framework for analyzing institutional adaptation and public good civilization. It argues that institutions are not merely rules constraining behavior but mechanisms of systemic correction. Good institutions can perceive disequilibrium, transmit feedback, form judgments, organize adjustment, and promote learning. Institutional adaptation is a core indicator of systemic adequacy at the institutional level. Public good civilization is not a label of any particular institution but a systemic capacity—through institutionalized public good, social homeostasis, and continuous correction, individual development, social harmony, and civilizational continuity form a dynamic cycle. The paper distinguishes three levels of institutional adaptation—operational, structural, and civilizational—proposes five conditions for institutional correction, analyzes eight obstacles to institutional correction, and proposes six design principles for public good civilization. It further discusses the relationship between institutional adaptation and social homeostasis, institutionalized public good, and continuous correction, and demonstrates the framework through cases from welfare systems, environmental governance, financial regulation, public health, education systems, and international governance. Finally, the paper discusses theoretical boundaries and falsifiability conditions, providing foundations for subsequent research on a general theory of adaptive civilization.