Résulteante

Résulteante is a neologistic term used in some social science and humanities writings to denote the final or emergent result produced by a complex sequence of actions or interventions. The word is formed from the French verb résulter, meaning to result, with a suffix that evokes abstract phenomena or processes. It is not standardized in dictionaries, and its precise meaning varies by context, but it is commonly employed to emphasize outcomes that are not easily predicted from initial conditions or inputs.

In practice, résulteante appears in discussions of policy analysis, organizational change, and systems theory to describe the actual end-state or effect observed after implementation. Authors may use the term to distinguish between intended goals, projected outputs, and the observable, often nonlinear, outcomes that emerge only after a sequence of interactions. Because there is no formal definition, the term can cover a range of interpretations—from a single endpoint to a suite of emergent characteristics identified post hoc.

Relation and reception: résulteante is related to concepts such as outcome, emergent property, unintended consequence, and resultant. Its lack of formal status means readers should infer meaning from context. Critics argue that as a neologism it can introduce ambiguity, while proponents view it as a concise label for emergent end-states in complex systems. Because usage is limited, the term remains primarily found in niche writings rather than mainstream scholarly discourse.