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My PhD studies are about patterns and educational learning software. I want to write about what I personally call the «theory of patterns», from «what is a pattern» to «why did I choose this type of pattern to write my pattern» going through «standardization problems», «security problems», etc.

The problem I face is a lack of literature about pattern theory. Everything I find on internet about the topic, thanks to scholar.google.com, is mostly about software design patterns, and is very specific. I have been unable to find ideas about which aspects I should talk about, to make a full inquiry into the concept of patterns, before I start proposing new patterns. I want to be original. Any ideas, any links will be very much appreciated.

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I think your exact question could be a little bit more precise. – JOG Mar 22 '12 at 13:58
When studying patterns in university, we had design pattern examples from Architecture. Is it the story of patterns you are looking for? It might origin from there. We also read about the building blocks of patterns, eg. "Name" and "Rationale". – JOG Mar 22 '12 at 14:00
Hmmm...don't have enough clout here to vote to re-open. I think I understand your question though. – Mike Brown Mar 22 '12 at 14:24
The pattern language movement was started by Christopher Alexander. His book A Pattern Language, introduces a catalog of patterns each of which are designed to provide a solution for a specific architectural problem. Of note is the fact that the patterns tend to play with each other and combine to create a larger solution. The software industry adopted Alexander's approach, creating a pattern language for software design. I'd argue if you want to provide a background to the concept of pattern languages, you start by discussing Alexander's work. – Mike Brown Mar 22 '12 at 14:25

closed as not a real question by Rahul♦ Mar 22 '12 at 14:03

It's difficult to tell what is being asked here. This question is ambiguous, vague, incomplete, overly broad, or rhetorical and cannot be reasonably answered in its current form. For help clarifying this question so that it can be reopened, see the FAQ.