Social Constructionism In Psychology

Social constructionism is a theory of knowledge which reflects the notion of everyday phenomena, objects, science and even reality itself not existing a priori but rather being socially constructed between individuals. Extending this argument, language is considered as the basic means by which social processes take place and reality is re-constructed (Leeds-Hurwitz, W. 2009). The following paragraphs will present the basic premises and assumptions of social constructionism, its historical multidisciplinary roots, a brief criticism of traditional psychology and the application of social constructionism in psychology. The main line of argumentation followed is that social reality and social phenomena are not fixed and do not reflect the character

Traces of social constructionism can be found in early sociology texts, like Mead’s Mind, Self and Society (1934) where the definition of “symbolic interactionism” was founded. Symbolic interactionism first introduced the idea of people shaping their and others’ identities through everyday processes of social interaction. Quoting Burr (1995), a major influence on the domain of social constructionism is Berger and Luckmann’s (1966) The Construction of Social Reality. Turning against essentialist accounts of social reality, they argued that all social phenomena are co-influenced, managed and sustained through social practices. Externalization, objectification and internalization are the major processes through which social reality is sustained. For example, one might come up with an idea (such as an idea that spirits exist), which s/he will externalize by writing it or by telling a story. This idea will spread through society and will become a topic of discussion, a social “object” which entails a truth of its own, distant from the subjectivity of human beings (objectification). This social object will then be internalized as natural, as ever-existing and part of the world (internalization). Following this example, all practices are socially constructed and are also made to appear as

Furthermore, a brief criticism of traditional psychology was illustrated, where its negative points were stressed. These consist of the discipline’s withdrawal from any historical, political and cultural context, as well as the positivistic, individualistic and empiricist approach to knowledge. However, despite its negative characteristics as a methodological approach, social constructionism has much to offer in the discipline of psychology. There is an opportunity to see people not as experimental subjects but as social and dynamic beings, whose issues derive not from inner malfunctions but from social processes, while giving emphasis on matters of power relations and on the active ability of language to construct versions of reality. Thus, the social constructionist approach opens the field for a psychology that will act in favor of and not as a tool against humanity, actively engaging in the struggle against inequality and the violation of human