Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Psychological science in a postmodern context.

K J Gergen1

  • 1Department of Psychology, Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, PA 19081, USA. kgergen1@swarthmore.edu

The American Psychologist
|October 26, 2001
PubMed
Summary

Postmodern scholarship challenges traditional views of knowledge and truth, emphasizing communal construction and relational objectivity. This perspective offers new avenues for psychological science research and practice, potentially transforming the field.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

The place of material in a constructed world.

Family process·1999
Same author

Life on the line: the therapeutic potentials of computer-mediated conversation.

Journal of marital and family therapy·1998
Same author

Broken hearts or broken bonds. Love and death in historical perspective.

The American psychologist·1992
Same author

Social comparison, self-consistency, and the concept of self.

Journal of personality and social psychology·1970
Same author

Self theory and the process of self-observation.

The Journal of nervous and mental disease·1969
Same author

Interactive effects of self-esteem and task difficulty on social conformity.

Journal of personality and social psychology·1967

Area of Science:

  • Philosophy of Science
  • Psychological Research Methods

Background:

  • Postmodern scholarship questions core assumptions in science, including individual knowledge, objectivity, and absolute truth.
  • It proposes knowledge as communally constructed, objectivity as relational, and truth as context-dependent and linguistically mediated.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore the implications of postmodern thought for psychological science.
  • To re-evaluate traditional research paradigms in light of new epistemological frameworks.
  • To identify emerging theoretical, methodological, and practical opportunities within psychology.

Main Methods:

  • Conceptual analysis of postmodern philosophical tenets.
  • Examination of their potential application to psychological inquiry.
  • Review of current trends in psychological research and theory.

Related Experiment Videos

Main Results:

  • Postmodern perspectives do not negate psychological science but offer a richer understanding of its foundations.
  • New questions arise regarding the role of culture and context in psychological phenomena.
  • Opportunities exist for innovative research designs and interpretations of findings.

Conclusions:

  • Integrating postmodern insights can enhance the theoretical and practical significance of psychological science.
  • This shift encourages a more nuanced and culturally sensitive approach to psychological research.
  • The profession may be on the cusp of significant transformation.