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Imagination as expansion of experience
Tania Zittoun1, Frédéric Cerchia
1Institut de psychologie et éducation, FLSH, Université de Neuchâtel, Louis Agassiz 1, CH - 2000, Neuchâtel, Switzerland. tania.zittoun@unine.ch
Integrative Psychological & Behavioral Science
|April 30, 2013
Summary
This study presents a developmental perspective on imagination, viewing it as a loop triggered by disruptions, returning to reality. It advocates for an expansive, sociocultural approach to understanding imagination, moving beyond deficit models.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Sociocultural Psychology
Background:
- Imagination is often viewed through a deficit lens, limiting its perceived scope.
- Classical and contemporary theories offer differing perspectives on imagination's triggers and processes.
- A sociocultural perspective on imagination remains empirically under-explored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose a developmental view of imagination as a loop.
- To contrast deficit and expansive notions of imagination.
- To stimulate empirical research into a sociocultural psychology of imagination.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of classical and contemporary psychological theories of imagination.
- Examination of developmental psychology concepts (Piaget, Vygotsky).
- Presentation of two empirical examples illustrating imagination in children and adolescents.
Main Results:
- Imagination is conceptualized as a loop initiated by disjunction from reality.
- An expansive view of imagination, as proposed by Vygotsky, is supported.
- Empirical examples demonstrate imagination's role in understanding metaphor and symbolic resource use.
Conclusions:
- Adopting an expansive, developmental, and sociocultural view of imagination is crucial.
- Further empirical research is needed to explore imagination's sociocultural dimensions.
- Imagination facilitates sense-making and symbolic resource utilization in development.
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