The Social Constructivist Perspective

The chapter presents the social constructivist perspective in cultural psychology. First, social constructivism is defined and conceptually clarified, explaining what is meant by it and what is not. Subsequently, the social constructivist perspective is historically and theoretically located and critically evaluated. Two examples follow on the social construction of emotions and the significance of separation and relationship experiences in the context of systemic psychotherapy. Finally, convergences between cultural psychology and social constructivism are elaborated, which aim to reject a psychological universalism and a psychology from the individual’s perspective, and to make the construction of meaning and sense in social and cultural contexts the subject of psychology.