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| Construals of society
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Maintaining
that society
may often be the source of a client's constructs, Kelly
(1955/1991) conflates
society with culture and points out
repeatedly that country of origin, gender,
race, and age are likely to influence construals of elements of human
experience. Significantly, he refrains from attempting a comprehensive
definition of society as the source. The deliberate opacity indicates
that, as
with other elements, Kelly did not envision a theoretical limit to the
number
of alternative constructions that can be rung by different individuals
on the element, society. Therapists
and researchers who ignore the possibility that
society can be construed in different ways may, therefore, be cutting
themselves off from a deeper understanding of how clients' construals
of the
nature of "society" as a whole are likely to influence individuals'
construct
systems. In connection with this whole, the space where individuals are
called
upon to confront experiences, Kelly's assumption of constructive alternativism is
supported by the structures of formalized theory in sociology. The
practices of
scientists of society confirm the ambiguity of the term "society" and
provide
leads as to the range of possible construals.
Among sociologists, it is
widely accepted that their field is a discipline that relies on several
paradigms (Ritzer, 1975). That is to say, the object of sociological
study, society,
is viewed in different ways by sociologists affiliated with different
research communities.
Among the alternative perceptions are understandings of society as a macro-structure,
as a network of functions, a product of exchange, an on-going
construction through micro-interaction, or as an accumulation of practices. These
conceptions are formalizations of everyday construals of social living
(Kalekin-Fishman, 2003). It is highly likely that the hierarchical organization
of clients' personal constructs provides indications of the nature of
the
society in which clients locate the situations they confront.
Understanding
differential construals of society can provide the psychotherapist and
the
client with insight into comprehensive problems of validation.
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References
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- Kalekin-Fishman,
D. (2003) Social
relations in the modern world. In: F. Fransella (ed.) International handbook of
Personal Construct Psychology. West Sussex, England: John Wiley & Sons, pp. 143-152.
- Kelly,
G. A. (1955/1991) The
psychology of personal constructs. London: Routledge.
- Ritzer,
G. (1975) Sociology:
A multiple paradigm science. Boston, MA:
Allyn & Bacon.
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Devorah
Kalekin-Fishman
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