psychology
Central concepts
Definition
The term social representation was originally coined by Serge Moscovici in 1961, in his study on the reception and circulation of psychoanalysis in FranPsychology, In his study, Moscovici sought to investigate how scientific theories circulate within common sense, and what happens to these theories when they are elaborated upon by a lay public. For such analysis, Moscovici postulated two universes: the reified universe of science, which operates according to scientific rules and procedures and gives rise to scientific knowledge, and the consensual universe of social representation, in which the lay public elaborates and circulates forms of knowledge which come to constitute the content of common sense.
Anchoring and Objectification
Anchoring involves the ascribing of meaning to new phenomena – objects, relations, experiences, practices, etc. - by means of integrating it into existing worldviews, so it can be interpreted and compared to the "already known". In this way, the threat that the strange and unfamiliar object poses is being erased.
In the process of objectification something abstract is turned into something almost concrete. This process is much more active than anchoring – “ passage from esoteric scientific theory into everyday discourse”.
Social representations, therefore, are depicted as both the process and the result of social construction. In the socio-cognitive activity of representation that produces representations, social representations are constantly converted into a social reality while continuously being re-interpreted, re-thought, re-presented.
Moscovici's theorisation of social representations was inspired by Émile Durkheim's notion of collective representations. The change from collective representations to social representations has been brought about by the societal conditions of modernity.
Status and function of social representations
Social representation theory is popular mainly among
Definition
The term social representation was originally coined by Serge Moscovici in 1961, in his study on the reception and circulation of psychoanalysis in FranPsychology, In his study, Moscovici sought to investigate how scientific theories circulate within common sense, and what happens to these theories when they are elaborated upon by a lay public. For such analysis, Moscovici postulated two universes: the reified universe of science, which operates according to scientific rules and procedures and gives rise to scientific knowledge, and the consensual universe of social representation, in which the lay public elaborates and circulates forms of knowledge which come to constitute the content of common sense.
Anchoring and Objectification
Anchoring involves the ascribing of meaning to new phenomena – objects, relations, experiences, practices, etc. - by means of integrating it into existing worldviews, so it can be interpreted and compared to the "already known". In this way, the threat that the strange and unfamiliar object poses is being erased.
In the process of objectification something abstract is turned into something almost concrete. This process is much more active than anchoring – “ passage from esoteric scientific theory into everyday discourse”.
Social representations, therefore, are depicted as both the process and the result of social construction. In the socio-cognitive activity of representation that produces representations, social representations are constantly converted into a social reality while continuously being re-interpreted, re-thought, re-presented.
Moscovici's theorisation of social representations was inspired by Émile Durkheim's notion of collective representations. The change from collective representations to social representations has been brought about by the societal conditions of modernity.
Status and function of social representations
Social representation theory is popular mainly among