Summary
This article examines Kenneth Gergen’s rhetorical conception of social psychology. Gergen’s criticism of certain positivist assumptions of mainstream academic psychology is seen as valuable and basically valid. While his arguments do not imply the impossibility of empirical-analytical psychology, the persistent beliefs concerning the value-neutrality, testability, and applicability of empirical hypotheses do seem to be in need of revision. However, some of Gergen’s arguments are reinterpreted. His rejection of foundationalism is shown to be virtually impossible in the light of Ludwig Wittgenstein’s analysis of certainty and doubt. Hence, Gergen’s claim that interpretations are open to infinite revision is consequently relativized. A revised interpretative conception of psychology is sketched in the conclusion.
Here one must realize that complete absence of doubt at some point, even where we would say that ‘legitimate’ doubt can exist, need not falsify a language-game. Wittgenstein (1969, p. 375)
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Terwee, S.J.S. (1988). Need Rhetorical Analysis Lead to Relativism? An Examination of the Views of K. J. Gergen. In: Baker, W.J., Mos, L.P., Rappard, H.V., Stam, H.J. (eds) Recent Trends in Theoretical Psychology. Recent Research in Psychology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-3902-4_2
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