postmodernism

n. Postmodernism refers to a family of late 20th-century intellectual and cultural movements that envision personhood, social life, truth, knowledge, and morality in ways that self-consciously diverge from “modernist” versions of these concepts. Postmodern psychologists (including social constructionists, discursive psychologists, and relational theorists) are influenced by postmodernist trends in literary criticism, philosophy, and sociocultural theory, as well as by the rise of global capitalism and rapid advances in communication technology. They call into question, and propose alternatives to, the constructs and methods used by “mainstream” psychologists. For example, they challenge the assertion that the individual mental and behavioral processes should be psychology's units of analysis, redirecting the focus of inquiry to the relational or discursive field. They also dispute the assumption that psychological concepts correspond to empirical realities, by demonstrating that psychological “truths” are inevitably embedded in social, cultural, and political frames. Finally, they criticize the claim that psychology functions in society to help foster greater individual freedom, arguing instead that psychologists often unwittingly reinforce inequality and intolerance. – SRK