Social Constructionism and Identity Concepts of Disabled People. This essays outlines social constructionisms main ideas focusing on its concept of identities as socially constructed and negotiated by everyday, power-influenced social interactions.

This essay hasn't yet been marked by one of our teachers

You can view 3 essays on Social Theory that have been Marked by Teachers

The first 200 words of this essay...

Essay

Social constructionism and identity concepts of disabled people

This essays outlines social constructionism's main ideas focusing on its concept of identities as socially constructed and negotiated by everyday, power-influenced social interactions. Subsequently, it is argued that social constructionism explains the complex realities of disabled people's multiple identities and challenges the stereotypical, prevailing discourse of a unitary disabled identity.

Social constructionism is part of the growing field of constructive psychologies (e.g. Gergen, 1985, 1994, Hall, 1992, Mahoney, 1988, Sampson, 1989, von Glaserfeld, 1984, Potter & Wetherell, 1987, Burr, 2003) that explore how humans actively, fluidly and meaningfully construct their everyday life as well as their experiences and selves (Phoenix, 2007, Raskin, 2002). Social constructionism's emphasis lies on social processes. It assumes that our knowledge is linked to the constructions we make, sustained by social processes (Burr, 2003). Hence, social contexts construct our perception of ourselves (Phoenix at Ioannou, 2007).

Social constructionism's hermeneutic approach (Phoenix, 2007, Gergen, 1985, 1994, Hruby, 2001) outlines that contextual, linguistic and relational social factors create identities as our "own theories of ourselves" (Phoenix, 2007, p. 47). Personal and social identity are inseparable and all identities are social (Phoenix, 2007). Different from