Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

The study of the construction of an ethnic identity is the central theme in the research carried out by Haan and Leander (2011). They analyze the dialogical relationships that occur in social spaces, which serve as mediators for forging the identity of children and young people. Analysis allows them to characterize the social representations and patterns, which provide information on the personal positions (and counter-positions) constructed among different ethnic groups. However, we, being situated in the systemic perspective of development, offer a route which does not oppose the proposals of the authors, but on the contrary, we consider that it could be complementary for the understanding of this phenomenon, since we assume that the development of each person is open by nature and that it is in constant interaction with other systems (family, academic, social and cultural). This interaction generated its own dynamics which makes new forms of organization possible and contributes to the construction of identity. We support our reflections with cases of Latin American students who recount situations related to the construction of identity. Our conclusions are directed towards recognizing that this phenomenon is complex and requires analysis from different points of view, which contributes to its understanding.

Keywords

construction of identity culture development dynamical systems social representations

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Bateson

(1998). Pasos hacia una ecología de la mente: Una aproximación revolucionaria a la autocomprensión del hombre [Steps to an ecology of mind: a revolutionary approach to men's self-understanding]. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Plaza Edición.

Carretero

(2007). Documentos de Identidad: La construcción de la memoria histórica en un mundo global [Identity documents: The construction of historical memory in a global world]. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Paidós.

Carretero

Castorina

(2010). La construcción del conocimiento histórico. Enseñanza, narración e identidades [The construction of historical knowledge. Teaching, narrative and identity]. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Paidós.

Cristancho

Vining

(2009). Perceived intergenerational differences in the transmission of traditional ecological knowledge in two indigenous groups from Colombia and Guatemala. Culture and Psychology, 15, 229–254.

Gillièron

(1985). La construccion du réel chez le psychologue [The construction of reality in the psychologist]. Bern, Switzerland: Peter Lang.

Haan

Leander

(2011). The construction of ethnic boundaries in classroom interaction through social space. Culture & Psychology, 17(3), 319–338.

Lyra

(2010). On interaction analysis and dialogical perspective: Emergent patterns of order and relational agency. Integrative Psychological and Behavioral Science, 44(3), 273–280.

Lewis

M D

(2000). The promise of dynamical systems approaches for an integrated account of human development. Child Development, 71(1), 36–43.

Marsico

Iannaccone

(2012). The work of schooling. In Valsiner

(Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Culture and Psychology. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

10.

Minuchin

(1986). Familias y terapia familiar [Family and family therapy]. Barcelona, Spain: Editorial Gedisa, S.A.

11.

Molenaar

P C M

(2004). A manifesto on psychology as idiographic science: Bringing the person back into psychology, this time forever. Measurement: Interdisciplinary Research and Perspectives, 2, 201–218.

12.

Molenaar

P C M

Valsiner

(2009). How generalization works through the single case: A simple idiographic process analysis of an individual psychotherapy case. In Salvatore

Valsiner

Strout-Yagodzinsky

Clegg

(Eds.), YIS: Yearbook of Idiographic Science 2008 (Vol. 1, pp. 23–38). Rome, Italy: Fireira Publishing.

13.

Popper

(2007). Conocimiento objetivo: Un enfoque evolucionista [Objective knowledge: An evolutionary approach]. Madrid, Spain: Tecnos Editorial, S. A.

14.

Puche-Navarro

(2009). ¿Es la mente no lineal? [Is the mind non lineal?]. Cali, Colombia: Artes Gráficas del Valle Editores.

15.

Rodríguez

(2006). Del ritmo al símbolo [From the rhythm to the symbol]. Madrid, Spain: Horsori.

16.

Rodríguez

(2009). Commentary: Forms of construction of relationships and the power of the child. Culture and Psychology, 15(4), 533–540.

17.

Rodríguez

(2011a). A case study of ontogeny of understanding the cognitive development in infants. YIS: Yearbook of Idiographic (Vol. 1). Rome: Fireira Group.

18.

Rodríguez

(2011b). Speaking of one’s life: What can we learn from transcultural studies?. Integrative Psychological and Behavioral Science, 45(1), 76–85.

19.

Thelen

Smith

L B

(1994). A dynamical system approach to development of cognition and action. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press/Bradford Books.

20.

Thelen

Smith

L B

(1998). Dynamical systems theories. In Damon

Lerner

(Eds.), Handbook of child psychology, Vol. 1. Theoretical models of human development (5th edn., pp. 189–232). New York, NY: Wiley.

21.

Vygotsky

L S

Luria

(1994). Tool and symbol in child development. In der Veer

R Van

Valsiner

(Eds.), The Vygostky reader (pp. 99–174). Oxford, UK: Blackwell (original work published in 1930).

22.

Valsiner

(2004). El desarrollo de las teorías del desarrollo: La “Holliwoodización” de la ciencia y su impacto [The development of theories of development: The Hollywoodization of science and its impact]. Infancia y Aprendizaje, 27(2), 1–14.

23.

Valsiner

(2006). Developmental epistemology and implications for methodology. In Damon

Lerner

R M

(Eds.), Handbook of Child Psychology, Vol. 1. Theoretical Models of Human Development (6th edn., pp. 166–209). New York, NY: Wiley.

24.

Valsiner

(2007). Culture in minds and societies. New Delhi, India: Sage.

25.

Valsiner

(2009a). Cultural psychology today: Innovations and oversights. Culture & Psychology, 15(1), 5–39.

26.

Valsiner

(2009b). Posfacio: Sí, la mente es no lineal—y—¿Qué sigue? [Yes, the mind is nonlinear—and—What next?]. In Puche-Navarro

(Ed.), ¿Es la mente no lineal? [Is the mind non lineal?] (pp. 142–145). Cali, Colombia: Artes Graficas del Valle Editores.

27.

van Geert

(1998). We almost had a great future behind us: The contribution of non-linear dynamics to developmental-science-in-the-making. Developmental Science, 1, 143–159.

28.

van Geert

(2009). Transmission, self-organization, and the emergence of language: A dynamic systems point of view. In Schonpflug

(Ed.), Cultural transmission: Psychological, developmental, social, and methodological aspects (pp. 48–69). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.

29.

van Geert

van Dijk

(2002). Focus on variability: New tools to study intra-individual variability in developmental data. Infant Behavior and Development, 25, 340–374.

Invisible boundaries in the construction of ethnic identity: A systemic development perspective

Abstract

Keywords

Get full access to this article

References