Our experiences are constructs influenced by opinions and perceptions.
Social Constructionism
Definition: Theory that knowledge and many aspects of the world are not inherently real; they exist through social agreement.
Examples:
Nations: Exist because groups of people share language/history.
Books: Physical objects with scribbles that we assign meaning to.
Money: Just paper or metal given value by society.
Identity/Self: Social construct created by societal interactions and expectations.
Types of Social Constructionism
Weak Social Constructionism
Social constructs rely on brute facts:
Basic, fundamental facts that do not rely on other facts.
Example: The explanation of the quarks and subatomic particles.
Institutional Facts:
Created by social conventions, rely on other facts.
Example: The value of money based on paper.
Strong Social Constructionism
Entire reality is dependent on language and social habits.
All knowledge is a social construct; there are no brute facts.
Example: The idea of quarks is a human-created concept.
Criticisms of Social Constructionism
Weakness in explaining natural phenomena that do not rely on human language or actions.
Strong Social Constructionism:
Overlooks the role of natural phenomena in society.
Focuses only on human perceptions and language.
Conclusion
Social constructionism provides a framework to understand reality as shaped by human interactions and agreements, but faces challenges in addressing natural realities independent of social constructs.