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Social Psychology in Malawi: Historical or Developmental?

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  • Stuart C. Carr

    (Department of Psychology, University of Newcastle, Australia)

Abstract

It is now over two decades since Gergen (1973) argued that social psychology is historical, and this paper re-examines his arguments in the light of more recent social changes in Tropical Africa. Malawi has experienced major sociopolitical upheavals and from the outside, with much of the agenda based on foreign historical foundations, Gergen's hypothesis implies that social psychology should be radically inappropriate. From the inside, however, the discipline has garnered substantial student enrolments, sustained by four possible modes of applied re search in addition to cross-cultural refutation ( for instance, similarity-attraction), namely, rejuvenation (of observer bias, among aid donors), realisation (that "aid" is transactional), reconstitution (into a principle of incremental improvement), and restatement (of competitive motives, reflecting clashes with collectivist peers and security conscious superiors). In contemporary Malawi, social psychology is "developmental" rather than "historical", casting doubt on the universality of Gergen's historicity hypothesis.

Suggested Citation

  • Stuart C. Carr, 1996. "Social Psychology in Malawi: Historical or Developmental?," Psychology and Developing Societies, , vol. 8(2), pages 177-197, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:psydev:v:8:y:1996:i:2:p:177-197
    DOI: 10.1177/097133369600800201
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Carr, Stuart & Ager, Alastair & Nyando, Clifford & Moyo, Kamwadi & Titeca, Annette & Wilkinson, Maureen, 1994. "A comparison of chamba (marijuana) abusers and general psychiatric admissions in Malawi," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 39(3), pages 401-406, August.
    2. Malcolm Maclachlan & Tony Nyirenda & Clifford Nyando, 1995. "Attributions for Admission To Zomba Mental Hospital: Implications for the Development of Mental Health Services in Malawi," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 41(2), pages 79-87, June.
    3. Elizabeth Elliot & Marian Pitts & John Mcmaster, 1992. "Nurses' Views of Parasuicide in a Developing Country," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 38(4), pages 273-279, December.
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