The investigation of semiosis calls for an interdisciplinary approach. A realist logical framework emphasising the triadic nature of semiosis is the optimal foundation for critically examining and integrating aspects of quantitative psychology, the interpretative-qualitative tradition in the social sciences, structuralist semiotics, and functional-contextual semiotics. While several aspects of each of these fields can be successfully integrated into a psychosemiotic model, each also suffers from key conceptual flaws which need to be addressed as a prerequisite to an interdisciplinary approach. The structuralist school of semiotics—and the functionalist approaches that have evolved from it—show problematic tendencies to reduce the triadic relationship of semiosis to relationships within systems of signifiers. On the other hand, mainstream schools of psychology, with their narrow commitment to the operationalisation and quantification of variables, leave little room for the qualitative concept of semiosis. Moreover, the phenomenon of intentional action, which is crucial in understanding semiosis, is ignored or marginalised in both mainstream psychology and the qualitative-interpretative traditions of the social sciences. Mainstream psychology marginalises intentional action in favour of observable behaviour. The qualitative-interpretative tradition marginalises intentional action in favour of situational conventions governing action. In the psychosemiotic model that emerges from an engagement with these problems, semiosis is an intentional action that can be investigated in a scientific framework where the contextual factors of culture, social structure and social situation are taken into account. The descriptive and explanatory powers of the psychosemiotic model can be illustrated with analyses of specific cases of semiotic action in social and cultural contexts. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD (Philosophy))
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/204417 |
| Date | January 2008 |
| Creators | Milić, Marko, University of Western Sydney, College of Arts, School of Psychology |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
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