Abstract
The study deals with the foundations of psychological understanding
grounded in methodology and the theory of interpretation. Psychology
is understood as a reconstructive hermeneutic-dialectic science
that explores subjective meaning giving. Reconstructive science
attempts to reconstruct the deep structure that must be necessarily
assumed for a certain surface structure phenomenon to be possible.
In the science of psychology, the deep structure is understood in
terms of events that are internal to the mind. The surface structure
is understood as descriptions and expressions of experiences and
as action and its social and cultural expressions. The study also
examines the relation of psychological understanding to sociological
understanding.
The study is built on four concepts that are essential for
psychological understanding. Their examination provides the four
research tasks through which psychological understanding is reconstructed:
1) the concept of psychological meaning, 2) the concept of psychological understanding,
3) the method of psychological understanding and 4) the theory of
interpreting psychological understanding.
The background for the study is provided by the hermeneutic
theory and the psychodynamic psychoanalytical theory and thinking,
on the basis of which psychological understanding is reconstructed.
The study defines mind, the research object of psychology, as a
world of experience that is understood to be phenomenal and meaningful.
Meaning is defined as a position in psychic connections, determined
by psychic connections. Subjective meaning-giving is seen in relation
to the individual's experience of one's own self.
Psychological understanding is defined in the psychic connections
of the position of the phenomenon as insight and showing. Methodologically, psychological
understanding is defined as the formation of an abstract image of
the internal mental event in which the phenomenon acquires a position
in psychic connections. The theory of interpreting psychological
understanding is understood in terms of general interpretations
used to identify the phenomenon and show its psychic connections.
The theory of psychological interpretation is reconstructed
by means of psychoanalytical metapsychology and its scenic interpretation.
Metapsychological and scenic understanding are distinguished by
means of a different way of conceptualising mind and understanding.
In metapsychological understanding mind is conceptualised through
psychoanalytical metapsychology. Scenic understanding makes use
of the analogy with a scene. Mind is understood as a scene in which experiences
are presented in the form of dialogues and tales. The analogy with
the scene is also used methodologically. The methodology of psychological
understanding is examined through theoretical hermeneutic examinations
targeted at psychoanalysis. The study also examines briefly the psychological
understanding research process illuminated by a research example
as well as the issues of credibility, problems and sources of error
in understanding psychological research.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:oulo.fi/oai:oulu.fi:isbn951-42-5641-7 |
| Date | 04 May 2000 |
| Creators | Latomaa, T. (Timo) |
| Publisher | University of Oulu |
| Source Sets | University of Oulu |
| Language | Finnish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | info:eu-repo/semantics/doctoralThesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess, © University of Oulu, 2000 |
| Relation | info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/pissn/0355-323X, info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/eissn/1796-2242 |
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