6th ISCAR Summer University for PhD students For the L.S.Vygotsky’s 120th
Anniversary
Cultural-historical psychology: interdisciplinary research perspectives
Body by L.S. Vygotsky:
Exploring possible understandings of the body in
selected works of L. S. Vygotsky
MOVEMENT
Trajectory of thinking process
Psychomotricity?
Psychomotricity?
• Unity
perceiving
acting
experiencing
PM ?
moving
thinking
feeling
Trajectory of thinking process
Body?
• Corpus
• Soma
• Corpo
• Cuerpo
• Korpus
• Körper / Leib
Body? Vygotsky?
• First „superficial“ thoughts...
Research motives and aims
• Seeking a deeper understanding!
• Stable, robust, but also flexible foundations
• Vygotskian „lens“ on body
• Theoretical, methodological practical models and applications
• Interpret social situations (of developemnt)
• Develop methods
Research questions
• Which understanding of body can be reconstructed and analysed?
• Which applications and implications may these research processes
and „temporary“ results have on his concepts / ideas? (by making
body visible)
• Which applications and implications may the results offer to current
issues and challenges connecting body understanding(s) by Vygotsky,
for instance to psychomotor approaches) ?
Theoretical approach
• Hermeneutical „traditions“
• „hermeneuein“ -> explain, interpret, translate
• Study of methodical interpretation (texts but also other artefacts)
• Hermeneutics can be understood as the methodology of
interpretation that is concerned with problems that arise when
dealing with meaningful human actions and the products of such
actions, most importantly texts.
P/A
H
V
BQ
Me
S
Challenges
• Circulus vitiosus (lack of validity)
• Reliable translations
• Unavailable texts
• Plus-value? (Or „copy“ of Bourdieu for example?)
• Methodology, practical application?
Some associations
• Social cultural historical notion of Body (Vyg lens)
• Body and pereshivanie
• Body and ZPD
• Body and „Vyg circle“?
• Contrast with other body concepts?
• PM and Vyg lens (The understanding and analysis may offer
theoretical and practical “tools” by connecting typical psychomotor
dimensions to his concepts (rhythm, body scheme, body image,
organisation of time and space, “tonic dialogue”…)
Next steps
• Reliable sources
• Select one source and test „methods“
• Deepen understanding of theories of interpretation.
• Explore philosophical „roots“
Conclusion
• A reconstruction of Vygotsky’s understanding of body may give us
posthumous clues to address some current interdisciplinary issues
and challenges by connecting his concepts to a possibly „social
cultural historical“ understanding of body.
Suggestions? Questions?
• Which theory of interpretation may be interesting to reflect upon the
„findings“?
• What other associations come across your mind? (theory, method,
practical model to reorganise practice /to thinking processes)
• Focus (narrow down?)
• Guiding questions?