Abstract

LAURENS, Stéphane. Social construction of the forms of hysteria role of imitation and imagination in the crystallization and the proliferation of the forms of hysteria: papel de la imitación y de la imaginación en la cristalización y proliferación de formas de histeria. Psicol. educ. [online]. 2010, n.30, pp. 175-200. ISSN 1414-6975.

The theory of social representations is often used to study the relationship between science and common sense. One of the main functions of social representations consists in transforming what is not familiar (this is notably the case in scientific theories) to make it familiar: concepts elaborated by scientists would be recycled so as to become common sense. This reflects only a single aspect of the construction of knowledge, because, notably in the field of the psychological medicine, comings and goings between science and common sense or mutual exchanges between experts (doctor, psychologist...) and lay persons are permanents. With these exchanges, some forms of pathologies are elaborated or transformed. Consequently, theories, which want to stick on this reality, have to be modified: according to science's discourse, the object (pathology) is transformed, hence, afterwards science's speech has to be adjusted. These dynamics (and its consequences), the social co-construction of a science's speech, social representations and pathological forms which I suggest analyzing here. According to this analysis, it appear that next to the imitation or to the influence, the imaginary, is determinant in the elaboration of shared representations and notably in their efficiency in making and in representing a common reality.

Keywords : imitation; imagination; common sense; science; hysteria; social construction of reality.

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