Social constructionism, postmodernism, and the computer model: Searching for human agency in the right places

Journal/Book: J Mind Behav. 1999; 20: PO Box 522 Village Station, New York, NY 10014, USA. Inst Mind Behavior Inc. 379-389.

Abstract: It is not uncommon today to find the claim made that the computer's capacity to adjust its course of action based on negative feedback satisfactorily explains human agency or free will. Conversely postmodernism and social constructionism are said to be theories of behavior in which a language system locks people into a cultural determination that denies them agency. The author argues that precisely the reverse is true: computers cannot account for true agency whereas both postmodernism and an important wing of social constructionism do have certain loopholes enabling agential explanations to be developed. The key here is the employment of oppositionality in the theories under analysis. The ability to freely select the grounds for the sake of which one is determined requires an oppositional cast to human cognition and behavior. The author's Logical Learning Theory is offered as an example of theorizing that is amenable to genuine human agency thanks to its central reliance on oppositionality.

Note: Article Rychlak JF, Loyola Univ, Dept Psychol, 6525 N Sheridan Rd, Chicago,IL 60626 USA

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