Repopulating the Depopulated Pages of Social Psychology

Abstract

The author of this academic article writes about the way that psychology, especially social psychology, is written in academic journals. It is argued that the journals are `depopulated' texts; strategies for `repopulating' them are discussed. Two issues of the European Journal of Social Psychology are examined in detail, in order to show how social psychological texts rhetorically transform individuals into interchangeable subjects. Several rhetorical devices are outlined: for instance, `variable vagueness' in describing subjects, unmarked expressions for describing group differences, and the routine absence of individual data. These rhetorical devices are not discussed as methodological defects, but as means for accomplishing depopulation. The result of these conventional practices of writing is that psychologists tend to produce general descriptions which are not instantiated in particular cases. To remedy this, the procedure of Median Case Reconstruction is suggested. Not only would Median Case Reconstruction have methodological and theoretical implications, but it would necessitate changes in the writing of social psychology. Its advantages, and more generally those of a repopulated social psychology, are discussed. But there is more. Amongst other things, the author introduces some characters of his own and warns readers not to trust abstracts.