HETEROGENEITY OF THINKING: CASE OF RELIGION

Back to Page Authors: Alisa Rekunova

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Keywords: cultural-historical psychology, contradictions, heterogeneity of thinking, religion

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Abstract: According to Lev Vygotsky’s cultural-historical theory, thinking goes through four stages: syncretic concepts, everyday concepts, pseudoconcepts, and true (structural-systemic, by Aaro Toomela) concepts. These stages are distinguished by a person’s speech and choice of words. We assume, that religious beliefs tend to form on the stage of everyday concepts. Firstly, we distinguish different stages of concepts in the human mind by examining the words the person uses during an interview. Secondly, we observe whether there any contradictions between religious and scientific concepts. If there are conflicts or contradictions, we see how the person deals with them. Through the framework of the theory of heterogeneity of thinking, we analyze if and how the person comes to terms with contradictory areas of life.

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