SYMP 083 - Perezhivanie and subjectivity: methodological contributions, challenges, and limitations

The recent publication of two special issues dedicated to the discussion of Vygotsky’s perezhivanie highlight both the emerging interest in, and confusion surrounding, the concept. While these publications have highlighted theoretical issues (Mind, Culture, and Activity, 2016 pre-print) and demonstrated practical applications (International Research in Early Childhood Education, 2016, 7[1]), there is still further work required for understanding its contributions to, and limitations within, particular contexts of research. Thus, the goal of this symposium is to present such work and discuss the emergent methodological issues, challenges, limitations, and future directions not only of Vygotsky’s perezhivanie concept, but also González Rey’s conceptualisation of subjectivity, itself inspired by perezhivanie. We bring together research from disparate domains and critically examine the complementary perspective the concepts bring to our understanding of different forms of development, while highlighting the theoretical, methodological, and epistemological contributions to our research domains more generally.

The first two presentations (Feiyan Chen and Nelson Mok) address perezhivanie specifically, while the latter two (Megan Adams and Daniel Goulart) draw on González Rey's conceptualisation of subjectivity. In raising these issues, we hope to stimulate further discussions on the role and limitations of the perezhivanie and subjectivity concepts in our respective domains (emotion regulation, second language acquisition, children’s emergent identity, and mental health services) for 1) understanding the different kinds of development we study, and 2) the ways in which we conduct research. Following the presentations, Professor Fernando González Rey will lead a panel discussion with questions from the audience.