Theory of social representations: an irruptive construct in research

Abstract

This article presents a reflection that arises from the doctoral dissertation project called: “The early childhood educator: a study from their social representations”. This is developed from social representations as a theoretical-methodological approach in the constitution of the education process of the early childhood educator, a professional in the field of early childhood education. The aim is to recognize the research importance and rigor of the theory of social representations in the educational context despite the criticism and difficulties for its expansion specifically in the Latin American context, due to its irruptive nature compared to other theoretical postulates and research paradigms that have predominated in social sciences studies. For this purpose, a documentary review of the origin, criticisms and theoretical and methodological postulates of social representations and their link with education is carried out. In the reflection, milestones in the origin of social representations, some of the criticisms made and how they have been based on arguments that show the scientific viability and validity in the understanding of commonsense knowledge in the daily lives of subjects are raised in different contexts, including education. Based on these considerations, we conclude the importance, viability and relevance of carrying out studies from the theory of social representations as a theoretical and methodological approach that allows us to understand phenomena that transit and are part of the educational context from the constructions of common-sense knowledge.