Socially constructed reality forms a concept within the
sociology of knowledge and within the
social constructionist strand of
postmodernism, stressing the on-going mass-building of
worldviews by
individuals in
dialectical interaction with
society at any time. The numerous
realities so formed comprise, according to this view, the imagined worlds of
human social existence and activity, gradually crystallised by
habit into
institutions[?] propped up by
language conventions, given ongoing
legitimation[?] by
mythology,
religion and
philosophy, maintained by
therapies and
socialisation, and subjectively internalised by upbringing and
education to become part of the
identity of social citizens.
The publication of The Social Construction of Reality: A Treatise in the Sociology of Knowledge by Peter L. Berger[?] and Thomas Luckmann[?] in 1966 popularised the concept and the terminology of "socially constructed reality".
Socially contructed reality can also mean that portion of reality which consists of social or cultural artifacts, see The Construction of Social Reality, John R. Searle, The Free Press, 1995, hardcover: ISBN 0-02-928045-1 trade paperback: ISBN 0-684-83179-1 The nature of that part of external reality which is a social or cultural product, e.g. money, marriage, government, hula hoops, etc. Also contains few chapters on realism.
See also: consensus reality
