More on the Structure of Social Representations: Central Core and Social Dynamics

Abstract

This paper addresses two important topics in the theory of social representations: the structure and the degree of consensus. While referring to our data on the social representations of children’s development, we argue that the combination of two approaches, sociodynamic and structural is needed to account for the composition and nature of social representations. As far as the question of consensus is concerned, we maintain that this cannot be seen as a static and definitive data, but is rather connected to the antinomy inherent the central core of social representations, which enables the sociocognitive regulation caused by the feeling of affective urge.