What is Social Constructionism?
Social constructionism is a sociological theory that posits knowledge and reality are created through social interactions rather than existing independently of individuals. It holds that characteristics typically thought to be immutable are in fact “socially constructed,” that is, produced within a social context and shaped by cultural and historical contexts. Rather than discovering pre-existing truths, human communities actively produce the categories, meanings, and “facts” through which they understand their world—from gender and illness to time, money, and selfhood.
Berger and Luckmann argue that all knowledge, including the most basic, taken-for-granted common-sense knowledge of everyday reality, is derived from and maintained by social interactions. In their model, people interact on the understanding that their perceptions of everyday life are shared with others, and this common knowledge of reality is in turn reinforced by these interactions. This does not mean reality is arbitrary or that material objects cease to exist—rather, that the meanings we assign to phenomena emerge from collective negotiation.
Origins & Lineage
Andy Lock and Tom Strong trace some of the fundamental tenets of social constructionism back to the work of the 18th-century Italian political philosopher, rhetorician, historian, and jurist Giambattista Vico. One of Vico’s mottos was verum factum (‘the true and the made are identical’). Thus mathematics, for example, admits of certainty only because it is a human construction. Vico’s principle suggested that humans can truly know what they themselves have made—a radical departure from Cartesian rationalism.
Sociologists Peter L. Berger and Thomas Luckmann introduced the term social construction into the social sciences in their 1966 book about the sociology of knowledge, The Social Construction of Reality: A Treatise in the Sociology of Knowledge. Berger and Luckmann were themselves influenced by the phenomenological sociology of Alfred Schütz. Their work drew on earlier thinkers including Émile Durkheim, Max Scheler, and George Herbert Mead’s symbolic interactionism.
Kenneth Gergen is one of the most widely known contributors to social constructionist thought in the world today. Since the publication of his paper “Social Psychology as History” he has become a central player in what is known as the Social Psychology Crisis. A major point in Gergen’s career was his 1973 article “Social Psychology as History”. Gergen’s work extended constructionism into psychology, therapy, and organizational practice, emphasizing relational processes over individual cognition.
Philosopher Ian Hacking’s notable books include The Social Construction of What? (1999). Hacking offered critical analysis of what precisely is claimed to be “socially constructed,” distinguishing between ideas, objects, and experiences.
How It’s Practiced
Social constructionism functions less as a practice to be “done” and more as a lens through which to examine experience. Individuals and groups engage constructionist perspectives by:
Critical inquiry: Questioning taken-for-granted assumptions about categories like mental illness, gender, race, or normalcy. Their theory invites readers to critically examine the seemingly self-evident truths that govern their lives, encouraging a deeper awareness of the social processes that shape human knowledge and experience.
Therapeutic contexts: The idea of social constructionism is of central importance in narrative therapy. It challenges basic assumptions about what reality is and suggests that reality cannot be considered independently of the societal contexts in which it emerges. The primary focus is on the ways of working that have arisen among therapists who, inspired by the pioneering efforts of Michael White and David Epston, have organized their thinking around two metaphors: narrative and social construction. Clients are invited to deconstruct dominant narratives that constrain them and co-author alternative stories.
Dialogue and collaboration: Constructionist approaches emphasize conversation, collaborative meaning-making, and the recognition that multiple valid perspectives can coexist. Reality becomes something negotiated rather than discovered.
Social Constructionism Today
Contemporary seekers encounter social constructionism through multiple channels:
Therapeutic modalities: Narrative therapy, collaborative therapy, and solution-focused approaches draw directly on constructionist principles. Practitioners work to externalize problems, recognize cultural influences, and co-create new meanings with clients.
Academic study: Social constructionism remains foundational in sociology, anthropology, psychology, gender studies, and science and technology studies. University courses examine how categories like race, disability, childhood, and emotion are historically constructed.
Spiritual and consciousness communities: While not traditionally spiritual, constructionism intersects with contemplative inquiry into the nature of reality and perception. Eastern spiritual teachings even talk about this – how we live in a delusion of our own making. Those exploring consciousness recognize parallels between constructionist insights and meditative recognition of how mind creates experience.
Social justice work: Activists use constructionist frameworks to challenge oppressive categories, reveal how power shapes “common sense,” and imagine alternative social arrangements.
Common Misconceptions
“Everything is arbitrary”: Social constructionism does not claim that reality is purely invented or that material constraints don’t exist. Construction is largely unconscious or semi-conscious, and is not arbitrary but subject to constraints. It is not claimed that individuals or social systems are free to construct any arbitrary perception or world-view.
Confused with constructivism: While social constructionism focuses on ontology, social constructivism focuses on epistemology. Social constructionism includes people who believe knowledge and reality are constructed through discourse or conversation. Constructivists focus on what’s happening within the minds or brains of individuals; social constructionists focus on what’s happening between people as they join together to create realities.
“Denies science”: Sophisticated constructionism examines how scientific knowledge is produced through social processes without claiming scientific findings are false. Hacking’s work demonstrates that recognizing social construction can actually deepen scientific understanding.
“Relativism means anything goes”: While constructionism acknowledges multiple perspectives, it doesn’t prevent ethical judgment. Communities still make principled distinctions; they simply recognize these are human achievements, not natural laws.
How to Begin
Read the foundational text: Peter L. Berger and Thomas Luckmann’s The Social Construction of Reality (1966) remains the definitive introduction, accessible to general readers.
Explore Ian Hacking’s The Social Construction of What? (1999): This philosophical analysis clarifies what constructionist claims actually mean and maps the terrain of debates.
Engage narrative therapy: Seek therapists trained in narrative or collaborative approaches to experience constructionist principles in practice. Books like Jill Freedman and Gene Combs’ Narrative Therapy: The Social Construction of Preferred Realities (1996) offer clinical examples.
Question your categories: Begin noticing what you assume to be “natural” or “just the way things are.” Ask: When did this category emerge? Who benefits from it? What alternative framings exist? This contemplative inquiry bridges intellectual understanding and embodied realization.
Study with Kenneth Gergen: The Taos Institute, which Gergen founded, offers workshops, courses, and resources on relational and constructionist approaches to therapy, organizations, and community work.