Paper Summary
Paperzilla title
Is Social Psychology Too WEIRD? A Call for Decolonizing the Field (But Light on Solutions)
This paper argues that hegemonic social psychology, with its Western-centric focus and emphasis on universal theories, creates and perpetuates precarity for marginalized scholars, especially those from the Global South. The authors propose a six-point lens for understanding precarity and offer several political-personal intentions for reorienting the field towards decolonial praxis and epistemic justice.
Possible Conflicts of Interest
None identified
Identified Weaknesses
Lack of empirical evidence
The paper primarily focuses on theoretical arguments and lacks empirical evidence to support its claims. While the authors raise valid concerns about the field of social psychology, the absence of empirical data makes it difficult to assess the extent to which these issues manifest in practice.
Unclear definition of "precarity"
The authors extensively discuss the concept of "precarity" but do not clearly define it. This lack of clarity hinders understanding and may lead to different interpretations of the term.
Limited practical solutions
The authors focus heavily on criticizing hegemonic social psychology but offer limited concrete solutions for addressing the identified issues.
Rating Explanation
This paper raises important theoretical concerns about hegemonic social psychology, particularly its Western-centric focus and the resulting precarity for marginalized scholars. However, the lack of empirical evidence, the unclear definition of "precarity," and the limited practical solutions offered weaken the overall impact of the paper. Therefore, a rating of 3 is appropriate, reflecting an average study with several limitations.
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File Information
Original Title:
Precarious engagements and the politics of knowledge production: Listening to calls for reorienting hegemonic social psychology
File Name:
38437_AMER_Precarious_engagements_and_the_politics_of_knowledge_production.pdf
Uploaded:
July 14, 2025 at 10:58 AM
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