This book is an exploration of science in the making. It offers readers the opportunity to critically reflect on the process of development of Vygotsky's research program from the perspective of dialectics, focusing on the dramatic process of building and rebuilding cultural historical theory. Vygotsky's creative and dramatic journey is no less important than the concrete results of his research. An epistemological and historical investigation of the formulation of cultural historical theory sheds light on the process of knowledge production and reveals hidden dimensions of creativity in science.

Traces the development of cultural historical theory through Vygotsky's life Reconstructs Vygotsky's research program as a developing process not as a given, static set of ready-made concepts and ideas Offers an analysis of the main stages of development of Vygotsky's theory and highlights changes in different stages of its formulation

Autorentext

Manolis Dafermos is an associate professor in the epistemology of psychology at the Department of Psychology at the University of Crete. He holds a PhD in philosophy from the Lomonosov Moscow State University. His interests include cultural historical psychology, critical psychology, the history of psychology, and methodological and epistemological issues in the social sciences. He has authored and co-authored papers in these areas for Theory & Psychology; the European Journal of Psychotherapy and Counseling; Information, Communication & Society; Social and Personality Psychology Compass; Learning, Culture and Social Interaction; Encyclopedia of Critical Psychology; Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology; Cultural-Historical Psychology Journal; Dialogic Pedagogy: An International Online Journal; Forum Kritische Psychologie; Oxford Handbook of Exercise Psychology; and the Handbook of Critical Psychology among others. He is a member of the Editorial Board of the journals Cultural-Historical Psychology; Outlines: Critical Practice Studies; Human Arenas; Dialogic Pedagogy: An International Online Journal; and Teoría y Crítica de la Psicología. He has been a guest editor of two special issues of the journal Annual Review of Critical Psychology.

Inhalt
1 Introduction.- 2 The historical and scientific background to the genesis of cultural-historical theory.- 3 A preliminary sketch of Vygotsky's theory.- 4 Exploring the philosophical underpinnings of cultural historical theory.- 5 The prehistory of cultural-historical theory.- 6 The primary appearance of cultural historical psychology.- 7 The formation of cultural-historical theory.- 8 Creativity in science in the case of Vygotsky.