Situated psychology as triangulated. Understanding psychological processes as relations between subjectivity, intersubjectivity and objectivity.

Abstract

This article will attempt to present a framework for understanding situated psychology as involving a dynamic relationship between the subjective, intersubjective, and the objective. Explorations of this relationship within psychology have often highlighted one side at the expense of the others. Here it will be argued, theoretically, that the three sides constitute a dynamic and equal relation working as a background for any psychologically relevant situation, and it is only against this background it makes sense to highlight one of the sides. The argument will proceed in three steps. First, I will argue why this notion of triangulation is relevant and furthermore present some reservations on how to understand the triangulation when connected to the situated character of psychology. Indicating that triangulation has a situated character will be argued for using Michael Tomasello's description of children's cognitive development. The point is that there are rudiments very early on indicating psychological situations involving degrees of subjective, intersubjective, and objective elements which are part of human general pscyholog. This will, in the final step, pave the way for a theoretical sketch, with the help of the American philosopher Donald Davidson, of how the three elements are all at play when we try to understand the psychologically relevant in a given situation.