Bubbles and Bees: Historical Exploration of Psychosocial Thinking

This paper is written from the belief that there is considerable benefit from a
historical exploration of psychosocial thinking. It examines the work of Bernard
Mandeville (1670-1733), who wrote what became an infamous piece of social
theory in the early decades of the 18th century. There are two principal purposes to
this historical study. Firstly, it makes the case that psychosocial thought needs to be
understood as products of particular social and cultural circumstances and therefore
such reflection can help us put our own efforts to ‘think psychosocially’ in the early
21st century into context. Secondly, there are some important parallels between the
early 18th century and the contemporary period that can help us understand more
about the resurgence in interest in psychosocial thinking that emerged at the end of
the 20th century.

Citation:
Jones, D. (2011). 'Bubbles and Bees: Historical Exploration of Psychosocial Thinking'. Journal of Psycho-Social Studies, 4(1), pp.13-36..