To and from Latin America: Remarks about the history of psychology in “peripheries”.

Abstract

This text presents a series of historiographical arguments on the possibility of producing a Latin American history of psychology that can also be relevant for other contexts. First, some proposed perspectives are oriented towards the study of knowledge circulation, in order to show the limitations of critical history of psychology thus far. Second, the distinction between "centers" and "peripheries" is examined to consider both the problematic assumptions of these notions and reconsider their positive aspects. Third, the difficulties to consider when discussing Latin America as a homogeneous space or adequate region to frame the histories of psychologies in the subcontinent are discussed. Finally, the framework of knowledge circulations is proposed as an alternative to avoid teleological, historiographical and political assumptions, to productively consider the communications between "peripheral" regions, and also to reconsider the kind of problems relevant for the region's history of psychology. Public Significance StatementThis article comments the limitations of a history of psychology focused on North America and Western Europe contexts and proposes a framework to revise and renew Latin American historical research in Psychology by fostering the exchanges among peripherical regions.