Volume 19, Issue 2, 1993
Spenser A. McWilliams
Pages 5-11
Indeterminacy and the Construction of Personal Knowledge
Polanyi’s post-critical philosophy contains a tension between the personal commitment of the knower to the apprehension of knowledge and the understanding of the incomplete, or potentially mistaken, nature of current understanding. This essay addresses this tension, both theoretically and practically, by drawing parallels between Polanyi’s theory and George Kelly’s Personal Construct Psychology. The two approaches share many similar assumptions about the development of knowledge. Application of Kelly’s perspective may assist us in developing direct awareness of our active participation in creating knowledge, and helping us to articulate some of our underlying assumptions. Such activities facilitate movement toward more comprehensive understanding.