Mary Gergen facts for kids

Mary McCanney Gergen (born December 12, 1938; died September 22, 2020) was an American social psychologist. She studied how people understand themselves and the world around them, especially focusing on women's studies and social constructionism. She was known for her important ideas in these areas.

About Mary Gergen

Mary Gergen grew up in Minnesota. She first lived on the plains and later moved to St. Louis Park, a suburb near Minneapolis.

She went to the University of Minnesota. There, she earned a degree in English and Education. She also studied speech and theater. Later, she got another degree in Educational Psychology, which is about how people learn. Mary then earned her Ph.D. (a very high degree) in social psychology from Temple University.

Mary moved to Boston and worked at Harvard University. She helped with research there. In 1969, she married Kenneth J. Gergen and moved to Pennsylvania.

Starting in the 1970s, she was part of the American Psychological Association. She also helped start a group called The Society for the Psychology of Women.

In 1984, Mary Gergen began teaching at Penn State Brandywine. She taught psychology and women's studies. She was a very good teacher and won an award for it in 1996. When she retired in 2006, she was given the title of Emerita professor.

In the early 1990s, Mary helped create The Taos Institute. This group works to share ideas about social constructionism. These ideas are used in many fields, like therapy and education. She also helped create a newsletter called healthandage.com. This newsletter aims to change how people think about getting older, making it seem more positive.

Mary Gergen's Work

Mary Gergen's main ideas combine feminist theory with social constructionism. She wanted to find new ways to study gender. She looked beyond traditional methods.

New Ways to Study Gender

One of her first big efforts was in her book, Feminist Thought and the Structure of Knowledge (1988). Later, her book Toward a New Psychology of Gender (1997) showed new possibilities for the field. Her work on gender often used qualitative methods. This means she focused on understanding experiences and stories, especially about women's careers. She also became interested in how we tell stories about nature and our connection to the environment.

Performative Psychology

Mary Gergen also helped create a field called performative psychology. This involves using dramatic presentations to share research and ideas. She was a pioneer in this area. Her first solo performance was in Denmark in 1989. In her writing, she also tried new ways to express ideas. She wanted to show many different viewpoints and challenge old ways of thinking. Her book, Reconstructing Psychology: Narrative, Gender and Performance (2001), is a great example of this.

See also

In Spanish: Mary Gergen para niños