Discursive Psychology

Sally Wiggins is a senior lecturer in psychology at the Department of Behavioural Sciences and Learning, Linkoeping University, Sweden. She has written a methods textbook (Discursive Psychology; Sage Publications, 2017), and various book chapters detailing the theory and methods that underpin discursive psychology. She has also coedited two books (Critical Bodies and Discursive Research in Practice). Her research has focused primarily on the social interactional practices around eating, particularly during family mealtimes. This work has begun to examine the ways in which appetite, food preferences, and gustatory pleasure/disgust are enacted and consequential for children and parents in everyday mealtime situations. Her research topics of interests also include student interaction within problem-based learning tutorial groups, examining learning practices in situ and the construction of knowledge and identity in talk.

PART ONE: Theory Chapter 1: Discursive Psychology Chapter 2: DP and other forms of Discourse Analysis PART TWO: Methods Chapter 3: Developing a research question Chapter 4: Data collection and management Chapter 5: Transcribing and coding data Chapter 6: Analysing data using DP Chapter 7: Discursive devices Chapter 8: Writing up and presenting DP analyses PART THREE: Applications Chapter 9: DP topics, case-studies and project ideas Chapter 10: Applications and future developments

This is a timely and exciting contribution to Discourse Analysis work in Psychology. Authoratitive, accessible and working with new developments in discursive psychological research, it is a useful read for new and established scholars alike. -- Sarah Riley Wiggins has produced a text which is at the same time authoritative and readable; combining smart scholarship with engaging writing. It offers a comprehensive account of the development, current status and future of discursive psychology which is up to date and a must read for anyone wanting to know about this important disciplinary area. Wiggins' depth of understanding shines through as she elegantly captures the complexities of the field. -- Jonathan Potter Discursive psychologists take a strong line on psychological issues, insisting that attitudes, emotions, identities and the like be analysed as public, inspectable features of social interaction. Wiggins' book is an inviting, and utterly comprehensive, guide to discursive psychology. A delightful read for students and academics seeking to find what lies beyond cognitivism. -- Jakob Cromdal This book is a real 'game-changer', and one that those of us who teach discursive psychology have needed for years. Students now have an accessible and comprehensive guide to this intellectually vibrant approach, which includes lots of clear examples, useful practical advice and ideas for students doing their own projects. Wiggins succeeds in her aim of demystifying discursive psychology and challenging those who would argue that it is too complicated for undergraduate students. This is a fine book that deserves to be used widely in undergraduate and postgraduate teaching in psychology and beyond. -- Stephen Gibson This book provides "one-stop shopping" with respect to helping readers develop familiarity with DP, and the types and functions of DP devices, through actual practice. -- Clare Macmartin Easily the most comprehensive book, to date, that situates and differentiates a Discursive Psychological approach with other discourse analytic approaches, and follows up with a 'how-to' scaffolding of analytic examples that both novices and seasoned veterans will find eminently readable, crisp, and helpful. -- Neill Korobov This book has achieved something very unique. It provides a compelling argument for the specific commitments and benefits of a Discursive Psychology (DP) approach to analysing talk and text but does so in a way that is not at all exclusionary or imperialist with regards to its treatment of other forms of discourse analytic work. Indeed, readers of this book (be they the student novice or the more experienced analyst) will emerge with not only with a greater appreciation of DP, but also with a clearer understanding of the structure of the broader terrain of discourse analysis and DP's particular place within it. Moreover, this feat is pulled off with an engaging style that will make this book approachable to all. I will certainly be using this book in both my undergraduate and postgraduate teaching. -- Tim Kurz