Review of Narrative Psychology through of the Cognitive Paradigm

Abstract

The focus on language—nearly a century ago—pushed the humanities toward what became known as the Narrative Turn. This shift created a need within these disciplines, including psychology, to engage with narrative beyond its literary domain. Psychology thus moved toward this specialization due to its importance and as a way to mitigate the dominance of the cognitive paradigm, which had excluded crucial topics such as self and identity.

Despite the growing significance of narrative psychology in universities, research centers, and therapeutic clinics worldwide, our Arab and local institutions have distanced themselves from this field, even though its theoretical and practical importance has been firmly established. Accordingly, this study aims to provide a critical review of narrative psychology in the Arab context, to alert specialists, researchers, and practitioners in the psychological field to its importance, and to identify the challenges hindering its growth and flourishing in the Arab world. It also raises the question of whether the Western cognitive paradigm can be applied to the Arab reality within this specialization (narrative psychology).

The study relied on analyzing a number of books that addressed narrative psychology, most notably two works: Narrative Psychology by Julia Vassilieva, and Critical, Narrative, and Discursive Psychology: Selected Basic Texts by Parker and colleagues. In addition, several other books were consulted, which, although not directly dedicated to the subject, included chapters relevant to the study