The real meaning of constructivism

The doctrine of constructivism, which pays much attention to meaning, has itself a meaning within psychotherapy that has not received sufficient attention by the therapists who have adopted it. To remedy this problem, I first show how an antirealist epistemology (i.e., the knower makes rather than discovers reality) defines constructivism as well as the variant of it known as social constructionism. I then argue that the antirealism of constructivism and social constructionism is subverted when therapists use those doctrines to make clainis about the real workings of therapy; I explain how the word construct is behind much of the confusion. Finally, I give reasons for the rise of antirealism in therapy and maintain that the problem generating that trend can be solved not by an appeal to antirealism, but by a clearer understanding of the nature and use of theoretical systems in therapy.