中文语境下的心理和心理学

Mind and Psychology in the Chinese Context

心 或心理等词语在汉语中有相当长的历史，对这些词语的理解反映了中国人关于心理的认识。中文的心往往不是指一种身体器官而是指人的思想、意念、情感、性情等，故心理学这三个汉字有极大的包容性。任何学科都摆脱不了社会文化的作用，中国心理学亦曾受到意识形态、科学主义和大众常识等方面的影响。近年中国学者对心理学自身的问题进行了反思。从某种意义上说，中国人对心理和心理学的理解或许有助于心理学的整合，并与其他国家的心理学一道发展出真正的人类心理学。

The Chinese viewed psychology as an alien concept. However， words such as xin and xinli have been used for long in the history of the Chinese language， and the Chinese people’s understanding of these words has reflected their level of knowledge on aspects of the mind. After Western psychology was introduced to China， the term psychology in the Chinese language experienced a process of choice， reflecting the modern Chinese scholars’ consideration of mind and psychology. The Chinese perspectives on mind and psychology represent the dialectical relation that the mind is a function of the brain. However， psychology should not be reduced to physiology， as it is not a discipline of brain science.Hence， according to the Chinese view， psychology is a discipline that has the characteristics of natural science and social science. In a parallel evolution， the implication of the Chinese word xin changed from signifying an internal organ (the heart) to representing thoughts， ideas， affections， dispositions， and morals of people. In this sense， the term xinlixue (psychology) in Chinese was more encompassing and conformed to the current definition of psychology as endorsed in international academic circles.A discipline cannot be immune to the influence of the society and culture from which it originates， and Chinese psychology is no exception in this regard. It has for long been subject to the impact of ideology， scientism， common sense， and folk psychology. In recent years， Chinese scholars have reflected on the problems surrounding the discipline of psychology， which has evoked a global response from an emerging of second psychology， such as cultural psychology. The Chinese people’s understanding of mind and psychology might facilitate the integration of various disciplines of psychology， which in turn might develop a common body of psychology.