A Break and Two Crisis: Mazes of Vygotsky’s Pedology and Psychology

Abstract: This historical and theoretical article undertakes a bibliographic review of materials in Brazilian Portuguese, English, and Russian, focusing on the relation between the First Soviet Five-Year Plan (1929-1932), also known as the Stalinist Great Break, with Vygotsky’s reflections on the ‘crisis in psychology,’ and the (lesser known) ‘crisis in pedology,’ in the context of the author’s network of initiatives. The conclusions discuss the effects of Stalinist promotion of practical disciplines (e.g., pedology) in the field of psychology and applied sciences. Our analysis shows that, given the reduced importance of psychology in the Great Break, one cannot clearly determine whether pedology or psychology was the more general science for Vygotsky. He hesitantly attempted to distance himself from the assumptions of his psychology while transposing them to pedology. Among other changes in his ontoepistemological ideas in the text “The historical significance of the crisis in psychology”, Vygotsky considers the possibility of pedology and psychology sharing a scientific object provided they develop different perspectives on it. There are, however, signs of overlap between the two sciences. Our analysis results clarify the maze of statements by the author that have both ontoepistemological potential for psychology and related sciences and the potential to confuse contemporary readers, mediating a dialectical materialist reading of Vygotsky in his historical genesis that seeks to grasp the totality of his work in its diverse and complex network of initiatives.