Resumo

KESTLER, Thomas. Institutions as Imaginations: Micro-Foundations and Macro-Social Implications, Exemplified by the Partido dos Trabalhadores. Temas debates (En línea) [online]. 2018, n.36, pp.41-58. ISSN 1853-984X.

Institutions are mostly regarded as durable rules and structures that fulfil certain social or economic function. By contrast, this article outlines a conception of institutions as imaginations, which puts particular emphasis on the creative potential inherent in institutional development. Based on the work of Cornelius Castoriadis and John Searle, the centrality of imagination is expounded on the social as well as on the individual level. While Castoriadis provides an account of social imaginaries on the societal level, Searle's work on mind and language allows to identify the complementary structure of intentionality on the individual level. Thus, institutions are conceived as social imaginaries which are created by groups and individuals, shared and collectivized through texts and symbols and, in certain moments of institutional change, reappropriated and redefined by social actors. The Brazilian PT serves as an example to show that institutional change emerged from imagination. Before collective action and organization building took place in the late 1970s, collective identities and strategies for action had been preconfigured on the level of imagination. Moreover, the party's imaginative foundations remained relevant even decades later, which became evident in the crisis triggerd by the so-called Mensalão scandal.

Palavras-chave : Institutions; Institutional change; Imaginaries; Castoriadis; Workers' Party; Brazil.

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