ABSTRACT
Psychology as a science is a strange creature. Ever since its individuation from philosophy, physiology, and language studies, one can hear recurrent claims of exaggerated nature when psychologists talk about their discipline. Twentieth century brought with it changes in social life that were no less revolutionary than the ones resulting from the French Revolution at the end of the eighteenth century. The preference for empirical data—kind of "evidence based philosophy"—started to challenge purely philosophical speculations. "Crisis talk" creates a specific social position of the talk-maker. It is supposedly about an object, yet its role is set up by the context of talking about that object, rather than by the object itself. The talk-maker reflects upon the past, considers the desired direction of the future, and proceeds to evaluate the object. The "crisis" theme would emerge if there is a discrepancy between the image of the past and the desired image of the future.
