4. Confluences between Social Representations Theory and the Psychology of Active Minorities

This chapter presents the state of studies, research and publications on social representations in Brazil, and especially in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. In order to do this, three objectives are pursued: presenting the research groups and the production areas in social representations in the country; discussing the work that has been taking place in the south of Brazil, especially in social representations, active minorities and politics; and delineating the perspectives and challenges of research into social representations in the country. Qualitative methodology was used, through an exploratory bibliographical, descriptive and interpretative study. First the output of research groups registered in the Directory of Research Groups and Lattes Platform of the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) is presented in order to highlight some descriptive statistics and map the scenario of the groups and production areas in the country. Subsequently, an analysis is made of the relationship between Social Representations Theory and the Psychology of Active Minorities, two fundamental theoretical proposals in Moscovici’s work (a relationship which is still little explored in Brazil) in order to deepen the epistemological discussion about social representations and their importance in sociological social psychology. Finally, the commitments that are made, the possible horizons, and the challenges that must be faced by social representations researchers in Brazil are discussed.