Traditionally, language has been used as a means of discovering psychological realities. The present book takes a discourse analytical approach to mental representations and focuses on the language of 'thought' as its very topic of inquiry. Special attention is paid to the role of discursive structures and processes in creating mental states and to the social purposes and consequences of such 'mental' texts and talk. Empirical studies of interpurposes and consequences of such 'mental' text and talk. Empirical studies of interviews with expatriate Chinese academics about the Dutch and of Dutch travel literature on China show that perceptions, attitudes, attributions, ideologies, etc. are integrated components of social interaction which serve to project particular cultural identities.
