Social Reality ~ Philosophy of the Mind by John R. Searle

Social reality centres around the idea that social phenomena, such as money, institutions, and language, have a distinct ontological status. He argues that these social realities are not merely subjective or conventional, but they have objective existence and are rooted in collective intentionality. Searle proposes the concept of “collective intentionality“ to explain how social reality is constructed. He posits that social facts, such as the value of money or the rules of a game, exist because individuals collectively agree to treat them as real and act accordingly. These shared intentions and collective agreements give rise to social institutions and establish the framework for social interactions. Searle's views challenge the notion that social reality is purely a product of individual beliefs or subjective interpretations. He argues that there are objective features of social reality that exist independently of any individual's perspective. For instance, the value of money