Social Work, Power and Performativity

Powell, Jason orcid iconORCID: 0000-0002-9828-0877 (2012) Social Work, Power and Performativity. China Journal of Social Work, 5 (1). pp. 67-79. ISSN 1752-5098

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17525098.2012.656364

Abstract

In recent years, there have been a number of epistemological developments in social work. Further, there have been a number of theoretical approaches that have attempted to ground the concept of ‘power’ to understand organizational practice such as Marxist thought. At the same time, the insights of French social theorist Michel Foucault have been captivating to the disciplinary development of social work in illuminating power relations and subject positioning between helping professions and clients. To move beyond this, and in order to theoretically interrogate the relationship between social theory and professional power, this article draws from the neo Foucauldian-Feminist philosopher Judith Butler – especially regarding Butler's (1990, 1993 and 1998) powerful work on ‘performativity’. This article attempts to generate new theoretical insights to understanding contemporary social work through the conceptual tools of Butler.


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