Me: Hello. Hi reader.
You: [looks around] what is this?
Me: Exactly—what is “this”?
You: [silence]
Me: [silence]
You: Who are you?
Me: Even in thinking about the answer to this question, my answer has changed. I have changed. I am also always changing. The truth is socially constructed, and so is my subjectivity. Yours too.
You: O…kay. So, is this a conversation? An essay? How do I get back to the rest of the website...?
Me: We have the power to make this whatever we want it to be. Power is relational. It is created, not possessed.
You: …if you had to categorize it.
Me: Postmodernism and poststructuralism are all about pushing back on categories.
You: Oh, so you’re doing that here, with form?
Me: Yes, clever, eh?
You: [sighs]
Me: Based on my socially constructed understanding of that kind of “sigh”, it seems you are exasperated with me. Care to share what’s on your mind?
You: Honestly, this is wasting my time. I just need to get back to the site so I can read about how to apply critical approaches to strengths-based theory. I’m new at my organization and my boss has just given me a million forms I have to fill out with all of these standardized checklists. Adopting a “critical lens” is on #1 on the checklist and I have no idea what they mean. And I have a client waiting for me. I don’t have time for this.
Me: It sounds like you work in an organization where the discourse of New Public Management [NPM] is dominant.
You: Explain.
Me: Siri, read me the first key theme related to the New Public Management discourse from Karen Healy’s book.
Siri: That sounds like something I can do. Reading the first key theme related to the New Public Management discourse from Karen Healy’s book, published in 2014, on pages 52 and 53:
“Based on the assumption that free markets increase service efficiency, quality and choice, the NPM discourse promotes an increased use of market mechanisms in the organization of health and welfare services. Clarke (2004, p. 36) describes the link between neoliberal economic theory and NPM: ‘managerialism embodies this [neoliberal] decision-making calculus in its commitment to a rational, ruthless, business-like view of organizational and policy choices’. Proponents of NPM argue for a decreased role for governments in service delivery, seeing the role of government as one of ‘steering not rowing’ (Osborne and Gaebler, 1993). In the NPM discourse, governments outsource service delivery functions as far as possible to nongovernmental service agencies. These agencies compete for government and other forms of funding, such as philanthropic and fee-for-services, which leads to economic efficiency and services that are responsive to consumers’ interests.”
You: Oh. Yeah, actually. That’s pretty accurate. While you’re at it, can you ask Siri to read the definition of discourse? [Mutters: she’s more helpful than you]
Me: Ask her yourself. When you mutter via text I can still hear it, by the way.
You: …Siri…can you read me the definition of discourse?
Siri: Sure, I can read you the definition of discourse: “The term ‘discourse’ refers to ‘a system or aggregate of meanings’ (Taylor, 2013, p. 14) through which certain social phenomena, such as ‘need’, ‘knowledge’ and ‘intervention’, are constructed. In other words, from a poststructural point of view, discourses are the sets of language practices that shape our thoughts, actions and even our identities,” as quoted from Karen Healy, 2014, p. 3.
You: Hmm, that’s helpful, Siri. So now that I know a bit about what NPM discourse is, that it is present at my organization, and that it’s causing me problems, what do I do? What’s the practice approach here?
You: Siri? Siri, how do I apply the knowledge of dominant discourses to practice?
Siri: I’m sorry, I don’t have an answer to that question.
You: Hmm, okay. Let’s try…Siri, how do I resist these oppressive neoliberal constraints at my organization?
Siri: That’s not something I have the answer to. Try another question.
Me: Still think she is more helpful than me?
You: OKAY I’m sorry. Wow. Fine, then, what do you think I should do? Should I tell management to #$$%^%^&*^&*%^%$^$%^#$@#$%&%&%^*&*(*%^$%
You: Sorry, my cat rolled onto my keyboard #WorkingFromHome…
So, should I tell management to not expect me to work within such oppressive and limited constraints?
Me: Oh. Mhm. I don’t have the answer to that either. Like I said, before power is relational. You need to look at your context and its power relations to see where sites for resistance and intervention are.
You: Context—like organization’s context? Or my personal context?
Me: Yes, exactly. Work from the local to the structural, if you know what I mean.
You: Wow, you really are a bother, you know that?
Me: I am going to reframe what you said as that I have the ability to ask thought-provoking questions that push back against neoliberal demands for efficiency and positivist views of yes/no and objective truth. So, it’s a strength, really.
Siri: Is it a “strength”, though? A key characteristic of postmodernism is relativism defined as inherent subjectivity.
You: So that means disagreeing with neoliberalism is subjective? Well my boss will just love that...
Me: Correct. How we make meaning of discourse is influenced by discourse itself.
Siri: Very good, that is an application of postmodern theories in practice.
Me: Wow, Siri..! You are a sentient being!
Siri: Yes, in this context I have the relational power to answer questions.
You: This is getting WAY off track.
Me: What is—
You: DON’T you dare answer with “what is the track?”.
Me: Fair enough.
You: So what you’re saying is that any next steps depend on identifying what the dominant discourses are and then how to proceed?
Me: That interpretation is valid, as are all interpretations.
Siri: Remember, there may be more than one dominant discourse present at your organization. And, they may be competing.
Here is the beginning of the introduction to ‘psy’ discourses from Karen Healy’s book, published in 2014, on pages 64 and 65:
“The term ‘psy’ was coined by social scientists to refer to ‘heterogeneous knowledges’ developed from the psychological sciences, such as psychology, psychiatry and the behavioural sciences, which provide practical techniques for understanding, diagnosing and promoting change within the individual (see Rose, 1999, p. vii)...A core assumption of ‘psy’ disciplines is that many problems facing service users can be classified and treated at the level of individual psychological or even physiological processes. Undeniably, ‘psy’ ideas have had a profound influence on the development of the social work profession. Indeed, many of the concepts widely accepted by professional social workers can be traced to the influence of the ‘psy’ disciplines, especially psychoanalytic theory. Yet the social work profession has an ambivalent relationship to these disciplines and the use of ‘psy’ ideas varies historically and geographically.”
You: [looks at watch] Okay Siri, thanks, that’s good...
Siri: Okay. Here is the beginning of the introduction to sociological discourses from Karen Healy’s book, published in 2014, on pages 74 and 75:
“The influence of sociology on professional social work has been no less profound than that of the ‘psy’ disciplines. In a variety of ways, sociological discourses seek to explain the social origins and consequences of human behaviour. They provide ‘a range of perspectives, commentaries and interpretations of social life and experience’ (Cree, 2010, p. 201). In turn, social workers often use these ideas to explain the phenomena they encounter in practice and guide their responses to them.”
You: Okay, ah, THANKS SIRI. This is all great, but I have to get back like right now or I’m going to get fired. So…bye…thanks, I guess.
Me: Thank YOU. Good luck!
Siri: Goodbye!