Reading Foucault for Social Work

Adrienne S. Chambon is associate professor in the Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto. Allan Irving is professor at the Center for Social Work Education at Widener University and an associate professor at the Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto. The late Laura Epstein was professor emerita, School of Social Service Administration, University of Chicago.

• 1 Social Work in Perspective 1 The Culture of Social Work, by Laura Epstein 2Waiting for Foucault: Social Work and the Multitudinous Truth(s) of Life, by Allan Irving 3Foucault's Approach: Making the Familiar Visible, by Adrienne S. Chambon 4Social Work, Social Control, and Normalization: Roundtable Discussion with Michel Foucault 2 Social Work Practices and Knowledges Reconsidered 5Reconfiguring Child Welfare Practices: Risk Advanced Liberalism, and the Government of Freedom, by Nigel Parton 6Contested Territory: Sexualities and Social Work, by Carol-Anne O'Brien 7Foucault and Therapy: The Disciplining of Grief, by Catherine E. Foote and Arthur W. Frank 8Resistance and Old Age: The Subject Behind the American Seniors'Movement, by Frank T. Y. Wang 9Surveillance and Government of the Welfare Recipient, by Ken Moffatt 10Postmodernity, Ethnography, and Foucault, by John Devine 11 Conclusion:Issues to Look Forward to, by Adrienne S. Chambon and Allan Irving

"This is an excellent book for social workers interested in an introduction to the work of Foucault and its implications for social workers." -- Edward J. Gumz, School of Social Work, Loyola University of Chicago, Families In Society "In an essay on 'Foucault and Therapy: The Disciplining of Grief,' Catherine Foote and Arthur Frank offer an excellent review of Foucault's critique of therapy. Their point is not 'to render therapy impossible but to extend therapists' sense of how problematic their work is.' (p. 157) Given the current tendency to medicalize the most basic human emotions, to diagnose instead of understanding, to label instead of analyzing, this essay should be 'must' reading for therapists...In summary, the book offers a multitude of possibilities for explorations and critique not only of what we do but of the very fiber of our age. Social work readers will find it truly educative and those who question our 'rational' practices will find it most rewarding." -- Emilia E. Martinez-Brawley, Arizona State University, Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare "With the help of Chambon et al. I have discovered that his [Foucault's] ideas can not only help us be more aware of potential misuses of clinical work but can also help in understanding the clients we see in practice." -- Carolyn Saari, Editor, Clinical Social Work Journal