SUBJECT: SOCIAL WORK

PROGRAM NAME: MASTER OF SOCIAL WORK (QUALIFYING)

UNIT NAME: THEORIES OF DIFFERENCE ANDDIVERSITY

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INTRODUCTION TO THIS UNIT

This unit will introduce students at post-graduate level to contemporary theories/late 20th century and early 21st centurytheories of perceived differences among people and their communities of belonging. The unit will particularly examine feminism, post-structuralism, new materialism, queer theory and critical realism. It will also address specific concepts such as inequality, human rights, freedom and marginalisation. It will apply these theories and concepts to investigations of contemporary social issues and debates related to race, disability, ethnicity, sexuality, gender and other categories of individual identity and collective belonging. The unit will provide a strong theoretical base to the work that students have undertaken in the unit Theories for Critical Practice, and inform the work to be undertaken in the other units in this specialisation.

These questions invite you to think more about:

• who or what is ‘normal’, and who or what is ‘different’;
• what we take for granted, or assume to be true;
• what makes someone, or some communities, appear to be different;
• how differences are understood as natural or cultural, biological or social, fixed or open;
• what material differences these perceived (or assumed) differences make in the lives of those who are understood to be different;
• how we might recognise and respond ethically to multiple differences;
• how we might take opportunities for making a difference in our personal and professional lives; and
• how we might understand differences as shaped by relations of power and associated questions of equity, equality, freedom, rights, marginalisation, privilege, and opportunity.

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UNIT LEARNING OUTCOMES

This unit aims to develop scholarly understanding of the ways in which issues of difference and diversity are framed within a variety of theories. More importantly, it is concerned with the implications of these different theoretical understandings for making sense of everyday lives, issues and events, and for shaping personal, and professional action. Personal reflections on experiences of difference and diversity inform critical engagement with contemporary social issues, and the development of a critique of the norms through which differences are understood. After the completion of this unit students will be able to:

• Differentiate and analyse contemporary theories of difference and diversity.

• Argue a personal position of difference and diversity.

• Critically appraise concepts of inequality, human rights, freedom, marginalisation.

• Demonstrate the application of theories in relation to contemporary social issues of difference and diversity.

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ADDITIONAL UNIT DETAILS

Why should I think about questions of difference and diversity?

Each of us is engaged in a community of others in our personal and professional lives. Some people in this community are like us and some are less so. Maybe we can choose who we associate with in our personal lives, but this is not always the case in our professional lives. If we find ourselves dealing with people who are different from us, how do we respect their difference? Understand their point of view? Show respect? Respond to their needs? Not reduce them to stereotypes? These, and other questions, remind us that there are political, social and ethical dimensions to the ways in which we recognise and respond to those who we might think are not like us. So, what does difference mean? How do perceptions of others’ difference effect how we respond to them? How can we make a difference in the lives of those people with whom we share a personal or professional responsibility to respect and support their differences?

How can I begin to think differently about difference?

In addition to the opportunities for reflection that arise from the focus of, and discussions in, each of the workshops, you may also find it useful to reflect on questions of difference through the concepts of equality, rights, freedom and marginalisation. Below are some questions to guide your reflection on these concepts as they relate to the materials found on vUWS or presented in class, and as they relate to your personal experience or professional practice. These questions are simply a guide or starting point for thinking critically about difference.

EQUALITY

1. How are different knowledges about different, persons, communities, issues or interests represented, and with what possible effects?
2. How are truths about different individuals or social groups represented, and with what implications?
3. What hierarchies or relations and practices of power shape the experiences of individuals or communities?

RIGHTS

1. What rights, and whose rights, are most represented? How and why do you think this is the case?
2. What rights, and whose rights, are least represented, or not represented at all? How and why do you think this is the case?
3. Which rights, or whose rights, are violated? How and why do you think this is the case?

FREEDOM

1. What opportunities or constraints are operating for individuals or groups; how are they operating and for whom?
2. Who gets most access to these opportunities and who gets least? How does this impact autonomy?
3. To what extent do these opportunities and constraints reflect the reality of your experience or world-view?

MARGINALISATION

1. Who or what is present or absent, visible or invisible? Why might this be the case?
2. What or whose interests are being served and what or whose interests are missing? Why might this be the case?
3. What or whose interests are presented in a negative light (diminished, dismissed, ridiculed or pathologised)? Why might this be the case?

It is anticipated that ongoing literature searches, reading, discussion and preparation for assessments will be informed by the workshop presentations, activities and reading lists, and supplemented by your own independent study based on your particular area/topic of interest. Time will be made available in each of the workshops for you to discuss and develop your interests.

How can I think more systematically about theories of difference and diversity?

The table below maps some of the key theories, themes, foci, concepts and institutions we will consider when engaging with questions of difference and diversity. This is a starting point for developing a repertoire of intellectual resources: please add to the lists as you hear, read and think of things that are relevant to your specific professional, scholarly or personal interests.

THEORIES	SOCIAL DIFFERENCES	CONCEPTS	INSTITUTIONS
Poststructural Feminism	Gender	Power	Education
Liberal Feminism	Sex	Language	Law
Radical Feminism	Sexuality	Identity	Medicine
Intersectionality	Race	Subjectivity	Nursing
Queer Theory	Ethnicity	Knowledge	Social Work
New Materialism	Aboriginality	Power	Psy-Disciplines (e.g., Psychology, Psychiatry)
	Religion	Truth	Art Therapy
	Class	Culture	Policing
	Disability	Society	Government
	Age	Individuality	Arts
		Privilege	Media
		Oppression	Technology
		Subjectification	Business
		Agency	Health
		Equality	Urban Planning
		Rights
		Freedom
		Autonomy
		Choice
		Marginalisation
		Discrimination
		Patriarchy
		Sexism
		Misogyny
		Normativity
		Heteronormativity
		Gender Fluidity
		Queer
		Homophobia
		Transphobia
		Racism
		Materiality

TASK

IMPORTANT NOTE

The three following assessments in this unit are linked to each other (i.e. assessment 2’s paper develops key issues from assessment 1, and assessment 3 is an analytical essay that builds on the work undertaken in assessments 1 and 2). Hence their ideas must be connected.

ITEM	ASSESSMENT TYPE	DUE DATE	LENGTH
ASSESSMENT 1	REFLECTION ON SOCIAL DIFFERENCE	14 APRIL 2022	500 WORDS
ASSESSMENT 2	PROPOSAL – SCOPING PAPER FOR ANALYTICAL ESSAY	5 MAY 2022	1000 WORDS
ASSESSMENT 3	ANALYTICAL ESSAY	13 JUNE 2022	2000 WORDS

IN THIS ORDER

WE WILL BE WORKING ON

ASSESSMENT 1

ASSESSMENT 1

TOPIC: REFLECTIONS ON EXPERIENCES OF SOCIAL DIFFERENCE AND DIVERSITY

LENGTH: 300 + 500 WORDS

REFERENCES: 1 REFERENCE IN THE “BIOGRAPHY” + 2 REFERENCES IN THE “CRITICAL REFKLECTION”

NOTE: ATLEAST 1 REFERENCE IN THE CRITICAL REFLECTION MUST BE ONLY FROM THE LIST OF REFERENCES UNDER THE HEADER “READINGS” IN THIS DOCUMENT. THE OTHER 2 CAN EITHER BE FROM THE LIST OR ANY ACADEMIC, BUT SOCIAL WORK RELATED REFERENCES.

REFERENCE STYLE: HARVARD REFERENCING STYLE

OVERVIEW

This assessment has two parts. It requires you to:

(1) write a short biographical account of your emerging personal awareness of difference and diversity, and

(2) write a critical reflection on this account. Details about the two sections are below.

BIOGRAPHY(up to 300words)

Discuss a personal experience of difference and diversity. Your biography, should be no more than one A4 page in length. Your biography should describe a moment or series of thematically related moments in your life where you became aware that you or someone else were different from others based on an aspect of identity (e.g., sex, gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, Aboriginality, class, disability, faith, age, etc.).

REFLECTION (500 words)

Your biography will form the basis for a critical reflection. Your critical reflection should clearly identify the aspect of identity you have chosen to focus on and discuss how discrimination, marginalisation, privilege, opportunity, equality, equity, or freedom (choose one) feature in your biography. Your discussion should draw connections to the ways in which familial, social, cultural, political, religious, or historical practices (choose one or two) have shaped the experience of difference and diversity you described in your biography.

Note: You are required to submit both the biography and the reflection, but only the 500-word reflection will be assessed.

MY BIOGRAPHY

I am an international student from India, studying onshore in Australia. This is a Facebook post of my sisters friend (who is gay) back in India. I woke up one morning scrolling through Facebook when I came across this post, and I would like to recount and write about this moment in my paper. Please describe this moment in my biography and write a Critical Reflection based on the biography.

EXEMPLER

The exemplar biography and reflectiondemonstrates one approach to writing this assessment (yours may be about a similar or different topic, and may be written in a similar or different style).

The text below is an example biography for Assessment 1. You’ll note this biography recounts a specific moment from the author’s past where he noticed an aspect of perceived difference and diversity (i.e., a short interaction between the author and his friend about sexuality and gender). Your biography should recount a moment; it can be about your experience or something you observed about someone else’s experiences; and it can focus on any aspect of difference and diversity (e.g., sex, gender, sexuality, dis/ability, Aboriginality, age, class, ethnicity, faith, etc.). Your biography can be up to 300 words in length. Remember that you are required to submit your biography with your reflection; however, your biography will not be assessed.

Biography—Waiting in Line for School Photos

I recall being in primary school, an eight-year-old boy, waiting in line with my peers to have my picture taken for the school photos. A tall, thin, blonde man working for the photography company hired by the school stood tall at the front of the line. His job was to make us look presentable for our photos. He would comb messy hair, flatten crinkled shirts, make jokes, and point to his grin, gesturing for us to smile. He was kind, cheerful, and delightfully flamboyant.

I was next in line.

Leaning in close to my friend, I whispered, “I don’t want this homo touching me.”

“They could hire a hot chick for once,” my friend replied, nodding in agreement. We giggled quietly to ourselves.

Stepping forward, the man gently swept the hair out of my face with a comb, made a joke, and pointed to his cheek-to-cheek grin, gesturing for me to smile.

Giving my friend a knowing look, I cringed and recoiled.

The text below is an example of a critical reflection (based on the biography, ‘Waiting in line for school photos’). It recounts the social practices of a specific community that the author was complicit in (a friendship group within a primary school context), which formed his understanding of gender and sexuality and contributed to a form of marginalisation. Your reflection should focus on the ways in which familial, cultural, political, religious, social, or historical practices (choose one or two) shaped the experience of difference you have outlined in your biography. You will reflect on the ways in which these practices produced discrimination, marginalisation, privilege, opportunity, equality, equity, or freedom (choose one). Your reflection will be 500 words in length (+/-10%).

Critical Reflection

My biography recounts an interaction I had with my friend in primary school where we made fun of a blonde man hired by the school because we thought he was gay. It was an instance of homophobia, to be sure. But more specifically, my friend and I learned to perform a particular type of masculinity. It was a masculinity that rejected both the possibility that we might be gay (we must bestraight) and acceptability of others’ homosexuality (others should not be gay). Our interaction was broadly about the necessity of heterosexuality, and specifically about affirming our heterosexuality through marginalising someone else on the basis of perceived difference. I am interested in the formative work that this investment in heterosexuality did in primary school.

In school, it was important to me that I “fit in” with the school culture, which required others to believe I was heterosexual. The pressure for students to conform to gender norms in school cultures is high. Indeed, friendships form and are maintained through students’ social practices finding “acceptable ways of doing boy” and “girl” (Renold, 2005, p. 89). At my school, everyone was assumed to be heterosexual: being gay or lesbian was not spoken about—but even when it was, it was derogatory. If I did not provide reassurance that I was heterosexual, I would risk becoming “the blonde man”, risk being exposed, rejected, abused, and marginalised by others.

My friend and I were reproducing the social practices of our school context. We had learned the word “homo”: we thought it meant “gay”; we thought “gay” meant “same-sex attraction”; and we thought “same-sex attraction” between men meant being “incorrectly man”. That was the extent of our understanding, and the blonde man was an easy target to reassure each other of our mutual, masculine “rightness”. These social practices co-constituted my masculinity and heterosexuality, doing work to secure my place in the social hierarchy of the school. My fear was that if I did not visibilise my rejection of the blonde man – through a comment, through a physical cringe and recoil – people would suspect me of condoning his difference, of not complying with the social norms that boys are masculine and desiring of girls. I refused to be marginalised.

Schools are social arenas where children learn about heterosexuality and how to use it to secure status (Ingraham, 2005). My friend and I wielded heterosexuality to secure the safety and capital it offered. Indeed, when my friend complained that a “hot chick” should have been hired, it implied that he (or we) would desire her. It was a comment again intended to embrace our heterosexuality, but it also suggests that notions of sexuality, gender, and desire were critical social practices in the maintenance of our friendship group (Renold, 2005). Our mutual disregard for this man, and interest in (objectification of) a fictitious woman, was a form of marginalisation functioning to remind us that we belonged to this friendship group and this community, so he must not.

Years later, I would come out as gay. My prior investment in heterosexuality at the expense of others encouraged me to reflect on how these gendered norms are formed. But more importantly, I became interested in learning how to ethically respond to these social practices, rather than reproduce them.

Reference list

Ingraham, C. (2005). Introduction: Thinking straight. In C. Ingraham (Ed.), Thinking straight: The power, the promise, and the paradox of heterosexuality. New York: Routledge.

Renold, E. (2005). Girls, boys, and junior sexualities: Exploring childrens gender and sexual relations in the primary school. London: Routledge.

MARKING CRITERIA

READINGS

PRESCRIBED TEXTBOOK

Butler, J. (2004) Undoing Gender: Chapter 9; The end of sexual difference? Routledge: NY (pp174–203)

Weedon, C. (1997) Feminist Practice and Poststructuralist Theory: Chapter 2; Principles of poststructuralism. NY: Routledge

Davies, B. (1989). Frogs and Snails and Feminist Tales: Pre-school children and gender: Chapter 1; Becoming male or female. North Sydney: Allen Unwin (pp. 1 -20)

Jagose, A. (1996). Queer theory: An introduction. Chapter 5; Lesbian feminism. New York: New York University Press. (pp. 44-57)

Berlant, L., & Warner, M. (1995). What Does Queer Theory Teach Us about X? Publications of the Modern Language Association of America, 110(3), 343–349

Rich, A. (1980) Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existence. Signs, 5(4) 631 – 660

Jagose, A. (1996). Queer Theory: An Introduction: Chapter 7; Queer. New York University Press: New York. (pp.72-96)

Halperin, D. M. (2003). The normalization of queer theory. Journal of Homosexuality, 45(2), 339-343

Crenshaw, K. (1989) Demarginalizing the intersection of race and sex: A black feminist critique of antidiscrimination doctrine, feminist theory, and antiracist politics (pp. 139−167). : University of Chicago Legal Forum

Crenshaw, K. & Harris, L. (2009) A Primer on Intersectionality Booklet. African American Policy Forum, Vassar College. Poughkeepsie, NY: Columbia Law School http://aapf.org/tool_to_speak_out/intersectionality-primer

Davis, Kathy (2008). Intersectionality as buzzword: A sociology of science perspective on what makes a Feminist Theory successful. Feminist Studies, 9(67), 67−85

Oleksy. E. (2011) Intersectionality at the cross-roads. Women’s Studies International Forum, 34, 263-270

Monaghan, O. (2015). Dual imperatives: Decolonising the queer and queering the decolonial. In D. Hodge (Eds.) Colouring the rainbow: Blak queer and trans perspectives. Mile End: Wakefield Press. (pp. 195-207)

Barad, K. (2003) Posthumanist Performativity: Toward an Understanding of How Matter Comes to Matter. Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society 28(3)

Coole, D. (2013) Agentic capacities and capacious historical materialism: thinking with new materialisms in the political sciences. Millennium – Journal of International Studies 41 (3), pp. 451–469

Grosz, E. (2010) Feminism, Materialism, and Freedom. In D. Coole and S. Frost (Eds.) New Materialisms: Ontology, Agency, and Politics. Duke University Press (pp139–157). Significant Differences: Interview with Elizabeth Grosz. www.interstitialjournal.com March: 2013  5