Another Snapshot of Social Work in China: Capturing Multiple Positioning and Intersecting Discourses in Rapid Movement

Abstract

The magnitude and speed of social work's development in mainland China is unprecedented in human history. This inevitably gives rise to multiple perspectives on its nature and future development, particularly as part of the international social work discourse. Some of these perspectives are based on unexamined assumptions about China. In the present paper, we examine three of these assumptions, namely the homogeneity of Chinese culture, the global–indigenous dichotomy, and social work as an academic discipline and practice profession. We argue that in order to understand the development of social work in China we need to locate our discussion at the discursive intersection among different competitive articulations in both local and international arenas. Based on this critical examination, a brief discussion on the future development of social work in mainland China is offered.

Keywords:

• China
• Discourse
• Professionalisation
• Social Work

Notes

¹In the present paper, notions such as “the West”, “Western countries”, and “international” are used provisionally as culturally and locationally contingent categories, and not as discrete descriptors with fixed meanings. Some of the problems or limitations of using these terms will be evident within the context of the paper. In general, we understand these markers of social space as conditioned by perspective and positioning of the interlocutors.

²The Ministry of Civil Affairs plans to train 100,000 social workers in 5 years (Xihua News Agency, 2006).

³Similar to words like “Western” and “international”, the use of the “Third World”, “South”, or “developing countries” is provisional. We understand that each of these terms has its own specific connotations and limitations. “Third World”, in this context, is actually used by the authors we cited.