COMMUNITY AND CARE WORK IN A WORLD OF CHANGING IDEOLOGIES

Abstract

Seymour B. Sarason, one of the founders of community psychology, has stated the need for developing barometers of community changes. The authors present a methodology for identifying societal ideologies, ideological shifts and power relations as reflected by the language of public discourse. As a case study, systematic analyses of changes in the Norwegian language over the last two decades are presented. It is demonstrated how Norwegian society has been gradually transformed from a traditional Scandinavian welfare society towards the values and ideals of neo-liberalist market ideology: for instance, language reflects and supports competitive practices increasingly being applied to public service provision. Another example is that the public discourse of individual rights has gradually been overshadowing the discourse of community duties and obligations. On the other hand, the analyses also reveal counter-ideologies, reflected, for example, in the launching of new words and expressions critical to neo-liberalist ideology.

Seymour B. Sarason, uno de los fundadores de la psicología comunitaria, ha expuesto la necesidad de desarrollar barómetros para medir los cambios en la sociedad. Los autores presentan una metodología para identificar como ideologías sociales, cambios ideológicos y relaciones de poder se reflejan en el idioma del diálogo público. Como caso de estudio, se presentan, análisis sistemáticos de los cambios en el idioma Noruego durante las dos últimas décadas. Se demuéstra como la sociedad Noruega se ha ido transformando gradualmente, pasando de ser una sociedad Escandinava tradicional del bienestar, hácia los valores y ideales de la ideología del mercado neo-liberal. Por ejemplo, el idíoma refleja y apoya practicas competitivas que son aplicadas en auménto a la provision del servicio público. Otro ejemplo es como el discurso público de los derechos individuales, ha ido gradualmente tapando el discurso de deberes y obligaciones comunitarios. Por ótro lado, los análisis también revelan ideologías opuestas, reflejadas, p.ej., en el lanzamiénto de nuevas palabras y expresiónes críticas a la ideología neo-liberal.

Keywords:

• societal ideology
• ideological shifts
• neo-liberalist market ideology
• consumerism
• care

Palabras claves:

• ideología social
• cambios ideológicos
• ideología de mercado neo-liberal
• consumismo
• bienestar

Acknowledgements

This study is conducted within a research programme funded by a grant from University of Oslo's Ethics Program to the first author.

Notes

1. In the literature there is an extensive discussion as to what is in the end the driving force behind selfishness and self-interest (Fiske, 2004; Nafstad, 2005).

2. For a more comprehensive review of the literature on which we built our methodology, see Nafstad and Blakar (2002, in press), and Nafstad, Carlquist, and Blakar (2004).

3. Percentage rates are corrected for variations in total number of articles per year contained in the newspaper/database.

4. The search procedures are described in detail in Nafstad, Carlquist, and Blakar (2004).

5. The coincidence of the substantial drop after a stable increase of the more value-laden ‘konkurranseutsetting’ (from 211 in 2003 to 92 in 2004) with the marked rise of the more neutral ‘anbud’ (from 334 in 2003 to 341 in 2004) may indicate that this process of exposing to competition is now completed. This is an issue we have to follow in future analyses in the years to come.

6. Search terms were entered as plurals to avoid confounding meanings.