Postmodernism and physiotherapy research

Abstract

Postmodernism is a notion that causes as much confusion as it does consternation, yet in recent years it has become one of the most widely debated philosophies in health care research. Based on skepticism of grand narratives and an opening towards diversity and inclusiveness, postmodern research provides a set of tools and some distinctive ways of thinking that encourage researchers and practitioners to critically analyse the taken-for-granted obviousness of life. What is more, postmodernism offers a way to liberate people to think differently about their experiences, ideas and practices. In this paper I provide a brief review of postmodernism as a philosophy and as an approach to research. Taking as my starting point the need for reform in the physiotherapy profession, I explore some of the key principles underpinning postmodern research. Drawing on a case study of a recently published postmodern study, I offer a critique of the modernist assumptions underpinning physiotherapy, and present an example of how a postmodern study may be undertaken. Postmodernism has much to offer physiotherapy. It encourages us to ask questions of those things that normally pass unnoticed beneath our gaze, and it calls us to examine the discourses that have made the present possible. In examining how postmodern research may be applied to the study of physiotherapy practice I hope to encourage readers to move away from ossified ways of thinking and consider what might be possible if physiotherapy were otherwise.

Keywords:

• Postmodernism
• Grand narratives
• Physiotherapy
• Research