Resisting Dogmatism in Social Work Knowledge Generation: Theorising, Social Justice and Implications for Social Work Doctoral Education

Abstract

Abstract Social work doctoral education is charged with the task of generating and critically evaluating knowledge to inform and transform professional practice. To promote the foundational values of social justice and diversity in social work, scholars highlight the importance of multiple ways of knowing and multiple ontological perspectives in social work knowledge generation. Yet, critical scholars have raised concerns about a reviving dogmatism in the philosophical and theoretical orientations (e.g. positivism and empiricism) of social work knowledge. Recent studies also show a significant gap between research and social justice in the social work doctoral curriculum. Critically reflecting and problematising this ‘social’ phenomenon, I argue that it is essential to engage in ongoing theorising to resist dominant discourses, represent marginalised voices in social work knowledge and furthermore, to teach students how to theorise in doctoral education. Drawing from Foucauldian theories on knowledge and power, this article first contextualises the dangers of dogmatism in knowledge generation in social work. Then, I provide a brief review of the historical development of theorising, introducing Richard Swedberg’s work on the topic, particularly his four steps in the ‘process of theorising’. How this noble sociological ‘theory of theorising’ can be incorporated into social work is discussed.