The Responsibilised ‘Agent’ and Other Statuses

Abstract

Conceptualisations of agency that incorporate notions of individuals all independently following or resisting rules cast actors as either passive or resistant, and yet (either way) both free and responsible. This article argues that Barry Barnes’ fundamentally social model of agency deserves greater attention for the possibility it offers of moving beyond neoliberal narratives and their individualistic foundations. It advances theoretical understandings of agency by suggesting that, within the framework offered by Barnes’ model, unequal burdens are created by local constructions of the responsibilised individual. Rather than being equally and a priori empowered with agency, individuals are revealed to be unequally impeded in fulfilling current local status expectations of a responsibilised ‘agent’. This article explores the implications of Barnes’ conceptualisation by indicating areas where giving attention to everyday discourses of choice and responsibility opens space to explore how the interplay of status expectations operates to enable or disable social membership.