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© British Association of Social Workers

The Rise of Relativism: The Future of Theory and Knowledge Development in Social Work

COLIN PEILE and MAL MCCOUAT

Dr Colin Peile and Dr Mal McCouat are lecturers in the Department of Social Work and Social Policy at The University of Queensland in Australia

Correspondence to Colin Peile, Department of Social Work and Social Policy, The University of Queensland, Brisbane 4072, Australia

Summary

This paper explores a range of paradigms evident in recent debates about social work theory and epistemology, including the positivist, post-positivist, interpretivist, critical, ecological, feminist, poststructural and creative positions. While applauding the openness generated by these competing approaches, concerns are raised about the emergence of a meta-paradigm of relativism. After identifying the evidence of this move towards relativism in various paradigms, the potential problems and limitations of this trend for social work are explored. Relativism has, however, played an important role in undermining dogmatic attachments to certain positions and the paper attempts to rescue this useful quality of relativism while combining it with a constructive commitment to creative action.


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