Tanja Dittfeld - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Tanja Dittfeld

Social work is a profession based on (White) Euro-American concepts, problems and historicity in ... more Social work is a profession based on (White) Euro-American concepts, problems and historicity in which Indigenous knowledges and cultures are marginalised, and the effects of colonisation are obscured to both Indigenous and non-Indigenous social workers. Cultural competence is increasingly emphasised and expected of social work graduates internationally to make the voices, stories, and knowledges of Indigenous peoples who have been, and continue to be, marginalised heard. The conventional approach to cultural competence in social work is however problematic as it maintains rather than challenges the universality of Whiteness in Australia through a fixed gaze on the Indigenous ‘other’. To decolonise social work however requires a critical understanding of the development of social work identity and ideology within the context of colonialism and postcolonialism. The article subsequently argues for the use of postcolonial theory to shift the focus from the effects of colonisation on In...

The existence and deepening of (global) poverty and inequality is at the core of development. How... more The existence and deepening of (global) poverty and inequality is at the core of development. However, the close connection between non-conforming sexuality and poverty is habitually overlooked. The study seeks to underpin that nonconforming sexuality should be a dimension of the social development paradigm. Thus, the study explores the connections between the public construct of homosexuality, experienced sexuality-based deprivations and understandings of freedom in the case of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) individuals in Kampala, Uganda. For this purpose, ten weeks exploratory fieldwork was conducted in Kampala from late January to early April 2015. The data collection included triangulation of eight weeks of participant observation and eleven qualitative semi-structured interviews with self-identified LGBT individuals. The findings were thematically analysed, and theorized with the capability approach. The study finds that the socio-structural poverties such as social ostracism from family, culture and religion are constitutive of LGBT individuals' lived experiences in Kampala. Furthermore, the study shows that LGBT individuals in Kampala are deprived of any free sexual agency to choose how to be, what to be and with whom to be publicly and privately. The study thus concludes, if the social development paradigm is to adhere to its own definition of development as freedom, it needs to stop overlooking the connection between non-conforming sexuality and poverty.

Social Work & Policy Studies: Social Justice, Practice and Theory, 2020

Social work is a profession based on (White) Euro-American concepts, problems and historicity in ... more Social work is a profession based on (White) Euro-American concepts, problems and historicity in which Indigenous knowledges and cultures are marginalised, and the effects of colonisation are obscured to both Indigenous and non-Indigenous social workers. Cultural competence is increasingly emphasised and expected of social work graduates internationally to make the voices, stories, and knowledges of Indigenous peoples who have been, and continue to be, marginalised heard. The conventional approach to cultural competence in social work is however problematic as it maintains rather than challenges the universality of Whiteness in Australia through a fixed gaze on the Indigenous 'other'. To decolonise social work however requires a critical understanding of the development of social work identity and ideology within the context of colonialism and postcolonialism. The article subsequently argues for the use of postcolonial theory to shift the focus from the effects of colonisation on Indigenous peoples to the colonial origin and continued coloniality of the social work profession, practice and curriculum within Australia. The purpose of turning the postcolonial lens on social work is not to build an argument for non-White social work but to build an understanding from which social work can support the Indigenous struggle for self-determination, decolonisation and social justice.

Social work is a profession based on (White) Euro-American concepts, problems and historicity in ... more Social work is a profession based on (White) Euro-American concepts, problems and historicity in which Indigenous knowledges and cultures are marginalised, and the effects of colonisation are obscured to both Indigenous and non-Indigenous social workers. Cultural competence is increasingly emphasised and expected of social work graduates internationally to make the voices, stories, and knowledges of Indigenous peoples who have been, and continue to be, marginalised heard. The conventional approach to cultural competence in social work is however problematic as it maintains rather than challenges the universality of Whiteness in Australia through a fixed gaze on the Indigenous ‘other’. To decolonise social work however requires a critical understanding of the development of social work identity and ideology within the context of colonialism and postcolonialism. The article subsequently argues for the use of postcolonial theory to shift the focus from the effects of colonisation on In...

The existence and deepening of (global) poverty and inequality is at the core of development. How... more The existence and deepening of (global) poverty and inequality is at the core of development. However, the close connection between non-conforming sexuality and poverty is habitually overlooked. The study seeks to underpin that nonconforming sexuality should be a dimension of the social development paradigm. Thus, the study explores the connections between the public construct of homosexuality, experienced sexuality-based deprivations and understandings of freedom in the case of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) individuals in Kampala, Uganda. For this purpose, ten weeks exploratory fieldwork was conducted in Kampala from late January to early April 2015. The data collection included triangulation of eight weeks of participant observation and eleven qualitative semi-structured interviews with self-identified LGBT individuals. The findings were thematically analysed, and theorized with the capability approach. The study finds that the socio-structural poverties such as social ostracism from family, culture and religion are constitutive of LGBT individuals' lived experiences in Kampala. Furthermore, the study shows that LGBT individuals in Kampala are deprived of any free sexual agency to choose how to be, what to be and with whom to be publicly and privately. The study thus concludes, if the social development paradigm is to adhere to its own definition of development as freedom, it needs to stop overlooking the connection between non-conforming sexuality and poverty.

Social Work & Policy Studies: Social Justice, Practice and Theory, 2020

Social work is a profession based on (White) Euro-American concepts, problems and historicity in ... more Social work is a profession based on (White) Euro-American concepts, problems and historicity in which Indigenous knowledges and cultures are marginalised, and the effects of colonisation are obscured to both Indigenous and non-Indigenous social workers. Cultural competence is increasingly emphasised and expected of social work graduates internationally to make the voices, stories, and knowledges of Indigenous peoples who have been, and continue to be, marginalised heard. The conventional approach to cultural competence in social work is however problematic as it maintains rather than challenges the universality of Whiteness in Australia through a fixed gaze on the Indigenous 'other'. To decolonise social work however requires a critical understanding of the development of social work identity and ideology within the context of colonialism and postcolonialism. The article subsequently argues for the use of postcolonial theory to shift the focus from the effects of colonisation on Indigenous peoples to the colonial origin and continued coloniality of the social work profession, practice and curriculum within Australia. The purpose of turning the postcolonial lens on social work is not to build an argument for non-White social work but to build an understanding from which social work can support the Indigenous struggle for self-determination, decolonisation and social justice.