S0W 3222 Working Across Difference Lecture Two Bridging Difference Emotions and Beliefs

Lecture Aims By using and extending the work of Narayan (1999), we will: explore some concepts, ideas and issues about working across difference. consider the impact emotions and beliefs can have on working across difference.

Insiders and Outsiders Narayan uses the term insider to refer to a members of an oppressed group and the term outsider to refer to non-members. She states that these terms have the advantage of reversing conventional ideas of what is central and what is marginal but a disadvantage of lacking an explicit sense of hierarchy. She stresses people are insiders or outsiders only with respect to specific forms of oppression.

Structures of Oppression & Worker/Client Transactions Narayan is not specifically referring to encounters between workers and clients, but communication between members and non- members of oppressed groups. One of the problems is that when the structures of oppression interact with the worker/client professional relationship things get more complex. As a consequence her analysis only fits worker/client communication up to a point.

Female workers working with male clients Who is the outsider? If we think of oppression only, we might think of female workers as insiders as members of an oppressed group. If we think of the professional relationship, the (female) worker is an outsider in relation to her (male) clients world. This means that in encounters between workers and clients, we need to consider the worker as an outsider in relation to the clients world and the positions occupied in relation to the social structure. For example, the female worker needs to endeavour to understand her male client and the different forms masculinity can take, while being critically aware of the possibility that he may act towards her in a sexist way.

Workers who are members of oppressed groups Clients can be oppressive toward workers who are members of an oppressed group. For example, a white client can be racially abusive towards a black worker. As we will see not tolerating sexism, racism or other forms of oppression from service uses is an important aspect of being a professional worker. Nevertheless, from a professional point of view, the black worker, for example, is an outsider in relation to their white clients world.

Female Workers working with Male clients Social Structures of Oppression Worker/Client Relationship Female worker as a worker (Outsider) Male client as a client (Insider) Female worker as a woman (Insider) Male client as a man (Outsider)

Concerned/Sympathetic Outsiders Narayan refers to concerned outsiders and sympathetic outsiders. This is not sympathy for but sympathetic to the cause of the insider. The sympathetic outsider can be contrasted with the hostile or indifferent outsider. Professional workers can be regarded as concerned outsiders in relation to clients

Communication Across Difference Insiders and outsiders are often significantly different in their opportunities, values and social experiences. Factors such as class, and gender have historically engendered conflict, tension, hostility and mistrust. Goodwill on the part of the outsider is not enough to overcome assumptions and attitudes born out of centuries of power and privilege.

Epistemic Privilege Epistemic privilege is having an advantaged position in relation to knowledge. Members of oppressed groups have epistemic privilege as regards to the details of everyday life under oppression. They may or may not have clearer or better knowledge of the causes of their oppression.

Workers Responsibility To Educate Themselves Concerned outsiders carry a responsibility to actively seek out and acquire knowledge of oppression, rather than see it as the insiders responsibility to bring such knowledge to their attention. Workers have to make a great deal of effort to come to grips with the details of lived oppression.

Humility and Caution humility When faced with what appears to be an insider mistake, outsiders need to sincerely conduct themselves under the assumption that, as outsiders, they may be missing something or lack full understanding of the context. caution Outsiders should sincerely attempt to carry out their attempted criticism of the insiders perceptions in such a way that it does not amount to, or even seem to amount to, an attempt to denigrate or dismiss entirely the validity of the insiders point of view

Communication across difference may go wrong Even sympathetic outsiders, since they are prone to blind spots and clumsiness, can offend and hurt the insider more often than they imagine. The burden of taking care not to cause offence can fairly be laid on the outsider. Outsiders often wrongly assume that goodwill on their part is a guarantee against causing offence.

Beliefs About Difference A persons beliefs about a different group will impact on communication with a member of that group, particularly when they do not know that person very well. Stereotypes, derogatory beliefs, myths and mistaken beliefs are likely to have negative impact. Do you think the issue is lack of knowledge or more to do with attitude or something else? In your view where does the current negatively about asylum seekers come from?

Goal Incongruent Emotions Goal incongruent emotions hinder communication, for example. According to Lazarus (1994) goal incongruent emotions include, anger, fear, anxiety, sadness, envy, jealousy and disgust. In encounters between workers and clients who are different from each other, both may feel goal incongruent emotions. Social workers may feel Threatened Anxious Uncomfortable Clients may feel Threatened Anxious Uncomfortable

Necessary Skills (Gudykunst, 1998:226-39) Be mindful [critically self-aware] Tolerate ambiguity Manage anxiety Empathise Adapt communication Ability to:

Reflexivity Being Critically Aware of Self Workers need to be critically self aware of their emotions and beliefs. They need to transform harmful beliefs. They need to work through or manage any goal-incongruent emotions in such a way that they do not negatively impact on communication.

In this lecture we have considered: ideas of insider/outsider, epistemic privilege, humility and caution; the impact emotions and beliefs can have on working across difference; some emotions that can get in the way of working across difference; some abilities thought necessary for effective communication across difference.