Between appropriateness and sticky objects – welfare professionals talking about youth work and marginalisation

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The paper explores how welfare professionals working with youth and marginalisation talk about gender, sexuality, race, and class in relation to their work. When and how are perspectives on gender, sexuality, race and class part of a professional vocabulary, and when do these perspectives become sensitive issues or ‘sticky objects’ (Ahmed 2004) ?
Empirical material from interviews with welfare professionals in Denmark shows diverse ways of talking about youth work and marginalisation in relation to gender, sexuality, race, and class. One way is laughing and giggling when talking about gender and sexuality, and another way is checking-in with the interviewer about the right choice of words especially in relation to sexuality and race. The paper analyses what these diverse ways of expression can tell us about welfare professionals in Denmark and their professional vocabulary when it comes to understanding and talking about gender, sexuality, race, and class in relation to youth work and marginalisation. A central finding is how welfare professionals in different modes are relating to ideas of ‘appropriateness’ (Kofoed 2008). The paper discusses the wider perspectives of how performances of appropriateness relate to lived experiences of marginalisation among youth.
Periode13 jun. 202215 jun. 2022
BegivenhedstitelNyris 2022: The past, present and future of Nordic Youth Research
BegivenhedstypeKonference
PlaceringOslo, NorgeVis på kort