CHAPTER 5: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
5.1.1 Theoretical framework: Critical Theory (CT)
According to Fuchs (2015, p.1) “critical theory is an approach that studies society in a dialectical way by analyzing political economy, domination, exploitation, and ideologies. It is a normative approach that is based on the judgment that domination is a problem, that a domination-free society is needed. It wants to inform political struggles that want to establish such a society”. I am of the view that the application of critical theory, which Tyson (2015) noted could be applied across different themes would address the research concerns raised by Tuhiwani-Smith and be of relevance to my area of study. Included in my study is the interrogation of issues of domination and the subjugation of women.
Kincheloe and McLaren (2002) argue that critical theory is often misunderstood. Critical theory analyses competing power interests between groups and individuals within a society and identifies who gains and who loses in specific situations. It also analyses competing power interests between individuals and within and between societies. More often than not, privileged groups will desire to maintain the status quo. Fuchs (2015) has argued that critical theory has several aspects to it namely epistemology, ontology and praxeology. Epistemology which is a theory of knowledge and deals with how the very concepts that constitute a theory are constituted and organised. The next is its ontology which is a theory of being. It deals with the question how reality is organised and develops. The other facet of CT is praxeology, which is the study of human action, especially political action and ethics. Marx (1997, p.214) argued that concepts that describe the existence of capitalism e.g. profit, surplus value, worker, capital, commodity were dialectical because they go beyond the reality of class societies and point toward a transcendental reality beyond class. He postulated that the existence of classes is society were actually an indication of the possibility of a society without class. His argument was that changes in society were possible. Marx’s concepts of “contradiction (negation) and negation of the negation are crucial for critical theory”. This means that when there are struggles in a society, the same struggles can be the basis of the action that is required to bring about the change that is required. Without an oppressive situation, there would be no need for any action against oppression. In similar style, the subjugation of women through culture can be seen as beckoning for a society that promotes gender equity. As Marx noted, the “subjective
87 dialectical force of political struggle is the only way for overcoming these contradictions”
(p.214). The next facet is ontology which is a critique of the political economy of communication. It is concerned with the study of how power relations shape and are shaped by the production, diffusion, and consequences of mediated and unmediated communication.
Critical theory in this regard is concerned with a critique of domination and exploitation of oppressed groups. It questions all thought and practices that justify or uphold domination and exploitation. According to Fuchs (2015), the goal of critical theory is to transform society and create world of peace where one could enjoy wealth, liberty and enjoy self- fulfilment (p.4).
Ontology is also concerned with the critique of ideology. In dominative societies, domination tends to be masked by ideologies that present reality not as it is, but in “mythologized, inverted, and distorted ways” (Fuchs, 2015, p.5). This may create a fear within those that are dominated to the extent that they are paralysed against acting to change their situations. Critical theory seeks to interrogate this domination. It seeks to “increase and maximize human happiness”
Fuchs (2015, p.4). Marx formulated the categorical imperative of critical theory as “to overthrow all conditions in which man is a degraded, enslaved, neglected, contemptible being”
(Marx, 1997, p.257). It is concerned with principles of self-determination, participation, active citizen participation and just democracy. Critical theory seeks to make the world conscious of its own possibilities (Fuchs, 2015).
Critical theory contends that social realities are historically created, and social issues are not
‘naturally’ occurring, but socially constructed and influenced by power asymmetries.
(Alvesson and Sköldberg, 2009). The theory is essentially about power, and examines “the processes of gaining, maintaining and circulating existing power relationships” (Henning, 2004, p. 23). It embraces a variety of different theoretical positions, including post modernism, post colonialism and post structuralism. At a broader level, critical theory has involved a variety of analyses which have endeavoured to link the concern with subjectivity, with the structural focus on the social and political context of people’s lives (Thompson, 2000). Critical theorists stress the importance of people’s agency—that is, their capacities to be actively involved in the process of social change (Always, 1995). Most critical theorists are concerned with emancipatory education that enables people to see the links between their experiences and the material conditions and dominant ideologies in society (Sewpaul and Larsen, 2014).
Drawing on Freirian analysis, Fay (1987) emphasised the capacity of critical theories to explain the sources of oppression in society in such a way as to encourage those affected by oppression to take action to transform it. In the words of Alvesson and Willmott (1996, p.13) “the intent
88 of critical theory is to challenge the legitimacy and counter the development of oppressive institutions and practice.”
Critical theory thus places a significant emphasis on reflecting upon how dominant ideologies or ways of thinking, as well as societal institutions, impact on people’s lives. It also questions the place of existing institutions, such as the family, educational establishments and governance, with a view to constructing a more just society. It resonates with human rights perspectives and orientations. Human rights are inalienable standards that recognize and protect the dignity of all human beings (Lombard and Twirizike, 2014). They govern how individual human beings live in society and with each other, as well as their relationship with governments and the obligations that governments have towards them. By the same token that individuals have rights; they also have the responsibility to respect the rights of others.
According to Ife (2001), social workers have consistently been charged with the duty to uphold the human rights of vulnerable groups. A human rights orientation is concerned with facilitating the expression of citizens who have been denied their daily lives. In applying the human rights dimension to critical theory, Dominelli (2004) argued that affirming the rights of socially excluded people renders the social work profession a politicized one which may place practitioners on a collision course with employers, policy makers and the general public.
In the application of the critical theory in this study, I take cognisance of the criticisms raised against it. Some have argued that critical theory in general has failed in its attempt to link individual and social consciousness with institutional analysis and political economy (Held, 1980). Others suggest that critical theory exaggerates the importance of consciousness in the processes of radical social change (Alvesson and Willmott 1996, p. 86). Feminist writers also note that critical theory has not adequately engaged with feminist theory and subsequently has been unable to appreciate the significance of gender analysis (Cheek et al, 1996; Alvesson &
Willmott, 1996). Further, Alway (1995) argued that, “rather than imposing a particular claim or interpretation, emancipatory politics should be ‘expanding the opportunity for groups to determine and live according to their own claims and interpretation” (p.73).
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