Capturing life histories about movements into and out of poverty : a road with pits and bumps

In order to take into account the power imbalances typically implicated in knowledge production about the complex social problem of poverty, social work researchers have increasingly acknowledged the importance of grasping the viewpoints and perspectives of people in poverty situations. In this contribution, we accordingly reflect on a current life history research project that retrospectively explores the life stories of parents with young children with regard to their mobility into and out of poverty that is examined in dynamic interaction with social work interventions. In this article, we discuss methodological and ethical challenges and complexities that we unexpectedly encountered in our research venture, as illustrated by three exemplary vignettes. These examples demonstrate issues of power between the researcher and the research participants that are not only inevitable, but also generate dilemmas, struggles and ambiguities that often remain underexposed in the ways scientific insights are reported. Rather than disguising these pits and bumps, we argue for a reflexive research stance which makes these issues of power in knowledge production susceptible to contemplation and scrutiny

A critical analysis of disability policy and practice in Flanders : toward differentiated manifestations of interdependency

Notions of citizenship and disability rights denote abstract, ambiguous, and contested principles, and realizing these ideas entails complexity in practice. This is particularly the case since the welfare state is no longer conceived as the principal provider of welfare services and resources in many European welfare states. In that vein, we critically analyze the underlying principles, rationales, values, and potential implications of the White Paper "Perspective 2020: a new support policy for disabled people" in Flanders (the Dutch speaking part of Belgium). We tease out which understanding of the disabled human subject is promoted by this so-called innovative social policy and excavate how policy makers and a diversity of actors involved in the policy implementation process consider the provision of care and support. Our main argument entails that the welfare state should acknowledge and vindicate differentiated manifestations of interdependency rather than reinforcing a dichotomy that is based on notions of in/dependent human subjects

Routes uit armoede: wat ouders met jonge kinderen als ondersteunend ervaren

De laatste decennia is er veel aandacht voor kinderarmoede, zowel in Vlaanderen als in de rest van Europa. In deze bijdrage exploreren we de ervaringen van ouders met jonge kinderen: Wat ervaren zij als ondersteunend in hun contacten met sociale voorzieningen? En hoe staat die steun in relatie tot het 'uit de armoede geraken'