Open Access11: Foucault and the Practice of Educational Development: Power and Surveillance in Individual Consultations
Author(s) -
Felten Peter,
Little Deandra,
Pingree Allison
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
to improve the academy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2334-4822
DOI - 10.1002/j.2334-4822.2004.tb00409.x
Subject(s) - power (physics) , discipline , michel foucault , trace (psycholinguistics) , sovereignty , work (physics) , psychology , sociology , political science , social science , law , engineering , philosophy , mechanical engineering , linguistics , physics , quantum mechanics , politics
A common goal of educational development is to create a neutral, “safe” place for clients in individual consultations. Such an approach, while well intentioned, obscures the multifaceted web of power threading through and around our work. Using Michel Foucault's theories of sovereign and disciplinary power, we trace the forms that power can take in specific types of consultations (small group instructional diagnosis, course evaluations, and videotape). While power is always “dangerous,” it is less likely to be damaging if we are conscious of its presence and impact—and of our own participation in its complexity.