Abstract
Discourse analysis, while under-utilized in social work, is useful for understanding the social construction of identity as negotiated in talk with others. The article has twin aims. First, the author argues that identity is a fragmented co-construction, changing moment-to-moment in context with others. This argument is supported by analyzing an extract from a research study on ethics in social work practice, in which a practitioner struggled with an ideological dilemma. How ‘ideological dilemmas’ differ from the more commonly used notion of ‘ethical dilemmas’ in social work is addressed. The second goal is to heighten awareness of the utility of both discourse analysis and ‘ideological dilemmas’ for use as theoretical tools for social work. The particular ideological dilemma the worker had to negotiate to be seen as an ‘ethical practitioner’ was that of the subordination of the self versus self-care.
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