Directed Professional Space. An ethnographic-phronetic research on the construction of implicit boundaries to activation practitioners' use of professional space.

Abstract

Influences on the construction of implicit boundaries in activation work are studied on two levels - implementation and managerial level - and from two different philosophical perspectives - ethnography and phronesis. This is done by means of a qualitative, single case study at a Dutch intermunicipal social service. The results show that implicit boundaries are constructed by two power mechanisms, 'avoiding hassle' behavior by practitioners and 'double steering' by managers, with a panopticon effect and paradoxical outcome. These findings provide insight into the gap between (rhetorical) experience and behavior (process), which leads to an analytical distinction between 'factual', 'experienced' and 'enacted' professional space. Lastly, the study shows that using two perspectives is useful for understanding complex, ethical questions.