Published In
International Journal of Child, Youth & Family Studies
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
7-23-2024
Subjects
Social work with youth
Abstract
Arguably, from the invention of adolescence at the beginning of the 20th century, developmental theory has served as the foundation of disciplinary study and professional practice with children and youth across the global West. Despite their founders’ assertions that development is culturally constructed, in educational and youth work practice contexts stage-based trajectories of normative human growth are largely erroneously accepted as ahistorical, apolitical, naturally occurring, and universally applicable. This paper presents critiques of developmentalism from historical, reconceptualist, and queer perspectives, calling into question the underlying principles of normalcy and abnormality that run through the developmental project. We pay particular attention to the potential of queer theory as an analytic to deconstruct developmentalism in the context of child and youth care, opening new possibilities for critical engagement with children and youth outside the context of development.
Rights
Copyright (c) 2024 The Authors
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Locate the Document
DOI
10.18357/ijcyfs123-4202120341
Persistent Identifier
https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/42347
Citation Details
Zaman, B. A., & Anderson-Nathe, B. (2021). TOWARD QUEER POTENTIALITIES IN CHILD AND YOUTH CARE. International Journal of Child, Youth and Family Studies, 12(3–4), 104–128.