The Queer Perspective in Social Work: Towards a Gender-Neutral Approach

Abstract

In this study, it is aimed to reveal the lack of associating social work and queer theory in Turkey and reflecting it to professional practices. In this framework, first, it is aimed to understand how the social work discipline has historically handled queer theory and how this approach has changed (or not) and how critical social work, radical social work and anti-oppression social work approaches look at the subject, then the queer theory's approach to the issue. It is envisaged to present a gender-neutral approach on how it can be applied in social work intervention processes. An approach independent of gender roles embodies the idea that the roles, facts, and situations assigned to women and men through the binary gender system are socially constructed, changed, and differentiated from society to society, from culture to culture, rather than biologically determined. Along with all these discussions, it is aimed to make a critical analysis of the transformations social work has undergone in the context of queer theory and to reveal the perspective of queer theory from this point of view, and to reveal the possibilities that social work can provide to social work by providing the queer perspective.

Keywords

• Queer Theory
• Queer Social Work
• Queer
• Gender

SOSYAL HİZMETTE QUEER BAKIŞ AÇISI: TOPLUMSAL CİNSİYET ROLLERİNDEN BAĞIMSIZ BİR YAKLAŞIMA DOĞRU

Abstract

Bu çalışmada, Türkiye’deki sosyal hizmet alanı ve queer teorinin ilişkilendirilmesi ve mesleki uygulamalara yansıtılması konusundaki eksikliğin ortaya konması amaçlanmaktadır. Bu çerçevede, öncelikle tarihsel olarak, sosyal hizmet disiplininin queer teoriyi nasıl ele aldığını ve bu ele alışın nasıl değişip dönüştüğünü (veya dönüşmediğini) ve bunun karşısında eleştirel sosyal hizmet, radikal sosyal hizmet ve baskı karşıtı sosyal hizmet yaklaşımlarının konuya nasıl baktığının anlaşılması, ardından queer teorinin sosyal hizmet müdahale süreçlerinde nasıl uygulanabileceğine dair toplumsal cinsiyet rollerinden bağımsız bir yaklaşımın sunulması öngörülmektedir. Toplumsal cinsiyet rollerinden bağımsız bir yaklaşım, ikili cinsiyet sistemi üzerinden kadınlara ve erkeklere atanan rollerin, olguların ve durumların, biyolojik olarak belirlenmelerinden ziyade toplumsal olarak inşa edildiğini, değişebildiğini ve toplumdan topluma, kültürden kültüre farklılaştığı fikrini bünyesinde barındırmaktadır. Tüm bu tartışmalarla birlikte sosyal hizmetin queer teori bağlamında geçirdiği dönüşümlerin eleştirel bir analizinin yapılması ve buradan hareketle queer teorinin bakış açısının ortaya konulması sağlanarak, sosyal hizmetin queer perspektifle ilişkilenme biçiminin, sosyal hizmete sağlayabileceği imkânların ortaya konulması amaçlanmaktadır.

Keywords

• Queer
• Queer Teori
• Queer Sosyal Hizmet
• Toplumsal Cinsiyet

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