Re-Enchanting Social Work? The Emerging 'Spirit' of Social Work in an Age of Economic Crisis

Luc Boltanski and Ève Chiapello's (2005) The New Spirit of Capitalism argues that capitalism has the capacity to absorb critique and become ideologically energised and discursively reinvigorated on account of this capacity. This article argues that their theorisation provides a useful theoretical lens through which to view and comprehend present attempts to re-enchant the profession and discursively infuse it with a new ‘spirit’, in times of ‘austerity’ and budget cuts: hence, the emerging emphasis on social work as a ‘creative’ profession needing to free itself from ‘bureaucracy’. Although partly heeding the critique derived from the academic literature illuminating the constraints imposed on social work by an ever-expanding digital e-workload, this move is deeply ideological and needs to be warily regarded.