Passing on Foucault’s Poststructuralist Perspective: The Development and Application of Governmentality as Research Framework

Juming Shen; Xuhui Jiao

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19

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Passing on Foucault’s Poststructuralist Perspective: The Development and Application of Governmentality as Research Framework

Juming Shen, Xuhui Jiao

Published in International Journal of Philosophy (Volume 10, Issue 1)

Received: 27 February 2022 Accepted: 16 March 2022 Published: 29 March 2022

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Abstract

From the 1960s, poststructuralism originated in France began to spread in the Western cultures, and merged with the postmodernism in the fields of literature, art, history, sociology, and political science, which brought about a wide impact on the research in social sciences. Following the principles of poststructuralism, scholars developed various fragmented, discontinuous, and diversified methods for investigating social issues. This paper focuses on the concept of governmentality put forward by Foucault as well as its development and application in the “post-Foucault” era. Governmentality is one of Michel Foucault’s key academic theories and research approaches, and it well demonstrates Foucault’s poststructuralist perspectives. As a poststructuralist research method, governmentality bears with itself unique critical perspectives. Through decades of development, especially the development during the Post-Foucauldian Era, governmentality has developed into a systematic research approach that offers unique viewpoints for the analyses of different social domains and has become one of the key perspectives of critique in the contemporary era. In this paper, we will start with the identification of Foucault as a poststructuralist, which serves as the source for Foucault to propose governmentality as a poststructural research perspective. Then we will explore in detail the development and application of governmentality in the post-Foucauldian era as well as the potential value of governmentality research with particular focus on the conceptualization of rationalities and technologies of government as research tools that can be adopted for investigations into various social issues. Such elaboration of governmentality will not only enrich our understanding of the governmental practices in the Western world but also enhance the reflection and exploration of the governing in contemporary China.

Published in	International Journal of Philosophy (Volume 10, Issue 1)
DOI	10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19
Page(s)	48-54
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Poststructuralism, Michel Foucault, Post-Foucauldian Era, Governmentality

References

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[5]	Foucault, M., Security, territory, and population, in Ethics: Subjectivity and truth, P. Rabinow, Editor. 1997, New Press: New York, United States. p. 66-71.
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[12]	Rose, N., Governing the soul: The shaping of the private self. 1999, London, United Kingdom: Free Association Books.
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[19]	Dutton, M., Passionately governmental: Maoism and the structured intensities of revolutionary governmentality, in China's governmentalities: Governing change, changing government, E. Jeffreys, Editor. 2009, Routledge: Hoboken, United States.
[20]	Harwood, R., Negotiating modernity at China's periphery: Development and policy interventions in Nujiang prefecture, in China's governmentalities: Governing change, changing government, E. Jefferys, Editor. 2009, Routledge: Hoboken, United States. p. 63-87.
[21]	Jefferys, E., China's governmentalities: Governing change, changing government. 2009, Hoboken: Routledge.
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Juming Shen, Xuhui Jiao. (2022). Passing on Foucault’s Poststructuralist Perspective: The Development and Application of Governmentality as Research Framework. International Journal of Philosophy, 10(1), 48-54. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19

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Juming Shen; Xuhui Jiao. Passing on Foucault’s Poststructuralist Perspective: The Development and Application of Governmentality as Research Framework. Int. J. Philos. 2022, 10(1), 48-54. doi: 10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19

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AMA Style

Juming Shen, Xuhui Jiao. Passing on Foucault’s Poststructuralist Perspective: The Development and Application of Governmentality as Research Framework. Int J Philos. 2022;10(1):48-54. doi: 10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19

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@article{10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19,
  author = {Juming Shen and Xuhui Jiao},
  title = {Passing on Foucault’s Poststructuralist Perspective: The Development and Application of Governmentality as Research Framework},
  journal = {International Journal of Philosophy},
  volume = {10},
  number = {1},
  pages = {48-54},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijp.20221001.19},
  abstract = {From the 1960s, poststructuralism originated in France began to spread in the Western cultures, and merged with the postmodernism in the fields of literature, art, history, sociology, and political science, which brought about a wide impact on the research in social sciences. Following the principles of poststructuralism, scholars developed various fragmented, discontinuous, and diversified methods for investigating social issues. This paper focuses on the concept of governmentality put forward by Foucault as well as its development and application in the “post-Foucault” era. Governmentality is one of Michel Foucault’s key academic theories and research approaches, and it well demonstrates Foucault’s poststructuralist perspectives. As a poststructuralist research method, governmentality bears with itself unique critical perspectives. Through decades of development, especially the development during the Post-Foucauldian Era, governmentality has developed into a systematic research approach that offers unique viewpoints for the analyses of different social domains and has become one of the key perspectives of critique in the contemporary era. In this paper, we will start with the identification of Foucault as a poststructuralist, which serves as the source for Foucault to propose governmentality as a poststructural research perspective. Then we will explore in detail the development and application of governmentality in the post-Foucauldian era as well as the potential value of governmentality research with particular focus on the conceptualization of rationalities and technologies of government as research tools that can be adopted for investigations into various social issues. Such elaboration of governmentality will not only enrich our understanding of the governmental practices in the Western world but also enhance the reflection and exploration of the governing in contemporary China.},
 year = {2022}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Passing on Foucault’s Poststructuralist Perspective: The Development and Application of Governmentality as Research Framework
AU  - Juming Shen
AU  - Xuhui Jiao
Y1  - 2022/03/29
PY  - 2022
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19
T2  - International Journal of Philosophy
JF  - International Journal of Philosophy
JO  - International Journal of Philosophy
SP  - 48
EP  - 54
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2330-7455
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19
AB  - From the 1960s, poststructuralism originated in France began to spread in the Western cultures, and merged with the postmodernism in the fields of literature, art, history, sociology, and political science, which brought about a wide impact on the research in social sciences. Following the principles of poststructuralism, scholars developed various fragmented, discontinuous, and diversified methods for investigating social issues. This paper focuses on the concept of governmentality put forward by Foucault as well as its development and application in the “post-Foucault” era. Governmentality is one of Michel Foucault’s key academic theories and research approaches, and it well demonstrates Foucault’s poststructuralist perspectives. As a poststructuralist research method, governmentality bears with itself unique critical perspectives. Through decades of development, especially the development during the Post-Foucauldian Era, governmentality has developed into a systematic research approach that offers unique viewpoints for the analyses of different social domains and has become one of the key perspectives of critique in the contemporary era. In this paper, we will start with the identification of Foucault as a poststructuralist, which serves as the source for Foucault to propose governmentality as a poststructural research perspective. Then we will explore in detail the development and application of governmentality in the post-Foucauldian era as well as the potential value of governmentality research with particular focus on the conceptualization of rationalities and technologies of government as research tools that can be adopted for investigations into various social issues. Such elaboration of governmentality will not only enrich our understanding of the governmental practices in the Western world but also enhance the reflection and exploration of the governing in contemporary China.
VL  - 10
IS  - 1
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Author Information

Juming Shen

Academy of Future Education, Xi’an Jiaotong Liverpool University, Suzhou, China
Xuhui Jiao

Academy of Future Education, Xi’an Jiaotong Liverpool University, Suzhou, China

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Juming Shen, Xuhui Jiao. (2022). Passing on Foucault’s Poststructuralist Perspective: The Development and Application of Governmentality as Research Framework. International Journal of Philosophy, 10(1), 48-54. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19

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ACS Style

Juming Shen; Xuhui Jiao. Passing on Foucault’s Poststructuralist Perspective: The Development and Application of Governmentality as Research Framework. Int. J. Philos. 2022, 10(1), 48-54. doi: 10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19

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AMA Style

Juming Shen, Xuhui Jiao. Passing on Foucault’s Poststructuralist Perspective: The Development and Application of Governmentality as Research Framework. Int J Philos. 2022;10(1):48-54. doi: 10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19

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@article{10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19,
  author = {Juming Shen and Xuhui Jiao},
  title = {Passing on Foucault’s Poststructuralist Perspective: The Development and Application of Governmentality as Research Framework},
  journal = {International Journal of Philosophy},
  volume = {10},
  number = {1},
  pages = {48-54},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijp.20221001.19},
  abstract = {From the 1960s, poststructuralism originated in France began to spread in the Western cultures, and merged with the postmodernism in the fields of literature, art, history, sociology, and political science, which brought about a wide impact on the research in social sciences. Following the principles of poststructuralism, scholars developed various fragmented, discontinuous, and diversified methods for investigating social issues. This paper focuses on the concept of governmentality put forward by Foucault as well as its development and application in the “post-Foucault” era. Governmentality is one of Michel Foucault’s key academic theories and research approaches, and it well demonstrates Foucault’s poststructuralist perspectives. As a poststructuralist research method, governmentality bears with itself unique critical perspectives. Through decades of development, especially the development during the Post-Foucauldian Era, governmentality has developed into a systematic research approach that offers unique viewpoints for the analyses of different social domains and has become one of the key perspectives of critique in the contemporary era. In this paper, we will start with the identification of Foucault as a poststructuralist, which serves as the source for Foucault to propose governmentality as a poststructural research perspective. Then we will explore in detail the development and application of governmentality in the post-Foucauldian era as well as the potential value of governmentality research with particular focus on the conceptualization of rationalities and technologies of government as research tools that can be adopted for investigations into various social issues. Such elaboration of governmentality will not only enrich our understanding of the governmental practices in the Western world but also enhance the reflection and exploration of the governing in contemporary China.},
 year = {2022}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Passing on Foucault’s Poststructuralist Perspective: The Development and Application of Governmentality as Research Framework
AU  - Juming Shen
AU  - Xuhui Jiao
Y1  - 2022/03/29
PY  - 2022
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19
T2  - International Journal of Philosophy
JF  - International Journal of Philosophy
JO  - International Journal of Philosophy
SP  - 48
EP  - 54
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2330-7455
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20221001.19
AB  - From the 1960s, poststructuralism originated in France began to spread in the Western cultures, and merged with the postmodernism in the fields of literature, art, history, sociology, and political science, which brought about a wide impact on the research in social sciences. Following the principles of poststructuralism, scholars developed various fragmented, discontinuous, and diversified methods for investigating social issues. This paper focuses on the concept of governmentality put forward by Foucault as well as its development and application in the “post-Foucault” era. Governmentality is one of Michel Foucault’s key academic theories and research approaches, and it well demonstrates Foucault’s poststructuralist perspectives. As a poststructuralist research method, governmentality bears with itself unique critical perspectives. Through decades of development, especially the development during the Post-Foucauldian Era, governmentality has developed into a systematic research approach that offers unique viewpoints for the analyses of different social domains and has become one of the key perspectives of critique in the contemporary era. In this paper, we will start with the identification of Foucault as a poststructuralist, which serves as the source for Foucault to propose governmentality as a poststructural research perspective. Then we will explore in detail the development and application of governmentality in the post-Foucauldian era as well as the potential value of governmentality research with particular focus on the conceptualization of rationalities and technologies of government as research tools that can be adopted for investigations into various social issues. Such elaboration of governmentality will not only enrich our understanding of the governmental practices in the Western world but also enhance the reflection and exploration of the governing in contemporary China.
VL  - 10
IS  - 1
ER  -

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