Expertise and Forms of Knowledge in the Government of Families

Elizabeth Murphy

doi:10.1111/j.1467-954x.2003.00430.x

Abstract

This paper examines the relationship between the state and the individual in relation to an aspect of mundane family life – the feeding of babies and young children. The nutritional status of children has long been a matter of national concern and infant feeding is an aspect of family life that has been subjected to substantial state intervention. It exemplifies the imposition upon women the ‘biologico-moral responsibility’ for the welfare of children ( Foucault, 1991b ).

Highlights

There is a paradox at the heart of the relationship between the state and the family in contemporary liberal states
There is a commitment to the limiting the role of the state and respect for the autonomy and privacy of individuals and families
There is a concern to influence and regulate social and economic life, so as to foster desired values including wealth, health and other kinds of well-being (Rose 1992). This paper examines this tension using empirical data in relation to one area of mundane family life – the feeding of babies and young children

Summary

Introduction

There is a paradox at the heart of the relationship between the state and the family in contemporary liberal states. In my mind you know about different things the baby’ll need at different times when it gets older Before their babies’ births, most mothers constructed infant feeding as an expert domain, governed by scientific and technical knowledge, invested primarily in health professionals. She skilfully presented her intended feeding practices as legitimate, even though they did not match the prescriptions of professional experts In doing so, she resisted the discourse of technical expertise and presented herself as a good mother exercising her right to make well-informed choices in her child’s best interests. The three women who actively challenged the authority and expertise of health professionals, at the antenatal interviews, all intended to formula-feed This decision placed them in moral jeopardy and raised questions about the legitimacy of their choices (self-citation 1999; 2000). That such women actively clarified the boundaries between their own sphere of expertise and authority and that of health professionals

Mothers and Expertise after the birth of the babies

Discussion

TABLE ONE