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Language and power: ascribing legitimacy to interpretive research
Christine Ceci1, Lori Houger Limacher, Deborah L McLeod
1Faculty of Nursing at the University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Qualitative Health Research
|May 8, 2002
Summary
Judgments about knowledge legitimacy are tied to power dynamics, influencing what counts as valid information. Evaluating research requires considering epistemology, values, and power relations.
Area of Science:
- Epistemology
- Sociology of Knowledge
- Philosophy of Science
Background:
- Knowledge claims and their legitimacy are often evaluated based on truth or accuracy.
- Existing frameworks for evaluating knowledge may overlook the role of power relations.
- The influence of language in shaping what is considered legitimate knowledge is under-examined.
Purpose of the Study:
- To reframe the evaluation of knowledge claims through the lens of power relations.
- To analyze how power dynamics shape the acceptance and marginalization of different perspectives.
- To explore the role of language in constructing and constraining knowledge.
Main Methods:
- Conceptual analysis of knowledge legitimacy and power.
- Examination of competing discourses and their unequal standing.
- Exploration of the relationship between language, power, and knowledge production.
Main Results:
- Legitimacy of knowledge claims is inherently linked to power relations.
- Power dynamics privilege certain perspectives while marginalizing others.
- Language actively constructs and limits acceptable knowledge statements.
Conclusions:
- Evaluating interpretive research necessitates consideration of epistemological, value, and power dimensions.
- Understanding knowledge claims requires acknowledging their embeddedness in social and power structures.
- The study highlights the need for a critical approach to knowledge evaluation that accounts for power.