Potter, Martin, and Louth, Jonathon (2017) Edges of Identity: The Production of Neoliberal Subjectivities. Issues in the Social Sciences, 10 . University of Chester Press, Chester, UK.

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Abstract

In recent decades neoliberalism has emerged as the ruling economic, political and cultural ideology of our time. Originally construed as an economic philosophy, neoliberalism is better understood today as a broad world view that emphasises free-market policies, deregulation, individualism, self-management and personal resilience at the expense of more collective, social-democratic policies and principles. Neoliberalism is a pervasive ideology that has shaped our lives for more than 40 years, from the wide-ranging organisational structures of our global economy to our most intimate bodily practices.

In this engaging and accessible volume, Jonathon Louth and Martin Potter bring together researchers working in and across Europe, Asia, Australia and North America to elucidate on the manifold ways in which neoliberalism produces our subjectivities. Taking in nations and citizenship, urban transformation, gender, work, (dis)ability, sexual performance and cognitive function, this volume demonstrates the astonishing scope of neoliberalism to inform and delimit our identities on both macro and micro levels of social and personal life. Combining thoughtful theoretical accounts with fascinating fieldwork and spanning areas of inquiry including the UK, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Pakistan, Cambodia, Japan and Australia, Edges of Identity provides a remarkable collection of global perspectives on the impact of neoliberalism in contemporary international contexts.

This tenth volume in the Issues in the Social Sciences series is an absorbing introduction to the practical affects and lived realities of neoliberal ideology that will appeal both to readers encountering neoliberalism for the first time and expert scholars in the Social Sciences and Humanities.

Research Statement

Research Background	Neoliberalism has emerged as the ruling economic, political and cultural ideology of our time. Originally construed as an economic philosophy, neoliberalism is better understood today as a broad worldview that emphasises free-market policies, deregulation and individualism at the expense of more collective, social-democratic policies and principles. Neoliberalism is a pervasive ideology that has shaped our lives for more than 40 years, from the wide-ranging organisational structures of our global economy to our most intimate bodily practices.
Research Contribution	This volume explores how competing forms of self and society are repressed or exploit niche opportunities. In each case, how agency is expressed or is repressed is the point of fascination. The normalisation and the reproduction of particular social practices are linked to the expansion and penetration of neoliberalism. This volume critically explores how a range of subjectivities is formed, constrained, reshaped or resisted when confronted by the expansionary logic of neoliberalism.
Research Significance	“Louth and Potter have done readers a great service in collating a diverse but focused group of scholars who successfully capture the manifold dimensions of neoliberalism/neoliberalisation across competing times, spaces, and scales.” Dr Stuart Shields, Senior Lecturer Politics, University of Manchester "Louth and Potter have curated a remarkably diverse, yet coherent collection of contributions that investigate how markets shape us and the societies we live in. A volume for students and scholars alike who want to better understand how neoliberalism is imbricated into our everyday.” Professor Timothy Doyle, Department of Politics and International Studies, University of Adelaide
Item ID:	49969
Item Type:	Book (Edited)
ISBN:	978-1-908258-24-3
Date Deposited:	29 Aug 2017 02:22
FoR Codes:	20 LANGUAGE, COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE > 2001 Communication and Media Studies > 200103 International and Development Communication @ 40% 20 LANGUAGE, COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE > 2002 Cultural Studies > 200203 Consumption and Everyday Life @ 20% 16 STUDIES IN HUMAN SOCIETY > 1604 Human Geography > 160403 Social and Cultural Geography @ 40%
SEO Codes:	94 LAW, POLITICS AND COMMUNITY SERVICES > 9403 International Relations > 940304 International Political Economy (excl. International Trade) @ 30% 95 CULTURAL UNDERSTANDING > 9502 Communication > 950204 The Media @ 40% 91 ECONOMIC FRAMEWORK > 9102 Microeconomics > 910202 Human Capital Issues @ 30%
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