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Emotional Interest Representation and the Politics of Risk in Child Protection

Author

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  • Jo Warner

    (School of Social Policy, Sociology & Social Research, University of Kent, UK)

Abstract

This article explores the emotional dimensions of political representation by British Members of Parliament (MP) in relation to child protection. The public speech acts and first-hand accounts of three MPs are drawn upon as examples. These highlight different forms of emotional interest representation that arise following the death of a local child from severe abuse or neglect and in response to anxieties in the community about risk. Firstly, I examine the role of the MP in seeking to embody their constituency in the public expression of collective emotional responses and to defend it from feelings of guilt and shame. Personal feelings of guilt and a consciousness of the politician’s role in attributing blame are then considered. Thirdly, I explore the role of the MP as trusted envoy for anxieties about risk to individual children within their constituencies. The article draws on Berezin’s concept of the secure state and Hochschild’s notion of politicians as feeling legislators, and is based on qualitative documentary analysis and semi-structured interviews with MPs. It is argued that the emotional processes outlined are central to understanding the problematic relationship between politics and state social work that fuels the cycle of crisis and reform in children’s services in the UK.

Suggested Citation

  • Jo Warner, 2018. "Emotional Interest Representation and the Politics of Risk in Child Protection," Politics and Governance, Cogitatio Press, vol. 6(4), pages 73-82.
    • Handle: RePEc:cog:poango:v:6:y:2018:i:4:p:73-82
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Trineke Palm, 2018. "Interwar Blueprints of Europe: Emotions, Experience and Expectation," Politics and Governance, Cogitatio Press, vol. 6(4), pages 135-143.
    2. Rosa Sanchez Salgado, 2018. "The Advocacy of Feelings: Emotions in EU-Based Civil Society Organizations’ Strategies," Politics and Governance, Cogitatio Press, vol. 6(4), pages 103-114.
    3. Simon Koschut, 2018. "Appropriately Upset? A Methodological Framework for Tracing the Emotion Norms of the Transatlantic Security Community," Politics and Governance, Cogitatio Press, vol. 6(4), pages 125-134.
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    Cited by:

    1. Alex Prior & Yuri van Hoef, 2018. "Interdisciplinary Approaches to Emotions in Politics and International Relations," Politics and Governance, Cogitatio Press, vol. 6(4), pages 48-52.
    2. Alex Michael Prior, 2018. "Getting the Story Right: A Constructivist Interpretation of Storytelling in the Context of UK Parliamentary Engagement," Politics and Governance, Cogitatio Press, vol. 6(4), pages 83-94.

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