About who defines the problem and wonders what “knowledge” actually is…

I got a tip about an article in a Norwegian newspaper on “Everything isn’t relative”.

Knowledge based (evidence based?) praxis puts the emphasis on diagnosis’. And as a friend wrote: WHO defines what the problem is actually??

When I am reading the debate article I come to think about that with empathy… And earlier thoughts about empathy deficits… I link all earlier postings with the label “empathy deficits” here; the eventual reader can chose what to read…

The beginning of the article in Norwegian:

”Hva er kunn­skap? Hva kan vi vite noe om? Hvor­dan kom­mer vi til er­kjen­nel­se? Dis­ku­sjo­nen om kunn­skaps­grunn­la­get for valg av til­tak på vik­ti­ge sam­funns­om­rå­der er for­ank­ret i de grunn­leg­gen­de vi­ten­skaps­teo­re­tis­ke spørs­må­le­ne.

De svar som gis, får et kon­kret, prak­tisk inn­hold idet de pre­ger hver­da­gen både for dem som gir og de som mot­tar vel­ferds­tje­nes­ter. Det­te er alt­så ikke aka­de­misk fli­se­spik­ke­ri, men en dis­ku­sjon om hva pa­si­en­ter skal bli møtt med i hel­se­tje­nes­ten, hva ele­ver skal bli møtt med på sko­len og hva for­eld­re og barn skal bli møtt med i bar­ne­ver­net.”

In Swedish (my interpretation and understanding, or misunderstanding, probably involved in the translation too):

”Vad är kunskap? Vad kan vi veta något om? Hur kommer vi till vetande/erkännande? Diskussionen om kunskapsunderlaget för val av hur vi handlar inom viktiga områden i samhället är förankrade i grundläggande vetenskapsteoretiska frågeställningar.

De svar som ges får ett konkret, praktiskt innehåll genom att de präglar vardagen både för dem som ger och dem som tar emot välfärdstjänster. Detta är alltså inte akademiskt språk, utan en diskussion om vad patienter ska bli mötta med i hälsovården, vad elever ska bli mötta med i skolan och vad föräldrar och barn ska bli mötta med i barnevernet (skydd för barn).”

In a sender-in in a local newspaper this morning a retired teacher wrote about what she thinks we value in school, and have always valued and the consequences of this, what we reward and, underlying; what does children learn about themselves in school? What have they learned? Which maybe strengthens (and have strengthened) what they have with them from home. And children are forced to go to school. I refer to this sender in here.

And all children aren’t acting out either, someone pointed to somewhere else (I don't know where now)… Some are playing the role extremely well of being satisfied, well adapted, clever… Hiding for the entire grown up environment how they actually feel and have it?

How shall I express this? I try: The way in which power is exercised can be very subtle, and maybe not always so conscious (denied from the part of the parent to such a degree), but the stronger the compulsion or coercion to exercise this power is and the subtler this is exercised (and the more denied this fact is from the part of the one in power/the parent) the more confused the child can become?

I think I know such a child very well…

In the middle of writing I got a phone-call from one of my nephews, turning 16 on Friday, January 25. He invited me for birthday celebrations on Saturday! :-) Of course I am booking that! I am so fond of my nephews (they are three) and niece...