Subjetividad política (Categoría emergente)

The research methodology, for this study, seeks the optimum means of gaining knowledge on the way social inclusion is understood in contemporary ECEC approaches and how emotions and/or cognitions influence decisions to participate in LiL and CFC programs. Information on social inclinations is considered particularly relevant, given that participation in these programs is promoted as a way to reduce disadvantage by enhancing social inclusion, specifically for families living in low SES environments (EYLF, DEEWR, 2009).

Qualitative research methodology has been chosen for this study as the most appropriate way to document parents‟ and practitioners‟ personal accounts, based on their involvement in LiL and CFC programs.

This information, with reference to underlying philosophical and theoretical

frameworks, is sought for the purpose of gaining understanding on the emotional influences motivating social behaviours. These understandings are important because, although theory and research are inseparable, the relationship between the two can elicit varied interpretations (Hartas, 2009).

4.2.1 Philosophical View of the Mind and Body

Endeavouring to explain the intricacies of social behaviour requires exposing the

philosophical world-view which, for this thesis, involves a belief in the immeasurable, but observable, nature of emotional influences driving social behaviours. In recent times, beliefs around mind/body dualism have moved away from the learning concept of the body as the hardware, and the reprogrammable mind as the software of behaviour (Scott, 2012). This move has occurred, because contemporary findings in biology are now able to show connections between chemical changes and the effects on children‟s brains, bodies,

psychology and behaviour. Given the biological impacts on behaviours, a more apt analogy would be, perhaps, to call the mind/psyche the hardware, because it involves the primary emotions, which trigger chemical changes. From this premise, the body/brain may be more comparable to the software, where cognitions, perceptions and social behaviours derive from emotionally imprinted messages.

Consequently, the philosophical assumption underlying this research is that the mind and brain, although inextricably connected, are not one and the same; the mind being

emotional as opposed to the physicality of the brain (Schuh & Barab, 2007). The reason this position is taken is in the belief that the mind is concerned with memory of experiences from

where perceptions of reality evolve. It is, because reality is assumed separate from the perceptions within the mind, that it is beholden on the sociologist to examine how individuals‟ perceptions of events and responses to their environment, relate to observed patterns of behaviour (Schuh & Barab, 2007).

This research, therefore, seeks to unravel social behaviours in the belief that the mind is a separate, albeit collaborative, entity from the brain and that memories and emotions are intangible and thus empirically immeasurable. Deriving from Cartesian philosophy, the idea of dualism is that the mind is considered distinct from the body, the body being tangible and measurable whereas the mind is symbolic, subjective and perceptive (Schuh & Barab, 2007). The nature of emotions is that they are intangible and difficult to study and require taking various epistemological and philosophical theories into account (TenHouten, 2007).

With this philosophy in mind, this thesis draws on theories of emotions in the context of various disciplinary ideas and contemporary social inclusion strategies. Theories, in line with historical, cultural and political contexts, are used to frame the practitioner interview responses and parent accounts to gain information on contemporary understandings of social inclusion in ECEC approaches. Rather than subscribing to a rational actor, post-

Enlightenment philosophy, however, this research supports Bourdieu‟s (1990a) call for a philosophy to explain what is happening now. The interviews with LiL and CFC

practitioners and parents are sought to reveal their everyday experiences, viewpoints and observations.

4.2.2 Connecting Theory and Observations

Inherent in this research is an acceptance that purely deductive or inductive approaches do not exist, because the seeking of knowledge often involves a combination of examining everyday accounts, interpreting meanings, utilising social science data and reflecting on one‟s own experience (Mason, 2002). While the hypothetical-deductive approach moves from a theoretical generalisation to a particular action, grounded theory usually involves allowing the data to reveal the theory. Even grounded theory is not purely inductive as it was initially instigated to overcome the problem of theory testing in quantitative research (Atkinson et al., 2003).

Consequently, the idea behind this research is that neither theory testing nor inductive analysis is enough to explain new patterns of behaviours in a changing world. Accordingly, abductive reasoning is adopted as a more practical way of connecting the theories with parent

and practitioner perspectives. The combination of deductive and inductive theorising, in this research, includes a general proposal that a link may exist between early attachment-related, emotionally-based social skills and the acquiring of social dispositions/inclinations. This presumed link is examined in conjunction with relevant theories and an inductive analysis of common themes emerging from the practitioner interviews and parent accounts.

Bowlby‟s (1973,1982) attachment theory is prominent in the theoretical framework which examines the influences motivating social behaviours. Theories explaining the emotional foundation of an individual‟s social behaviour can add meaning to Bourdieu‟s (1984) suggestion that certain social dispositions may elicit societal disadvantage. The purpose of seeking this information is to assist social policy and ECEC approaches to avoid misunderstandings and misinterpretations of the way teacher/practitioner-parents/children and primarily parent-children interactions, impact on social inclusion.