Precarious Epistemic Justice: Navigating the Politics of the Therapy Room With Children and Their Caregivers

Epistemic justice in therapy is precarious with children's voices easily marginalised. Discursive therapies (narrative, collaborative, and solution-focused therapies) aim to incorporate a power analysis, in contrast to focusing on children's so-called “problematic behaviours.” This study offers a critical discourse analysis of discursive therapy interactions with a 9-year-old child, Isla, and her female caregiver. The findings show micropolitics at work and how the child can be held responsible for managing her own distress, with the influence of behavioural and individualising discourses. Findings also show the child and practitioner working together to position Isla as a “knower,” opening possibilities to explore the intersecting social structures operating in her life. Yet, our analysis demonstrates how epistemic justice for Isla remains precarious. This study provides a timely warning about the complexities involved in finding epistemic justice for children in therapy in the current neoliberal context. An intersectional analysis can inform micromoments of critical mental health practice, to name the structural issues children face. There are hazards, however, involved in overstating the role of therapy in addressing enduring social inequalities and violence in children's lives.