Social work theory · Volume D: Critical, Structural & Emancipatory

Marxist and political-economic theories

Marxist and political-economic theories explain social problems as products of the way a society organises production, distributes wealth and allocates power.

1. What it is

Marxist and political-economic theories explain social problems as products of the way a society organises production, distributes wealth and allocates power. They hold that poverty, unemployment, poor housing and many forms of personal distress arise from economic and political arrangements, and that these arrangements favour some classes over others (Marx & Engels, 1848/2002). For social work, the family supplies a structural account of the problems people bring to services and a critique of the welfare state itself. It asks whose interests social policy serves, and it treats individual hardship as connected to the wider economy (Mullaly, 2007; Payne, 2021).

Marxist social theory. Marxist theory, developed by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, analyses society through its mode of production. Under capitalism, the owners of capital (the bourgeoisie) purchase the labour of workers (the proletariat) and retain the surplus value that labour creates (Marx, 1867/1976). Class relations are therefore relations of exploitation and conflict. The economic base shapes the superstructure of law, politics, family and culture, and dominant ideas tend to legitimise existing inequalities. Marx also described alienation, the estrangement of workers from the products of their labour, from one another and from their own creative capacities. Marx (1867/1976) also argued that capitalism creates a “reserve army of labour”, a pool of unemployed and underemployed people whose presence keeps wages low. The concept has been used to analyse the position of long-term welfare recipients. Later Marxists, notably Gramsci, used the concept of hegemony to explain how ruling groups secure consent through culture and institutions as well as coercion (Payne, 2021).

Political economy of social welfare. The political economy of welfare examines how the welfare state is shaped by, and helps to sustain, a capitalist economy. Gough (1979) argued that the welfare state is contradictory: it meets real human needs and reflects working-class struggle, yet it also reproduces a healthy, disciplined workforce and maintains social order. O’Connor (1973) described a tension between the state’s accumulation function (supporting profitable enterprise) and its legitimation function (maintaining public loyalty through welfare). Esping-Andersen (1990) compared welfare regimes and showed how far each “decommodifies” people, allowing them to live without total dependence on the labour market. Australia has usually been classed as a liberal regime with targeted, means-tested payments. Later work has analysed neoliberalism, the shift towards markets, privatisation, conditional welfare and individual responsibility (Harvey, 2005). Australian debates about welfare conditionality, mutual obligation and income support levels draw directly on this analysis (Mendes, 2017).

Structural social work (Moreau, Mullaly). Structural social work was developed in Canada by Maurice Moreau at Carleton University in the 1970s and later systematised by Bob Mullaly. It locates the causes of personal problems in the structures of a liberal-capitalist society, especially class, gender, race and other social divisions, and holds that social work should help change those structures (Moreau, 1990; Mullaly, 2007). Moreau emphasised practice methods that link personal and political change: defending clients against agencies, collectivising problems, materialising issues (attending to material need), increasing client power in the helping relationship, and fostering consciousness-raising. Mullaly (2007, 2010) extended the approach into an analysis of oppression operating at personal, cultural and structural levels, and argued that workers must act both within and against the systems that employ them.

Critical social work (Fook, Healy). Critical social work is a broader, more recent umbrella that combines structural analysis with postmodern and poststructural insights about discourse, identity and local forms of power. Fook (1993) first developed radical casework, showing how structural understanding could guide work with individuals. Her later work (Fook, 2016) emphasises critical reflection: examining how workers’ own assumptions about power and knowledge shape practice, and reconstructing practice so that it is more just. Healy (2000, 2014) argued that earlier radical models assumed fixed identities and a simple opposition between powerful workers and powerless clients. She called for practice that recognises the diverse, contextual and sometimes contradictory operation of power in particular settings. Australian scholars have been prominent in defining this field (Allan et al., 2009). Critical social work shares the structural commitment to social justice but gives more attention to practitioner reflexivity, service users’ own accounts and the possibilities for change within everyday practice.

2. Historical development

Marxist theory originated in nineteenth-century political economy and philosophy as a critique of industrial capitalism. It became a foundation for later conflict theory (see Social stratification and inequality) and for the Frankfurt School (see Critical theory). Its independence as a framework rests on its claim that economic relations are the primary drivers of social organisation and that change requires collective action.

Social work engaged with Marxism most directly in the 1970s, when radical social workers argued that casework individualised problems that were structural in origin (Bailey & Brake, 1975; Corrigan & Leonard, 1978). Structural social work translated this critique into a practice model, and critical social work later broadened it to include gender, race, disability and discourse. In Australia, critical and structural approaches have been central to social work education since the 1990s (Allan et al., 2009; Fook, 2016).

3. Practical guidance

Political-economic theories guide workers to connect individual circumstances with economic and policy structures.

• Assess material conditions first. Ask about income, housing, employment, debt and access to services before interpreting distress in psychological terms. Moreau’s principle of materialising problems directs attention to concrete needs (Moreau, 1990).
• Collectivise private troubles. Help clients see that their difficulties are shared by others in similar positions. Groups, peer networks and community organising reduce self-blame and build collective capacity (Mullaly, 2007).
• Advocate within systems. Help clients claim entitlements under Centrelink, NDIS or housing programs, and challenge decisions that are unlawful or unfair. The Royal Commission into the Robodebt Scheme (2023) shows how administrative systems can harm people on low incomes.
• Reduce power differences in the relationship. Share information, explain the worker’s role and constraints, and involve clients in decisions, consistent with structural principles (Mullaly, 2007).
• Use critical reflection. Examine how agency rules, funding models and your own assumptions shape what you notice and recommend (Fook, 2016).
• Contribute to policy change. Document patterns of unmet need and contribute evidence to submissions, inquiries and professional associations such as the AASW.

4. Critical evaluation

Strengths. These theories provide a strong explanation of why social problems cluster among people on low incomes and in marginalised groups. They counter tendencies to pathologise individuals and remind the profession of its social justice mission (AASW, 2020). Structural and critical social work have produced concrete practice principles, and political-economy analysis remains essential for understanding welfare reform, privatisation and the conditions of social work employment (Ferguson, 2008).

Limitations. Classical Marxism has been criticised for economic reductionism, treating class as the primary division and giving less weight to gender, race, colonisation, sexuality and disability (Healy, 2000). Early radical social work offered limited guidance for direct practice and could leave workers feeling that only revolutionary change mattered (Payne, 2021). Postmodern critics argue that structural models assume a single, unified source of oppression. Workers in statutory roles also face real tensions in applying structural principles inside agencies whose mandates are regulatory.

Overall importance. Marxist and political-economic theories give social work its main language for analysing poverty, inequality and the welfare state. Structural and critical social work translate that language into practice. In Australia, the family remains central to education and to the profession’s engagement with welfare policy, and it underpins much of the anti-oppressive and human rights work described in D4 and D6.

5. References

• Allan, J., Briskman, L., & Pease, B. (Eds.). (2009). Critical social work: Theories and practices for a socially just world (2nd ed.). Allen & Unwin.
• Australian Association of Social Workers. (2020). Code of ethics. AASW.
• Bailey, R., & Brake, M. (Eds.). (1975). Radical social work. Edward Arnold.
• Corrigan, P., & Leonard, P. (1978). Social work practice under capitalism: A Marxist approach. Macmillan.
• Esping-Andersen, G. (1990). The three worlds of welfare capitalism. Polity Press.
• Ferguson, I. (2008). Reclaiming social work: Challenging neo-liberalism and promoting social justice. Sage.
• Fook, J. (1993). Radical casework: A theory of practice. Allen & Unwin.
• Fook, J. (2016). Social work: A critical approach to practice (3rd ed.). Sage.
• Galper, J. H. (1975). The politics of social services. Prentice-Hall.
• Gough, I. (1979). The political economy of the welfare state. Macmillan.
• Harvey, D. (2005). A brief history of neoliberalism. Oxford University Press.
• Healy, K. (2000). Social work practices: Contemporary perspectives on change. Sage.
• Healy, K. (2014). Social work theories in context: Creating frameworks for practice (2nd ed.). Palgrave Macmillan.
• Marx, K. (1976). Capital: A critique of political economy (Vol. 1; B. Fowkes, Trans.). Penguin. (Original work published 1867)
• Marx, K., & Engels, F. (2002). The communist manifesto (S. Moore, Trans.). Penguin. (Original work published 1848)
• Mendes, P. (2017). Australia’s welfare wars: The players, the politics and the ideologies (3rd ed.). UNSW Press.
• Moreau, M. J. (1990). Empowerment through advocacy and consciousness-raising: Implications of a structural approach to social work. Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare, 17(2), 53–67.
• Mullaly, B. (2007). The new structural social work (3rd ed.). Oxford University Press.
• Mullaly, B. (2010). Challenging oppression and confronting privilege (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press.
• O’Connor, J. (1973). The fiscal crisis of the state. St. Martin’s Press.
• Payne, M. (2021). Modern social work theory (5th ed.). Red Globe Press.
• Royal Commission into the Robodebt Scheme. (2023). Report. Commonwealth of Australia.