Towards Professional Wisdom

'This is a masterly and perceptive diagnosis of what has happened to the language and practice of professionalism over the past generation and an inspiring manifesto for the recovery of lost wisdom. These essays help to restore qualities such as imagination, empathy, discernment and vulnerability to the lexicon of the helping professions, and it deserves to be widely read.' Elaine Graham, University of Chester, UK 'Wisdom is a neglected topic in discussions of professionalism and ethics. This book offers an original approach by focusing on this concept, providing depth and breadth through a detailed and thoughtful consideration of different facets of what it means to practice wisdom in the "people" professions. It is a helpful resource for both the experienced practitioner and the novice.' Richard Hugman, University of New South Wales, Australia 'In an era of rampant methodolatry and measurement-mania, here is a compelling defense of critical and compassionate, principled and perceptive, human judgment. Towards Professional Wisdom explores professional life with an exceptional combination of rigor and range, offering theoretically sophisticated general treatments of practical wisdom and qualitatively rich case studies across the people professions. This is a measured volume with bursts of brio.' Chris Higgins, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA 'This book is certainly successful in bringing together different perspectives from a range of academic disciplines and professional contexts. It provides an interesting contribution to the growing literature on professional knowledge and will be useful to practitioners undertaking study or further study in the area or who are interested in comparing the current debates across professional contexts.' Probation Journal 'Well-researched and thought-provoking, this is not a book for the faint-hearted. ... I would recommend it to those interested in an in-depth understanding of the nature of professional judgm