ABSTRACT
This chapter aims to provide a wider social and political context for the chapters that follow. It argues that the space in which the modern professional both ‘practises’ and ‘reflects’ has been fundamentally restructured over the last thirty years, a period sometimes referred to as ‘late modernity’ (Parton 2006). The chapter outlines some of the important social changes that have taken place and analyses the implications for critical reflection in the late-modern era. The chapter draws on the experience of the ‘human-service’ professions in particular, although it is suggested that the analysis has implications throughout a wider range of professional work.
