ABSTRACT
This concluding chapter synthesizes the joint contribution of the volume based on findings from the individual case studies. It identifies a number of theoretical lessons learnt on governing attempts and the agency and subjectivity formation of those subjected to them, enabling us to nuance theoretical notions of the transformation of human subjectivity in contemporary times. By way of combining governmentality perspectives and ethnographies of institutional discourse, this chapter develops further the interplay between structure and agency in governmentality. In conclusion, a research agenda for a ‘second generation’ of governmentality studies and beyond is proposed based on a distinctively sociological theoretical approach to the study of governmentality. At the heart of this approach lies a structure–agency dynamic, shaping the outcome of governing attempts, the key dimensions of which are identified in this chapter.
