‘Therapeutic Entrepreneurialism’ and the Undermining of Expertise and Evidence in the Education Politics of Wellbeing

Abstract

Enthusiastic policy rhetoric and academic activity around `wellbeing' obscure the ways in which particular meanings gain traction in a particular political and socio-cultural context. Focusing on three educational policy texts, this chapter explores the ways in which the policy trajectory from text to practice is dominated by a narrow interpretation of wellbeing-as-mental health/character that generates `therapeutic entrepreneurialism'Therapeutic entrepreneurialism/entrepreneurs. I argue that these developments produce, and are fuelled by, dubious claims makers, evidence and expertise, and generate a powerful, self-referential consensus for a psycho-emotional, skills-based approach that marginalises richer philosophical, sociological and historical understandings of wellbeing. I conclude with some thoughts on what educationally-meaningful approaches to developing wellbeing might comprise