Return to Winston Parva: Starting to Reconstruct The Established and the Outsiders 'From the Margins'

In this paper, we reflect on our experiences of trying to undertake a restudy of The Established and The Outsiders - Return to Winston Parva. We consider the methodological challenges that such a 'return' has raised for us (and potential research funders). These include i) the circumstances surrounding the genesis of the published version of The Established and the Outsiders; ii) the lack of specific methodological details and research design relating to the original study; and iii) the less than clear exposition of three neighbourhood zones known as 'Winston Parva'. The discussion then outlines how a fortuitous contact from John Scotson’s estate led to a 'bundle of papers' the retrieval of and which now represent a complete archive of materials relating to the original study on which The Established and The Outsiders. For the first time, we outline the scope and extent of these archive materials, the paradata and marginalia, as well as considering Scotson's hand drawn map which demarcates 'Winston Parva' precisely from its surrounding environs

Doctoral Students' Experience at University of Leicester

In recent years there has been a growth in the number of taught doctoral programmes, however there has been limited systematic research on the extent to which student experiences differ between taught and traditional modes. This project aimed to contribute to this area by exploring different experiences of learning on the variety of doctoral qualifications offered by the University of Leicester: research only, part-taught and fully taught. Each type of doctoral degree varies in terms of structure, level and amount of contact, the extent of formal teaching interventions and assessment

Cyber-Mothers: Online Synchronous Interviewing using Conferencing Software

The potential of the Internet as a valuable methodological tool for social science research is increasingly being recognised. This paper contributes to the debate surrounding virtual synchronous interviews and the value of online research. Specifically it introduces the use of a software conferencing technique - Hotline Connect - and discusses the implications of using the technique for Internet-based research. In particular issues of interview design, developing rapport, the role of insiders and outsiders in the research process, language use and the virtual interface are considered. The paper draws on the experience of a recent research project entitled 'Cyberparents' and concludes that the use of conferencing software holds great potential for synchronous online interviewing. However, this must be combined with sensitive, ethical handling of both the research process and the data to overcome both the weaknesses of this particular method and those inherent in any interviewing situation.Conferencing Software; Cyber-mothers; Internet Methodologies; Online Parenting Community.; Virtual Synchronous Interviews

Women, Work and Childcare: An Intergenerational Study of Two Generations of Mothers

The rapid increase in the rate of female participation in the labour market in the post-war period is a well-documented trend. However, the experiences of mothers balancing paid work and childcare responsibilities have received academic attention only in recent decades. Working class mothers, who have a long history of combining paid work and domestic responsibilities, have been neglected in the literature. There has also been a lack of research examining the impact of intergenerational transmission on the values and practices of mothers within families. This thesis addresses this gap by examining the childcare strategies of two cohorts of working women: grandmothers and mothers. Grandmothers and mothers in fourteen family chains were interviewed and their strategies for combining paid work and domestic responsibilities were examined. It is argued that these strategies have changed across time and the complexity of childcare strategies has declined reflecting changes in government policy. The younger generation have benefited from policy changes aimed at encouraging mothers to return to the labour market. It is also argued that the role of intergenerational transmission is of key importance in understanding mothers' decisions about combining work and childcare responsibilities. Indeed, the behaviour of mothers was influenced by their own mothers' actions, either positively, by 'mimicking' their role or negatively, by avoiding the reproduction of their mothers' behaviour. Whilst intergenerational ties were found to be important, the role of grandmothers as providers of childcare was not as important as argued elsewhere. An important finding of the thesis is that very few grandmothers provided childcare because most continued to be economically active. It is concluded that the changes to policy stemming from the Labour government's National Childcare Strategy have had a positive impact on working mothers' lives but further changes are still necessary to address the childcare needs of all families

Innovation Month® Workbook

Since Sociology was established in 1967, the journal has assumed a significant role in shaping the discipline. In the interim years it is often said that the very practice of sociology has now ‘spun out’ beyond the dedicated departments that were once the centres of sociological practice. This raises questions as to the relationship between sociology and other disciplines, questions that are compelling and arguably distinct from a welcome recognition of sociology’s undoubted intellectual hybridity. The extent to which this is a productive tension or one that requires a resolution is an ongoing conversation to which this special issue speaks. In this introductory article we take what we consider to be an innovative route that is guided by the theme of ‘Bringing Sociology Home’ whilst simultaneously recognising the enormous strengths brought by the multidisciplinary developments of the last 50 volumes. We set out the terrain before introducing a mixture of short and substantive papers from contributors, as well as interviews, with scholars who have made a contribution to the study of the discipline of sociology both inside and beyond the pages of the journal

She wants to be like her Mum: Girls' transition to work in the 1960's

In the early 1960s researchers at the University of Leicester carried out a unique survey into the school to work transition experiences of nearly nine hundred young adults. The survey documented most aspects of the schoolleavers’ lives, however, the majority of the data from this 'Young Worker Project' has remained unanalysed and unpublished for nearly forty years. Recently 851 of the original interview schedules were uncovered and, as part of a broader ESRC funded project, re-analysis has commenced. Little is known about the transition to work at this time and what research does exist has focused on the experience of boys. Using data from the original survey, which included interviews with 260 girls, this paper examines the female experience of the transition from school to work, concluding that gender played a significant role in influencing the way in which the school to work transition was experienced