CIRCULATION AT THE TOP: ELITES, SOCIAL MOBILITY AND INTERGENERATIONAL CAPITAL CONVERSION

AbstractDespite calls for bridging the gap between the sociology of social class and the sociology of elites, there are few examples where this actually has been done. This article seeks to do so by applying approachesand statistical techniques commonly used in studies of social mobility in an analysis of circulation mobility in elite formations. Based on register data on the whole Norwegian population born 1955-1975, we analyze the educational and professional intergenerational mobility among “the successful inheritors”. In this way, and by focusing on mobility barriers and trajectories, we seek to uncover patterns of stability and change in family dynastic relations, i.e. relations that primarily are based on inheritedforms of capital. These patterns can also reveal what forms of intergenerational capital conversion have been the most common,and therefore also the most acceptable, in the upper and upper middle classes in postwar Norway, and what conversions have been less common. The results indicate that even in the supposedly egalitarian Norwegian elites, some inheritors prove to be “more equal than others”.Keywords: Elite. Intergerational capital conversion. Mobility. Circulation an the top.CIRCULAÇÃO NO TOPO: ELITES, MOBILIDADE SOCIAL E CONVERSÃO INTERGERACIONAL DE CAPITALResumoApesar dos apelos para suprir a lacuna entre a sociologia das classes sociais e a sociologia das elites, há poucos exemplos em que issotenha sido feito. Este artigo busca fazer isso aplicando abordagens e técnicas estatísticas comumente utilizadas em estudos de mobilidadesocial em nas análise da mobilidade de circulação em formações de elite. Com base em dados de registro de toda a população norueguesa nascida entre 1955 e 1975, analisamos a mobilidade educacional e profissionalintergeracional entre "os herdeiros bem-sucedidos". Desta forma, e focalizando as barreiras e as trajetórias de mobilidade, buscamos descobrir os padrões de estabilidade e de mudança nas relações dinásticas familiares, ou seja, relações que se baseiam principalmente em formas hereditárias de capital. Além disso, esses padrões podemrevelar quais formas de conversão intergeracional de capital têm sido as mais comuns e, portanto, também, as mais aceitáveis nas classes média-alta e na classe alta da Noruega do pós-guerra, e quais conversões têmsido menos comuns. Os resultados indicam que, mesmo nas elites norueguesas supostamente igualitárias, alguns herdeiros provamser "mais iguais do que outros".Palavras-chave: Elites. Conversão intergeracional de capital. Mobilidade. Circulação no topo.AbstractDespite calls for bridging the gap between the sociology of social class and the sociology of elites, there are few examples where this actually has been done. This article seeks to do so by applying approaches and statistical techniques commonly used in studies of social mobility in an analysis of circulation mobility in elite formations. Based on register data on the whole Norwegian population born 1955-1975, we analyze the educational and professional intergenerational mobility among “the successful inheritors”. In this way, and by focusing on mobility barriers and trajectories, we seek to uncover patterns of stability and change in family dynastic relations, i.e. relations that primarily are based on inherited forms of capital. These patterns can also reveal what forms of intergenerational capital conversion have been the most common,and therefore also the most acceptable, in the upper and upper middle classes in postwar Norway, and what conversions have been less common. The results indicate that even in the supposedly egalitarian Norwegian elites, some inheritors prove to be “more equal than others”.Keywords: Elite. Intergerational capital conversion. Mobility. Circulation an the top.CIRCULAÇÃO NO TOPO: ELITES, MOBILIDADE SOCIAL E CONVERSÃO INTERGERACIONAL DE CAPITALResumoApesar dos apelos para suprir a lacuna entre a sociologia das classes sociais e a sociologia das elites, há poucos exemplos em que isso tenha sido feito. Este artigo busca fazer isso aplicando abordagens e técnicas estatísticas comumente utilizadas em estudos de mobilidade social em nas análise da mobilidade de circulação em formações de elite. Com base em dados de registro de toda a população norueguesa nascida entre 1955 e 1975, analisamos a mobilidade educacional e profissional intergeracional entre "os herdeiros bem-sucedidos". Desta forma, e focalizando as barreiras e as trajetórias de mobilidade, buscamos descobrir os padrões de estabilidade e de mudança nas relações dinásticas familiares, ou seja, relações que se baseiam principalmente em formas hereditárias de capital. Além disso, esses padrões podem revelar quais formas de conversão intergeracional de capital têm sido as mais comuns e, portanto, também, as mais aceitáveis nas classes média-alta e na classe alta da Noruega do pós-guerra, e quais conversões têm sido menos comuns. Os resultados indicam que, mesmo nas elites norueguesas supostamente igualitárias, alguns herdeiros provam ser "mais iguais do que outros".Palavras-chave: Elites. Conversão intergeracional de capital. Mobilidade. Circulação no topo

På veg mot ei ny dansk maktutgreing; makt, hierarki og ulikskap i ein egalitær kontekst: AFSLUTTENDE REFLEKSIONER

Maktutgreiingar har vore noko av eit sær-skandinavisk fenomen, med eigneutgreiingar i både Noreg (1972-82 og 1997-2003), Sverige (1985-1990) ogDanmark (1997-2003).1I alle desse prosjekta har koplinga mellom makt ogdemokrati stått sentralt. Korleis er vilkåra for demokratiet? På kva måtar vertdemokratiet og demokratisk deltaking utfordra av t.d. asymmetriske maktrelasjonar, institusjonelle endringar, ny teknologi og globalisering? Kva er tilstanden for demokratiet i dag? Hovudfokuset i alle desse utgreiingane kanderfor seiast å ha vore på vilkåra for utøvinga av politisk makt

On the reception of Bourdieu's sociology in the world's most equal societies

This chapter discusses the reception of Bourdieu in Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, which are three of the richest, but also most egalitarian, societies in the world, with strong welfare state traditions. The sympathy toward Bourdieu’s thinking in Scandinavia may be linked to a resonance for his critique of domination and of neoliberalism; the strong resistance his thinking also has encountered stems from a denial of its relevance for Scandinavia. Finding identical oppositions in Scandinavia from those found in France would imply a pre-construction of the kind that Bourdieu relentlessly warned against; nevertheless, it may be argued that if his models are applicable in Scandinavia, which is so different from France, they should be applicable everywhere. The chapter presents works from the three fields where the use of Bourdieu’s models has been most important in Scandinavia: education, cultural consumption, and power and the elites.</p

Skillelinjer i universitets- og høgskolesektoren: Et eksplorerende notat

I dette notatet reiser vi spørsmålet om hva som er de grunnleggende institusjonsforskjellene i norsk høyere utdanningssektor. Formålet har vært å teste ut metoder til å tegne et «kart» over de norske lærestedene i høyere utdanning basert på noen sentrale faktorer basert på data samlet inn blant fast vitenskapelig ansatte i UH-sektoren som ledd i et strategisk forskningsprosjekt for Kunnskapsdepartementet .Til tross for at institusjonene tilsynelatende har blitt likere i de siste ti årene, hvor de har blitt behandlet av felles lov, stillingsstruktur, finansieringsmodell og høgskolene har hatt mulighet til å bli akkreditert universitet, finner vi fremdeles det samme hovedskillet mellom de eldre universitetene som forskningsintense og de statlige høgskolene. Norge har fremdeles en klart todelt sektor, på tross av de senere års utvikling

The socioeconomic dimensions of racial inequality in South Africa: a social space perspective

It is well evidenced that South Africa is characterised by extreme socioeconomic inequality, which is strongly racialised. We offer an original sociological perspective, which departs from established perspectives considering the dynamics of vulnerability and poverty to focus on the structuring of classed and racialised privilege. We map how stocks of economic, cultural, and social capital intersect to generate systematic and structural inequalities in the country and consider how far these are associated with fundamental racial divides. To achieve this, we utilise rich, nationally representative data from the National Income Dynamics Study and employ Multiple Correspondence Analysis to construct a model of South African ‘social space’. Our findings underscore how entrenched racial divisions remain within South Africa, with White people being overwhelmingly located in the most privileged positions. However, our cluster analysis also indicates that forms of middle-class privilege percolate beyond a core of the 8% of the population that is white. We emphasise how age divisions are associated with social capital accumulation. Our cluster analysis reveals that trust levels increase with economic and cultural capital levels within younger age groups and could therefore come to intensify social and racial divisions

Class Boundaries in Europe: The Bourdieusian Approach in Perspective

Drawing inspiration from Pierre Bourdieu’s social space theory, this book provides an unprecedent overview of class relations, covering topics such as class polarisation, cultural reproduction, political orientations, and globalisation.The book applies Bourdieusian social space approach to show how class boundaries have been maintained or transformed in different European countries. Based on quantiative data, it proposes a renewal of the analysis of distances, divides, and relations of domination between social classes, documenting objective and symbolic boundaries that form the basis of individuals’ living and working conditions in 11 European countries.Focusing on transformations of wealth inequalities, education strategies, and European labour markets, the book examines the role of cultural, economic and social capital. It will be of interest to students and scholars across the social sciences, in particular to those studying social and wealth inequalities in a comparative perspective and Master's students in European studies