Bases of a Sociological Economy.: From François Simiand and Maurice Halbwachs to Pierre Bourdieu

International audiencePierre Bourdieu's contribution to the field of "economic sociology" is of both a "methodological" and "positive" nature, according to the vocabulary used by the Durkheimian sociologists. It expands, systematizes and goes beyond some proposals and results of the "founders" of this area of the discipline, specifically François Simiand and Maurice Halbwachs, whose contributions are still very often underestimated

Yanis (Varoufakis), the Minotaur, and the Field of Eurocracy

This paper aims to show the binding force within the social field of Eurocracy and, more specifically, the subfield of the European economic governance, through the singular case of Yanis Varoufakis's experience as Greek minister of finance. Why is it that, while many elements might have suggested that Varoufakis was not lacking resources, his passage from economics into politics ended up in a fairly brutal shock and a mutual exclusion so extremely invested in on the symbolic level? The paper's hypothesis is that a substantial part of the strategies of the epistemic agent Varoufakis - an experienced economist as well as new ruler and new politician in the EU game - were completely out of tune with the structure of the field. To show this, the paper deliberately breaks with the causal analysis of the bargain inside the Eurogroup to build on the use of two multiple correspondence analyses (MCA). The first describes a view of (and from) the silent fraction of the field, composed of insiders in the European administrations. The second reconstructs Varoufakis's own relational position and vision of the game from the book he wrote on his experience. Thanks to these two approaches, we combine a descriptive-institutional and a narrative-individual construction of the same social space to explore its deep structure and effects in an innovative way

There Is No Such Thing as "the Economy": Economic Phenomena Analysed from a Field-Theoretical Perspective

This introductory essay to the HSR Special Issue “Economists, Politics, and Society” argues for a strong field-theoretical programme inspired by Pierre Bourdieu to research economic life as an integral part of different social forms. Its main aim is threefold. First, we spell out the very distinct Durkheimian legacy in Bourdieu’s thinking and the way he applies it in researching economic phenomena. Without this background, much of what is actually part of how Bourdieu analysed economic aspects of social life would be overlooked or reduced to mere economic sociology. Second, we sketch the main theoretical concepts and heuristics used to analyse economic life from a field perspective. Third, we focus on practical methodological issues of field-analytical research into economic phenomena. We conclude with a short summary of the basic characteristics of this approach and discuss the main insights provided by the contributions to this special issue

Uwagi na temat teoretycznych i metodologicznych aspektów pojęcia pola

Some remarks on the theoretical and methodological aspects of the notion of fieldThe text constitutes an analysis of the notion of field – its limits and its importance in the theory of Pierre Bourdieu and in other sociological approaches which draw on his theory. The author opens his considerations with a return to the genesis of the notion in Pierre Bourdieu’s works, that is to the formative period of the theory, culminating in the 1970s. The author then goes on to ponder the practical application and empirical scope of the notion of field, and concludes the article with the presentation of a methodological use of the notion of field in data analysis. Uwagi na temat teoretycznych i metodologicznych aspektów pojęcia polaTekst stanowi analizę pojęcia pola – jego granic i jego wagi zarówno w teorii Pierre’a Bourdieu, jak i w innych, ale odwołujących się do tej teorii, ujęciach socjologicznych. Swoje rozważania autor rozpoczyna od powrotu do genezy tego pojęcia w dziełach Bourdieu, czyli do okresu powstawania teorii, którego kulminacja przypada na lata siedemdziesiąte XX wieku. Następnie autor zajmuje się praktycznym zastosowaniem i empirycznym zakresem pojęcia pola. Na końcu przedstawia metodologiczne wykorzystanie pojęcia pola w ramach analizy danych

Uwagi na temat teoretycznych i metodologicznych aspektów pojęcia pola

Some remarks on the theoretical and methodological aspects of the notion of field The text constitutes an analysis of the notion of field – its limits and its importance in the theory of Pierre Bourdieu and in other sociological approaches which draw on his theory. The author opens his considerations with a return to the genesis of the notion in Pierre Bourdieu’s works, that is to the formative period of the theory, culminating in the 1970s. The author then goes on to ponder the practical application and empirical scope of the notion of field, and concludes the article with the presentation of a methodological use of the notion of field in data analysis.   Uwagi na temat teoretycznych i metodologicznych aspektów pojęcia pola Tekst stanowi analizę pojęcia pola – jego granic i jego wagi zarówno w teorii Pierre’a Bourdieu, jak i w innych, ale odwołujących się do tej teorii, ujęciach socjologicznych. Swoje rozważania autor rozpoczyna od powrotu do genezy tego pojęcia w dziełach Bourdieu, czyli do okresu powstawania teorii, którego kulminacja przypada na lata siedemdziesiąte XX wieku. Następnie autor zajmuje się praktycznym zastosowaniem i empirycznym zakresem pojęcia pola. Na końcu przedstawia metodologiczne wykorzystanie pojęcia pola w ramach analizy danych

Sociologia e ciências sociais em tempos de austeridade

This paper aims to demonstrate the importance of sociology for the analysis of austerity policies in times of political and social crises. Referencing the situation in Europe in the 2000s, it is shown that fiscal austerity policies are a complex scientific object that must be analyzed from a sociological rather than a purely economic point of view. Lebaron analyzes austerity as economic belief and performative discourse, showing that economic representations - from the most theoretical to the most practical - play a crucial role in the construction and reproduction of social order. These economic representations have structured institutions and collective beliefs in European countries, especially since the 1970s and 1980s, a period of expansion for neoliberalism and financialization. He then presents the mechanisms of, and participants involved in austerity: the European states (eurocracies), the institutions and the individual agents in this field. In a third instance, Lebaron criticizes the notion of "expansionary austerity" and shows how financial capitalism has increasingly taken control of our societies. Finally, Lebaron analyzes the social effects of fiscal austerity, based on the idea of the “complex dynamics of well-being". The author argues for the importance of creating alternative models that take into consideration the multidimensionality of well-being in our societies.Este artigo tem por objetivo demonstrar a importância da sociologia para a análise das políticas de austeridade em tempos de crises políticas e sociais. Tomando como base a Europa nos anos 2000, mostra-se que as políticas de austeridade fiscal são um objeto científico complexo que deve ser analisado do ponto de vista sociológico e não somente econômico. Lebaron analisa a austeridade como uma crença econômica e como um discurso performativo, mostrando que as representações econômicas - das mais teóricas às mais práticas - desempenham um papel crucial na construção e reprodução da ordem social. São essas representações econômicas que estruturaram as instituições e crenças coletivas nos países europeus principalmente a partir dos anos de 1970 e 1980, período de expansão do neoliberalismo e da financerização. O autor apresenta em seguida os mecanismos e atores da austeridade: os Estados europeus (eurocracias); as instituições e os agentes individuais nesse campo. Em um terceiro ponto, Lebaron critica a noção de “austeridade expansionista” e mostra como o capitalismo financeiro tem tomado cada vez mais o controle de nossas sociedades. Por fim, Lebaron analisa os efeitos sociais da austeridade fiscal com base na ideia de “dinâmica complexa do bem-estar”. O autor defende a importância de que sejam criados modelos alternativos que considerem a multidimensionalidade do bem-estar em nossas sociedades. Tradução: Leo Lope

La BCE : flexible dans la stabilité ?

Cet article analyse la relative stabilité discursive et cognitive de l’institution « banque centrale » dans le contexte de crise au sein de la zone euro. Par stabilité discursive et cognitive, on entend l’absence de changement fondamental d’orientation doctrinale, de vocabulaire et plus largement de stratégie discursive, en dépit de décisions pourtant parfois perçues comme radicales et de discours parfois décrits comme marquant d’importantes « ruptures » : on se réfère notamment ici à l’utilisation par Mario Draghi, président de la BCE, de l’expression « whatever it takes » le 26 juillet 2012, pour indiquer le souhait de préserver coûte que coûte la zone euro en utilisant les moyens nécessaires pour le faire. Dans le cadre d’une sociologie des politiques et des institutions économiques, l’approche relève ici de ce que l’on peut appeler une sociologie des discours, approche qui se situe au croisement de l’analyse du discours et de la sociologie du langage. On s’appuie pour cela sur l’étude d’un corpus de textes facilement accessibles, puisqu’ils sont officiellement mis en ligne sur le site Web de la Banque Centrale Européenne, émanant des membres du directoire de la BCE. Nous en menons une analyse principalement qualitative et typologique, mais aussi une analyse lexicométrique.This article analyzes the discursive and cognitive relative stability of the institution “central bank” in the context of crisis within the eurozone. By discursive and cognitive stability we mean the absence of fundamental change of doctrinal orientation, vocabulary and, more broadly, discursive strategy, despite decisions yet sometimes perceived as radical and sometimes described as marking significant discourses “ruptures”; we refer here particularly to the use by Mario Draghi, ECB president, of the expression “whatever it takes” on July 26th 2012, to indicate the wish to preserve at all costs the euro area by using the necessary means to do it. Within the framework of a sociology of political and economic institutions, the approach is here of what we can call a sociology of discourse approach that is at the crossroads of discourse analysis and sociology of language. For this we rely on the study of a corpus of texts easily accessible, as they are officially posted on the website of the European Central Bank, from members of the ECB Executive Board. We are conducting a mainly qualitative and typological analysis, but also a lexicometric analysis