Integration – An Outline from the Perspective of the Sociology of Knowledge

Hans-Georg Soeffner; Dariuš Zifonun

doi:10.18778/1733-8077.4.2.01

Authors

Hans-Georg Soeffner Kulturwissenschaftliches Institut Essen, Germany
Dariuš Zifonun Kulturwissenschaftliches Institut Essen, Germany

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18778/1733-8077.4.2.01

Keywords:

Sociology of knowledge, Migration, Integration, Social worlds, Arena, Conflict

Abstract

In this conceptual essay we argue that the study of migration can substantially benefit from an interactionist notion of integration. Basing our considerations on Berger’s and Luckmann’s sociology of knowledge, we develop a differentiated understanding of integration as an ongoing process which comes to be institutionalized in characteristic forms. With regard to these forms of institutionalization, we focus our attention on the relatively stable spheres of social action characterized by Anselm Strauss as social worlds, structures that are continuously produced anew and altered through processes of segmentation, intersection and legitimation. Furthermore, we propose five ideal types of social worlds reflecting the perspective of migrants. In addition, we indicate the transnational scope of social worlds and the importance of personal coping strategies. We emphasize the significance of the conflicts occurring in and between social worlds as part of processes of integration and highlight a number of strategies that make symbolic integration within the public sphere possible. Furthermore, we list central institutionalized cultural forms and social modes which have a decisive impact on interaction between migrants and the autochthonous population: categorization, stereotyping and drawing boundaries, negotiating, conflict and permanent reflection. Finally, we explain the specific contribution our approach offers to the current theoretical discussion in the field of migration studies and close with a summary of our arguments.

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Author Biographies

Hans-Georg Soeffner, Kulturwissenschaftliches Institut Essen, Germany

Hans-Georg Soeffner, Dr. phil., Professor emeritus of Sociology at the Department of History and Sociology, University of Konstanz. Senior Fellow at the KWI - Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities, Essen and President of the German Sociological Association (DGS). Visiting Professor at UCSF, UCB, Boston University and Universidad Academia de Humanismo Cristiano Santiago de Chile. His research interests are in the sociologies of knowledge, religion, media and culture. English publications include “Germany: Once Again ‘Belated’ Nation?” Society 31 (2), 1994: 39-48, The Order of Rituals: The Interpretation of Everyday Life. New Brunswick: Transaction Publishers 1997, “Cultural Globalization in Germany” (with Hansfried Kellner). Pp. 119-145 in Many Globalizations. Cultural Diversity in the Contemporary World, edited by P. L. Berger and S. P. Huntington. Oxford: Oxford University Press 2002, “Verstehen.” Pp. 864-868 in Encyclopedia of Social Theory. Vol. II., edited by G. Ritzer. Thousand Oaks, London and New Delhi: Sage 2005.

Dariuš Zifonun, Kulturwissenschaftliches Institut Essen, Germany

Dariuš Zifonun, Dr. rer.soc., Permanent Fellow at the KWI - Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities, Essen, and Lecturer at TU Berlin. Senior Researcher at the Department of History and Sociology, University of Konstanz (2000-2005), Visiting Professor at Hitotsubashi University Tokyo (2005) and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (2006). His research interests include the sociology of knowledge, the sociology of migration, qualitative research methodology, politics of memory and organization theory. Recent publications include Gedenken und Identität. Der deutsche Erinnerungsdiskurs. Frankfurt a.M. and New York: Campus 2004, “How Can We Study Sport from a Sociological Perspective?” Hitotsubashi Annual of Sport Studies 25, 2006: 49-56, „Zur Kulturbedeutung von Hooligandiskurs und Alltagsrassismus im Fußballsport.“ Zeitschrift für Qualitative Forschung 8 (1), 2007: 97-117.

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