A Qualitative Analysis of Parenting and Social Capital: Comparing the Work of Coleman and Bourdieu

Val Gillies; Rosalind Edwards

doi:10.18778/1733-8077.2.2.04

Authors

Val Gillies London South Bank University, England
Rosalind Edwards London South Bank University, England

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18778/1733-8077.2.2.04

Keywords:

parenting, social capital, family, Coleman, Bourdieu

Abstract

This paper will present an empirically based analysis of parenting in order to critically examine the work of two major social capital theorists. The work of James S. Coleman and Pierre Bourdieu is much cited, but while both focus on the links between individuals, families and wider social structures, their theories are based on very different interpretations of social capital and its implications. Drawing on qualitative data from a UK based qualitative study of parenting resources this paper will critically assess each theory using case studies. We argue that these two approaches allude to different social resources, with Coleman’s work representing the tightly bonded solidarities more often found among working class communities, while Bourdieu focuses on the more diffuse, instrumental networking most associated with the middle classes.

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Author Biographies

Val Gillies, London South Bank University, England

Val Gillies is a Senior Research Fellow in the Families & Social Capital ESRC Research Group at London South Bank University. She has researched and published widely in the area of family and social class. Her most recent publications include Marginalised Mothers: Exploring Working Class Parenting, along with various journal articles and book chapters on parenting and social policy, young people’s family lives and qualitative research methods.

Rosalind Edwards, London South Bank University, England

Rosalind Edwards is Professor in Social Policy and Director of the Families & Social Capital ESRC Research Group at London South Bank University (www.lsbu.ac.uk/families). Her research interests mainly focus on family policy and family life, especially in relation to gender, class and ethnicity, on which she has published widely. She also has an interest in methodology as founding and co-editor of the International Journal of Social Research Methodology: Theory and Practice.

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