Careership: a sociological theory of career decision making
01 Jan 1997-British Journal of Sociology of Education (Taylor & Francis Group)-Vol. 18, Iss: 1, pp 29-44
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a new model of career decision-making, given the shorthand title of "careership", which avoids the twin pitfalls of implicit social determinism or of seeing (young) people as completely free agents.
Abstract: In the current discourse on the transition from school to work, career decision‐making has a pivotal but paradoxical position. Sociological literature emphasises the dominance of socially‐structured pathways, whilst policy‐making operates on assumptions of individual freedom to choose. In this paper we draw on the work of Pierre Bourdieu to present a new model of career decision‐making, given the shorthand title of ‘careership’. There are three completely integrated dimensions to the model. These are (i) pragmatically rational decision‐making, located in the habitus of the person making the decision; (ii) the interactions with others in the (youth training) field, related to the unequal resources different ‘players’ possess; and (iii) the location of decisions within the partly unpredictable pattern of turning‐points and routines that make up the life course. This model avoids the twin pitfalls of implicit social determinism or of seeing (young) people as completely free agents.
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used Bourdieu's concepts of "classification" and "judgement" to examine students' positive and negative choices using qualitative and quantitative data, and the accuracy of status perceptions were also tested.
Abstract: The issue of social-class-related patterns of access to Higher Education (HE) has become a matter of public debate in the UK recently, but is on the whole portrayed one-sidedly in terms of issues of selection (elitism), and the social dimensions of choice are neglected. Here, drawing on an Economic and Social Research Council research study, choice of HE is examined using Bourdieu's concepts of 'classification' and 'judgement'. HE is viewed in terms of its internal status differentiations. Students' positive and negative choices are addressed using qualitative and quantitative data, and the 'accuracy' of status perceptions are also tested. It is argued that choices are infused with class and ethnic meanings and that choice-making plays a crucial role in the reproduction of divisions and hierarchies in HE, but also that the very idea of choice assumes a kind of formal equality that obscures 'the effects of real inequality'. HE choices are embedded in different kinds of biographies and institutional habitus...
539 citations
Cites background from "Careership: a sociological theory o..."
...Choices are made within differently delimited ‘opportunity structures’ (Roberts, 1993) and different ‘horizons of action’ (Hodkinson & Sparkes, 1997)....
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...Generally, our data offers strong support for Hodkinson & Sparkes’ (1997) theory of ‘pragmatically rational decision-making’....
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...Hodkinson & Sparkes’ (1997) framework is a useful way of representing choice-making in general terms but within our sample there are very different kinds of contexting, opportunism and non-rationality in play; that is, crudely speaking, different ‘class frames of reference’ (Lauder et al., 1999, p.…...
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...(Bourdieu, 1986a, pp. 169–170) In this vein, we also drawn on Hodkinson & Sparkes’ (1997) theory of ‘careership’ and their notion of ‘pragmatically rational decision making’....
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...In effect, Hodkinson & Sparkes (1997) resocialise the rational within choice....
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TL;DR: The authors provide an overview of some of the dominant empirical and conceptual themes in the area of graduate employment and employability over the past decade, and argue for a broader understanding of employability than that offered by policymakers.
403 citations
Additional excerpts
...Their findings relate to earlier work on Careership (Hodkinson and Sparkes, 1997), itself influenced by Bourdieu’s (1977) theories of capital and habitus....
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01 Jan 2011
TL;DR: This work presents a framework for modeling hierarchical cognitive systems and analyzes and discusses some crucial issues that should be treated explicitly in the design of a system.
Abstract: Cognitive systems research aims to understand how cognitive abilities can be created in artificial systems. One key issue is the architecture of the system. It organizes the interplay between the different system elements and thus, determines the principle limits for the performance of the system. In this contri- bution, we focus on important properties of hierarchical cognitive systems. Therefore, we first present a framework for modeling hierarchical systems. Based on this framework, we formulate and discuss some crucial issues that should be treated explicitly in the design of a system. On this basis, we analyze and compare several well-established cognitive architectures with respect to their internal structure. Index Terms—Behavior space, cognitive architecture, hierar- chical architecture, sensor space, system design.
240 citations
TL;DR: The authors found that job satisfaction closely correlates with teacher retention and contributes to teacher job satisfaction in terms of job satisfaction and job satisfaction is positively correlated with teacher recruitment, retention, and recruitment.
Abstract: Given that teacher shortage is an international problem, teacher job satisfaction merits closer attention. Not only is job satisfaction closely related to teacher retention, but it also contributes...
187 citations
TL;DR: Based on a longitudinal study on Swedish teachers' career trajectories, this article presents a comparison between quantitative and qualitative data within the cohort and puts this in perspective.
176 citations
References
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Book•
01 Jan 1979
TL;DR: In this article, a social critic of the judgement of taste is presented, and a "vulgar" critic of 'pure' criticiques is proposed to counter this critique.
Abstract: Preface to the English-Language Edition Introduction Part 1: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste 1. The Aristocracy of Culture Part 2: The Economy of Practices 2. The Social Space and its Transformations 3. The Habitus and the Space of Life-Styles 4. The Dynamics of Fields Part 3: Class Tastes and Life-Styles 5. The Sense of Distinction 6. Cultural Good Will 7. The Choice of the Necessary 8. Culture and Politics Conclusion: Classes and Classifications Postscript: Towards a 'Vulgar' Critique of 'Pure' Critiques Appendices Notes Credits Index
23,806 citations
01 Jan 1980
TL;DR: Bourdieu as mentioned in this paper develops a theory of practice which is simultaneously a critique of the methods and postures of social science and a general account of how human action should be understood.
Abstract: Outline of a Theory of Practice is recognized as a major theoretical text on the foundations of anthropology and sociology. Pierre Bourdieu, a distinguished French anthropologist, develops a theory of practice which is simultaneously a critique of the methods and postures of social science and a general account of how human action should be understood. With his central concept of the habitus, the principle which negotiates between objective structures and practices, Bourdieu is able to transcend the dichotomies which have shaped theoretical thinking about the social world. The author draws on his fieldwork in Kabylia (Algeria) to illustrate his theoretical propositions. With detailed study of matrimonial strategies and the role of rite and myth, he analyses the dialectical process of the 'incorporation of structures' and the objectification of habitus, whereby social formations tend to reproduce themselves. A rigorous consistent materialist approach lays the foundations for a theory of symbolic capital and, through analysis of the different modes of domination, a theory of symbolic power.
21,227 citations
TL;DR: Giddens as mentioned in this paper has been in the forefront of developments in social theory for the past decade and outlines the distinctive position he has evolved during that period and offers a full statement of a major new perspective in social thought, a synthesis and elaboration of ideas touched on in previous works but described here for the first time in an integrated and comprehensive form.
Abstract: Anthony Giddens has been in the forefront of developments in social theory for the past decade. In "The Constitution of Society" he outlines the distinctive position he has evolved during that period and offers a full statement of a major new perspective in social thought, a synthesis and elaboration of ideas touched on in previous works but described here for the first time in an integrated and comprehensive form. A particular feature is Giddens' concern to connect abstract problems of theory to an interpretation of the nature of empirical method in the social sciences. In presenting his own ideas, Giddens mounts a critical attack on some of the more orthodox sociological views. "The Constitution of Society" is an invaluable reference book for all those concerned with the basic issues in contemporary social theory.
16,208 citations
14,683 citations
TL;DR: Collins, Brown, and Newman as mentioned in this paper argue that knowledge is situated, being in part a product of the activity, context, and culture in which it is developed and used, and propose cognitive apprenticeship as an alternative to conventional practices.
Abstract: Many teaching practices implicitly assume that conceptual knowledge can be abstracted from the situations in which it is learned and used. This article argues that this assumption inevitably limits the effectiveness of such practices. Drawing on recent research into cognition as it is manifest in everyday activity, the authors argue that knowledge is situated, being in part a product of the activity, context, and culture in which it is developed and used. They discuss how this view of knowledge affects our understanding of learning, and they note that conventional schooling too often ignores the influence of school culture on what is learned in school. As an alternative to conventional practices, they propose cognitive apprenticeship (Collins, Brown, & Newman, in press), which honors the situated nature of knowledge. They examine two examples of mathematics instruction that exhibit certain key features of this approach to teaching.
14,006 citations