Making don't Knows Make Sense: Bourdieu, Phenomenology and Opinion Polls

Abstract

Despite Bourdieu's huge contribution in sociologically operationalizing some of the principles contained in Husserlian phenomenology, this paper argues that by drawing more from this source his criticisms of opinion polls can be extended theoretically and methodologically. In particular, by being aware of the transitions from doxa or 'dispositional opinion' to reflective opinion, Husserlian phenomenology gives a theoretical basis which we can draw on to make concrete methodological elaborations, such as in the use of 'identification bid' questions, of Bourdieu's account of the drawbacks of opinion polls.

The Educational Gradient in Trust in Politicians in the Netherlands: A Status-Based Cultural Conflict

“…On the one hand, this seems to be at odds with the current mocking of cultural elites, which was less prominent during Bourdieu's study of France in the 1960s and 1970s. On the other hand, those with a low affinity with elite culture still feel less entitled to state an opinion in political matters (Myles 2008;Ten Kate, De Koster, and Van der Waal 2017). As a result, determining which aspects of superiority signaling are accepted as legitimate, and which inspire outright hostile rejection, is an empirical question (cf., Spruyt and Kuppens 2015a).…”

Understanding less-educated citizens’ (non-)participation in citizens’ initiatives: Feelings of entitlement and a taste for politics

“…This resonates with previous research showing that the low status accompanying low levels of education diminishes people’s sense of entitlement, especially in the political domain (Spruyt and Kuppens, 2015). Hence, less-educated citizens feel excluded from dominant political discourse because their preferences are not considered legitimate or appropriate (Myles, 2008), inspiring disengagement from politics (Noordzij et al, 2020).…”

Education-based thinking and acting? Towards an identity perspective for studying education differentials in public opinion and political participation

“…Bourdieu explains these differences in terms of what he calls 'le droit statutaire'. It concerns a feeling of 'entitlement', the feeling of having a right (or even a moral obligation) to express opinions in public (see also Myles, 2008). Bourdieu holds that a lack of feelings of entitlement results in self-exclusion (compare Hooghe, 2001).…”