Understanding the lifeworld of social exclusion

Creasy, Stella Judith (2006) Understanding the lifeworld of social exclusion. PhD thesis, London School of Economics and Political Science.

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Abstract

In seeking to explain social exclusion. politicians. academics. and commentators alike have highlighted the role of social relationships in securing life chances. In recent years, these discussions have been characterised by three debates; those around the underclass, social cohesion and social capital. Each offers a commentary on the causes of social exclusion and community breakdown which is rooted in a focus on the social interactions within deprived neighbourhoods. As a result these debates raise many questions about the relationship between people, place and the public realm. This thesis contributes to our understanding of these issues by looking at these issues using a social psychological approach. Using a methodological framework grounded in the paradigm of social representations it analyses the cognitive actions of individuals and groups within a locality. This reveals how they generate and maintain a "cultural stock of knowledge". the social relationships which underpin this "lifeworld" and its influence on the life chances of the residents. In particular this research looks at the impact of this lifeworld on public services and regeneration projects in the research area. seeking to understand what effect the lifeworld has on their success or failure. This thesis builds on previous studies grounded in sociological and anthropological research methods in two ways. In the first instance it confirms the importance of socially constructed knowledge to social structures and the role they play in life chances. Yet using a social psychological approach also otTers an innovative way of exploring how socially constructed knowledge is created.maintained and changed by individuals and groups in their mental processes. In doing so, this thesis shows how important such knowledge is in determining social networks, social acts and social change. It therefore reveals how a social psychological approach to social exclusion can complement other forms of research into this phenomenon.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Additional Information:	© 2006 Stella Judith Creasy
Library of Congress subject classification:	H Social Sciences > HN Social history and conditions. Social problems. Social reform
Sets:	Departments > Social Policy
URI:	http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/3798

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