Central and East European
Society for Phenomenology

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145838

The social construction of equality in everyday life

Scott R. Harris

pp. 371-393

Abstract

This article proposes "equality" as a topic for interactionist research. By drawing on the perspectives of Herbert Blumer, Alfred Schutz, and Harold Garfinkel, an attempt is made to lay the theoretical groundwork for studying the interpretive and experiential aspects of equality. Blumer's fundamental premises of symbolic interactionism, Schutz's analysis of relevance and typification, and Garfinkel's treatment of reflexivity and indexicality are explicated and applied to the subject of equality. I then draw upon the moral theory of John Dewey to suggest the positive role that interactionist theory and research might play in the resolution of problematic situations that are framed in terms of equality. Collectively, the complementary aspects of Blumer's, Schutz's, Garfinkel's, and Dewey's thought are used to justify and launch a program of research on a neglected yet important topic: the social construction of equality in everyday life.

Publication details

Published in:

(2000) Human Studies 23 (4).

Pages: 371-393

DOI: 10.1023/A:1005684130032

Full citation:

Harris Scott R. (2000) „The social construction of equality in everyday life“. Human Studies 23 (4), 371–393.