Sociological Research Online ( IF 1.315 ) Pub Date : 2021-03-29 , DOI: 10.1177/13607804211002841 Philip A Mellor 1 , Chris Shilling 2
This article proposes a novel conceptual understanding of ‘edgework’ – a term denoting the voluntary embrace of risk – by drawing on the long-standing sociological tradition of character studies. In doing so, it addresses the paradox that while first-generation research into high-risk leisure suggested that these activities provided identity-affirming escapes from bureaucratised capitalism, second-generation writings argued that edgework exists in harmony with the norms of ‘risk societies’, raising questions about its continuing appeal. Developing a new analytical perspective with which to assess these views, we argue that the former studies should be understood in the context of challenges to ‘other-directed’ characterological forms prominent within the post-War era, while the latter signal the embodiment of edgework within emergent ‘opportunity-directed’ modalities of social character. This interpretation explains the enduring attractions of edgework alongside its changed social role, and also signals its utility as a prism through which to observe broader characterological changes.
中文翻译:
边缘工作,不确定性和社会品格
本文通过借鉴长期以来性格研究的社会学传统,提出了对“边缘工作”(一种表示自愿承担风险的术语)的新颖概念性理解。在此过程中,它解决了一个悖论,即第一代对高风险休闲的研究表明,这些活动提供了从官僚主义资本主义中确认身份的逃逸,而第二代著作则认为,边缘工作与“风险社会”的规范和谐地存在。,对它的持续吸引力提出了疑问。提出一种新的分析视角来评估这些观点,我们认为应该在挑战的背景下理解以前的研究在战后时代中突出的“其他导向”特征形式,而后者则标志着边缘工作在新兴的“机会导向”社会特征模式中的体现。这种解释解释了边饰的持久吸引力以及其不断变化的社会作用,也标志着其作为观察更广泛的特征变化的棱镜的效用。