Standing in the Way of Habitus Transformation: Chinese Working-Class College Students' Moral Resistance to Networking

• In Event: Fresh Considerations Regarding Bourdieu's Habitus

Abstract

Bourdieu’s theory on habitus pays scant attention to morality, and current empirical studies on habitus rarely unpack the process of adjusting habitus. This paper investigates a moral dimension of habitus and reveals that morality can hinder the transformation of habitus. This qualitative research interviews ten working-class college students in a prestigious university in China and analyzes the data through a grounded theory approach. The study finds that Chinese working-class students regard the strategy of networking as dishonorable and morally condemnable and that their moral superiority originates from working-class families which morally devalue the usage of social capital while praising meritocracy. This moral superiority helps them maintain self-esteem but also prevents them from adjusting to new fields in prestigious universities.

Author

• Li Zhu, University of California - Berkeley