IDENTITETSSKAPANDE I STUDENTFÖRENINGEN ULRIKA ... - DiVA

S U M M A R Y
positioning oneself in relation to and distinguishing oneself from other groups.
The others represent an identity that is deviant according to the discourse, and
they are thereby excluded from the discourse and deprived of the right to speak.
The ideal identity is thus constructed in accordance with the order of the discourse,
but in a concrete context it may be expressed fragmentarily and contradictorily.
Therefore it can also be reconstructed by the people who activate it in
various ways.
I have also received theoretical inspiration from Pierre Bourdieu’s theories of
symbolic capital. I regard ideal identity as embodied symbolic capital, whose
value is supported by the discourse and which therefore also has a distinguishing
function. The symbolic capital can exist as economic, cultural and social
capital, but in a Swedish context the form of capital acquired through participation
in popular movements, trade-union organisations, and the like, also
stands out as valuable. One research question therefore deals with whether
working in a students’ society also yields an organisational capital, and what
content it might have in such a case.
I also assume that there may different discourses competing for preferential
right of interpretation. For this reason contradictory images of the ideal human
being may exist simultaneously, which may give rise to so-called ideological
dilemmas. Ideological dilemmas may arise when a person faces difficulties in
representing the ideal identity. By identifying ideological dilemmas, it may be
possible for the researcher to understand both how the ideal identity is constructed
and how its meanings can be re-negotiated in the individuals’ identity
construction.
As already pointed out, my research questions deal with gender and class in
higher education. Expressed in discourse theoretical terms, I am interested in
the interplay of discourses about gender and class and how they manifest themselves
in students’ identity construction. In this respect I have also been guided
by theories on intersectionality.
Aim and Questions of the Thesis
The overall aim is to describe and understand the identity work taking place in
some different students’ societies. Empirically the following questions will be
studied:
What discourses about students do the society members activate when they
construct the ideal identity?
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