This book analyzes the connections between social policies and politics of sensibilities. The authors show how social policies build sociabilities, experiences and sensibilities, producing processes of conflict avoidance and consecration of the given. After discussing violence against women as a case study in order to understand the current state of social policies, the authors then describe how the “place” and “value” of education have become central features to social policies in order to disband conflict. Finally, they explain the emergence of a social phenomenon in the last sixteen years in Latin America and particularly Argentina: the compensatory consumption system and the resulting emergence of the “assisted citizen.”

The development of a sociology of emotions is crucial to our understanding of social life as they hold the key to our understanding of social processes and sociological investigation. First published in 1997, Emotions in Social Life consolidates the sociology of emotions as a legitimate and viable field of enquiry. It provides a comprehensive assessment of the sociology of emotions using work from scholars of international stature, as well as newer writers in the field. It presents new empirical research in conjunction with innovative and challenging theoretical material, and will be essential reading for students of sociology, health psychology, anthropology and gender studies.

This volume presents cutting-edge work in emotion theory and research. Contributors describe innovative methods, models, and measurements that illuminate and at times challenge traditional paradigms. Each chapter defines basic terms, reviews the historical development and evolution of the issue at hand, and discusses current research and directions for future investigation.

The past decades have seen significant advances in the sociological understanding of human emotion. Sociology has shown how culture and society shape our emotions and how emotions contribute to micro- and macro-social processes. At the same time, the behavioral sciences have made progress in understanding emotion at the level of the individual mind and body. Emotion and Social Structures embraces both perspectives to uncover the fundamental role of affect and emotion in the emergence and reproduction of social order. How do culture and social structure influence the cognitive and bodily basis of emotion? How do large-scale patterns of feeling emerge? And how do emotions promote the coordination of social action and interaction? Integrating theories and evidence from disciplines such as psychology, cognitive science, and neuroscience, Christian von Scheve argues for a sociological understanding of emotion as a bi-directional mediator between social action and social structure. This book will be of interest to students and scholars of the sociology of emotion, microsociology, and cognitive sociology, as well as social psychology, cognitive science, and affective neuroscience.

"A thoughtful, scholarly yet accessible account of emotion that speaks to current debates associated with the ‘affective turn’ in disciplines including sociology, cultural studies, geography and psychology... invaluable for anyone wanting to understand contemporary engagements with affect, emotion and feeling." - John Cromby, Loughborough University "A lucid, engaging, and thoroughly insightful review of current social scientific thinking on emotions in social life by a leading scholar in the field... The book is sure to become essential reading for both students and researchers interested in emotion" - Jason Hughes, University of Leicester "A masterful exposition of the links between emotions and social relations... Empirically rich and theoretically deep, this is a highly readable book. - Svend Brinkmann, University of Aalborg This book is a compelling and timely addition to the study of emotions, arguing that emotion is a response to the way in which people are embedded in patterns of relationship, both to others and to significant social and political events or situations. Going beyond the traditional discursive understanding of emotions, Burkitt investigates emotions as a complex and dynamic phenomenon that includes the whole self, body and mind, but which always occur in relation to others.

Like any other valued resource, emotions are distributed unequally. Moreover, emotions are a generalized resource because they give people the confidence, or lack of confidence, to secure additional types of resources. Thus, this distribution of emotions roughly corresponds to the shares of others kinds of resources that members of various social classes possess. The level of positive and negative emotional energy evident among members of different social classes has large consequences for the viability of human societies. When a large majority of members in diverse social classes have reservoirs of positive emotional energy, these emotions work to legitimate macrostructures and to build people’s commitments to societies. When, however, significant numbers of persons in lower social classes, and at times in middle to upper social classes as well, reveal reservoirs of negative emotional energy, they are likely to de-legitimate key institutional systems and, under specifiable conditions, mobilize collective—often with violent outcomes. Thus, emotions are at the core of both integrative and disintegrative forces in societies, and when large reservoirs of negative emotional energy exist, they pose a problem for societies. The goal of this new, unique Series is to offer readable, teachable "thinking frames" on today’s social problems and social issues by leading scholars, all in short 60 page or shorter formats, and available for view on http://routledge.customgateway.com/routledge-social-issues.html For instructors teaching a wide range of courses in the social sciences, the Routledge Social Issues Collection now offers the best of both worlds: originally written short texts that provide "overviews" to important social issues as well as teachable excerpts from larger works previously published by Routledge and other presses.

As a reference that contains original and innovative research on the sociology of emotion, this book will not only appeal to sociologists but also to scholars of psychology, psychiatry, anthropology, history, social work, and business/management. With contributions from experts in the field, this text examines the role and influence of emotion in everyday social circumstances. It poses clear questions and presents the contemporary theoretical developments and empirical research linking social structure and emotion.Comparable books are narrowly focused and less comprehensive, the breadth and depth of this new work is unmatched. Explores the roles played by emotion in social arrangements (i.e., the power of emotions in psychology, finance, economics, etc...) Poses clear questions and presents the newest theoretical developments and empirical research linking social structure and emotion Contributions from experts in the field