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White Faces, Black Faces: Is British Sociology a White Discipline?

University of Manchester, Paul.Wakeling{at}postgrad.manchester.ac.uk

In promoting its public profile, sociology must be mindful of the face it presents. Whilst ethnicity is a key sociological concept, little is understood about the ethnicity of sociologists or sociology students. Recent attention on a purported black `brain drain' to the USA charged UK sociology with hypocrisy for identifying ethnic differences elsewhere but failing to put its own house in order, implicitly alleging that the public face of sociology is white. Ethnic differences in sociology are investigated using extensive datasets about UK graduates and postgraduate students for 2001/2 to 2004/5.The findings indicate ethnic-group differences between first-degree graduates and postgraduates in sociology. `Rational' choice and Bourdieusian interpretations of these differences are discussed in the context of sociology's status as a subject in the academy and the labour market. Charges of hypocrisy are not proven, but neither is the discipline exonerated of myopia concerning its own ethnic composition.

Key Words: academics • ethnicity • postgraduates • `race' • sociologists • sociology

Sociology, Vol. 41, No. 5, 945-960 (2007)
DOI: 10.1177/0038038507080447


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