STUDI DI SOCIOLOGIA - 2019 - 4

This paper is focused on the problem of «compulsory voting» inside the contemporary democracies. The research demand is: is there a relation between compulsory vote and the possibility to increase the electoral turnout for citizens more and more detached from politics in many countries (to strengthen the sentiment of civic duty)? Furthermore: which are the reasons of supporters of compulsory voting and the arguments against it for keeping a voluntary system in political elections (for instance the electoral choice pattern called «donkey vote»)? Based on data and empirical findings, the Author favours a model of liberal democracy that cannot tolerate impositions and constraints whatsoever for voting choices and does not consider non-vote as an element of delegitimization of the democratic system.

To re-launch critical theory, according to some of its major contemporary exponents, domination needs to be redefined. The hypothesis this article explores is to consider domination as expropriation in action. The category of expropriation offers to critics a double anchorage: to action, on the one hand, and to principles of justice, on the other, which are the common denominator to some of the most well-known theories of contemporary justice: a common humanity, a common dignity of people, autonomy of the individual, the individual as an end in itself and the uniqueness of the individual. The definition of expropriation maintains the interpretive pluralism of these principles that have historically evolved in relation to always new forms of oppression.

There is a general agreement among critics and readers that the works of Pierre Bourdieu and Harold Garfinkel are to be regarded as incommensurably different in many respects, and in fact a substantive divergence between them has been expressed even during a face-to-face meeting by the interested parties. On this background, this essay intends to go against the grain, with the aim of reconsidering certain profound similarities that nevertheless seem to exist between the sociological approaches of the two authors under discussion. The practice turn in contemporary social action theory is the specific focus of this analysis: it is precisely at the level of an anti-objectivist epistemology that putting alongside Bourdieu and Garfinkel’s proposals appears to be fruitful. In view of the complexity and difficulties of avoiding risks inherently associated with the study of practical activities, the integration of both Bourdieu and Garfinkel’s points of view about social action is considered crucial – and is the ultimate goal of this article.

The author analyzes the production of discourses on Naples, tracking down the origins of the stereotypes of ethnicization of this town and of Southern Italy in general, within the practices of biological inferiorization established by the Italian Criminal Anthropology in the late 1800s. She compares them with the narrative stereotypes of Neapolitans, restated in discourses and prêt-à-porter images «packaged» for the large audience of reality television. Two specific cases are presented here: Il boss delle cerimonie and Napoli Sound. The author basically examines what the national newspapers have to say on these two shows, introduced as actual expression of the Neapolitan people, excitable and excessive by definition. The theoretical premise of these analysis is that in the stereotyped representations of the Mediterranean paradise yesterday’s devils have never ceased to exist, they kept on being told as the real obstacle to the development of global economy.

Le Social Street vengono definite come «strade nelle quali i vicini di casa vogliono creare o ricreare socialità di prossimità, usando come strumento di comunicazione facebook» (Pasqualini 2016). Il fenomeno delle Social Street non è stato oggetto di numerose ricerche, con l’eccezione degli studi interessati all’impatto delle tecnologie e delle piattaforme digitali. La ricerca su questo fenomeno, sia a livello locale che internazionale, ha permesso di osservare la diffusione delle Social Street nei contesti urbani. Le Social Street sono inclusive e potenzialmente accessibili a chiunque, e sono inoltre capaci di creare innovazione tecnologica e sociale. Creano controllo sociale, si occupano dell’informazione nel quartiere e partecipano agli eventi promossi nel vicinato, promuovono la socialità e si prendono cura dei beni comuni della città, specialmente nel contesto di prossimità. Nella prospettiva avanzata da questo studio, le Social Street sembrano rappresentare una forma locale di civic collective action. In questo articolo ci si sofferma su tre casi studio: Milano, Bologna e Roma, mostrando caratteristiche simili e differenze nelle attività promosse e nella diffusione del fenomeno.

Gerontological social work is a working area that engages many social workers, however there are few studies that highlight its characteristics. Often it is represented by students and professionals as not very interesting and connected exclusively to the provision of standard services. This paper presents the results of a research carried out in a District of Lombardy, aimed at describing the work of social workers who deal with dependent people and highlighting their strengths in dealing with the situations of people in difficulty. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the 5 social workers working in the non-self-sufficiency area in the 4 District Municipalities. Social workers were asked to describe some situations that had a positive outcome. 32 situations were described and meaningful perspectives were pointed out, highlighting the complexity of Gerontological social work and the importance of an approach that focuses on care and relationships.