Who participates?

In the film ‘Social science, poverty and participation’, you saw that not everyone in society is able to participate equally in all social activities. This is the key insight of social scientists who have worked on defining and measuring poverty. You also saw that social scientists contribute to the process of defining which activities people should be participating in, in order to play a full part in wider social worlds. This is a simple way in which social science enacts participation.

In the following short film, ‘What counts as participation?’, the sociologist Ruth Levitas indicates the role of social scientists in defining what counts as participation. As you watch, listen out for the way she describes political participation.

What counts as participation?

Transcript

Levitas defines participation quite broadly. It includes economic, cultural and social activities, as well as political ones. She also defines political participation broadly, not confining it to voting, but suggesting it should be understood as ‘being able to influence the circumstances of one’s own life’.