The Study of Boundaries in the Social Sciences

The idea of “boundaries”, and its twin concept “borders”, plays a key role in the social sciences. It has been associated with studies on collective and social identity, census categories, ethnic and racial group positioning, scientific controversies, to mention but a few. Synthetic efforts are however lacking. The authors call for greater integration since this would facilitate the identification of “similarities and differences in how boundaries are drawn across contexts and types of groups, and at the social psychological, cultural, and structural levels” (p. 168). The authors propose a distinction between symbolic and social boundaries in order to better understand the role of symbolic resources in “creating, maintaining, contesting, or even dissolving institutionalized social differences” (p. 168). The discussion focuses on (a) social and collective identity; (b) class, ethnic/racial, and gender/sexual inequality; (c) professions, science, and knowledge and (d) communities, national identities, and spatial boundaries.

In the conclusion, some of the emerging configurations are summed up:

•  “Symbolic boundaries are often used to enforce, maintain, normalize, or rationalize social boundaries […].
• Symbolic boundaries, however, are also employed to contest and reframe the meaning of social boundaries.
• There are also cross-cultural differences in how symbolic boundaries are linked to social boundaries.
• In some cases symbolic boundaries may become so salient that they take the place of social boundaries.” (p. 186)

According to the authors, “the study of the interplay of symbolic and social boundaries is just one possible strategy that can be used to highlight the similar analytical concerns of a vast body of research” (p. 186). Three alternative strategies are proposed: to study the properties of boundaries (such as durability, visibility, permeability); to systematically catalog “the key mechanisms associated with the activation, maintenance, transportation or the dispute, bridging, crossing and dissolution of boundaries” (p. 187); to integrate the existing literature by keeping a focus on cultural membership.

Content

• Introduction
• Social and collective identity
• Class, ethnic/racial, and gender/sexual inequality
• Professions, science, and knowledge
• Communities, national identities, and spatial boundaries
• Conclusion: strengthening our understanding of the cultural dimensions of boundaries