Revealing further utility of Bourdieu’s relational sociology through a case of institutional change in sport

Constantly shifting social, political, technological and economic environmental factors have enabled the continuing development of the modernization of public services in Britain. Recent theoretical approaches to institutional change have improved our understanding of how individual action can create, maintain and disrupt institutions. While this has increased the number of conceptual perspectives on change phenomena, methodological issues persist. This presentation considers Bourdieu’s relational sociology when examining institutional level change in sport. Bourdieu’s opus is appropriate for examining domination and subordination within this policy environment.We seek to demonstrate not only the conceptual utility of Bourdieu’s theory but also the additional benefits of an organizational ethnography. Adopting this internal, longitudinal and power-attuned method reveals subtleties in the relations of politics between the macro and micro institutional levels. It was found that environmental factors disrupt institutional practices and usher in emergent systems that create flux at the micro level. We also reveal how interpretations of these pressures at the micro-level, such as the increasing pressure of accountability in disability sport, can either alter institutional practices and/or result in political resistance. Opportunities for further development of this approach to sport’s institutional settings will be presented.