Parental Involvement (Mis)recognised by Bourdieu’s Conceptual Toolkit: Illusio, Doxa, Habitus, and Capitals

Abstract

This chapter presents Bourdieu’s theoretical toolkit, which allows to look at the early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings’ collaboration with families through concepts embracing both objective/societal conditions and individual characteristics. These concepts are illusio, doxa, habitus, and capital. The empirical example presented in the chapter shows how the power of the parents’ economic, cultural, and social capital can negotiate and tailor the modes of involvement into parental needs and illusios. The analytical potential of Bourdieu’s theory is also discussed in relation to the established pre-school and social pedagogy traditions, which imply different practices of parental involvement.