![]() Tags: class, inequality, theory, cultural capital, child-rearing, concerted cultivation, 06 to 10 mins Year: 2009 Length: 10:00 Access: YouTube Summary: Wife Swap is a popular television show in which the wives/mothers of two families switch households, usually creating conflict in the clash between two very different families and their backgrounds/experiences. In this clip (an excerpt from season 5, episode 11), a mother from a blue-collar family (with 4 boys) who love to have fun (mainly through paintball) switches place with a mother from a professional, international family (with 2 children) that emphasizes health consciousness, environmental consciousness, education, and cultural awareness. It is a good accompaniment to discussions about social class and Pierre Bourdieu's concepts of types of cultural capital. Also good for demonstrating the child-rearing strategies (“concerted cultivation” and “accomplishment of natural growth”) found in Annette Lareau’s work in Unequal Childhoods. Submitted By: Anya Galli
4 Comments
Anya Galli
10/24/2010 04:25:28 am
Possible activity surrounding the video: Have students create lists of the signifiers of cultural capital and class that are presented for each family while watching the clip. Afterward, have students discuss their observations. This is a great chance to discuss conspicuous consumption, social location, prestige, etc. Then, ask students which social class they think each family belongs to (they will probably disagree) and what reasons they have for choosing that class label.
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Paul Dean
2/10/2011 06:25:04 am
I used this video to illustrate Annette Lareau's work on how cultural practices of child rearing vary by social class. The Stephens-Fowlers are middle-class because they have advanced educational degrees and professional occupations, whereas the Logns are working-class because they have no college education and blue-collar occupations. The Stephens-Fowler family practices “concerted cultivation,” where parents actively foster and assess children’s talents, opinions, and skills. Their children spend less time with family but learn teamwork, how to interact with adults, and gain new types of cultural knowledge (about sports, music, etc). Their family pays $40,000 per year to send their children to a private school, "grooming them to be elite, highly educated citizens of the world." Their language use is extensive (with the Long mother noting the words they use are "too big"), and they play an active role in their children's institutional involvement.
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Anne Groggel
3/1/2016 07:15:15 pm
Does anyone still have active link for the clip?
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Jen
2/27/2018 10:39:00 am
As of Feb 2018 this clip isn't available, sadly!
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