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Dialogic Relations and Interactions as an Alternative to Power

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Achieving Social Impact

Part of the book series: SpringerBriefs in Sociology ((BRIEFSSOCY))

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Abstract

This chapter presents a theoretical debate on the concept of communicative acts in dialogue with Searle’s speech acts theory and Habermas’ use speech acts in his theory of communicative action. I discuss how a theory of communicative acts conceives the existence of both power and dialogic interactions within the social structure, as well as other dimensions of the communication such as body language or accounting for more than speakers’ intentions. In a second part, this theory is linked to the communicative methodology of research and exemplified through CREA’s research with the Roma people. While research about the Roma have been traditionally dominated by power interactions, communicative research with them is based on an inter-subjective dialogue. Finally, I draw some reflections to continue advancing the development of transformative scientific knowledge that can contribute so social change.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    For Weber ([1922]1978, p. 53) Power is the probability that one actor within a social relationship will be in a position to carry out his own will despite resistance, regardless of a basis on which this probability rests. As he very well qualified, all the imaginable qualities of a person and all sorts of possible constellations can place someone in a position of imposing his or her will in a given situation. People who argue that post-structuralism or post-modernism showed us that power can be everywhere have never read Weber nor the many authors that had already done these analyses before post-structuralists were even born. Weber ([1922]1978) also saw that power can be at the service of other goals (ideal or selfish) or just to enjoy the feeling of prestige that it provides.

  2. 2.

    Habermas develops deeply the concept of validity claims, but he does not treat power claims in the same way. For instance, This internal relation between imperatives and statements of intention shows that the claim connected with imperatives is not a validity claim, a claim that could be criticized and defended with reason; it is a power claim (Habermas 1987, II, 31).

  3. 3.

    Author’s translation from Italian.

  4. 4.

    European Parliament resolution on the situation of Roma people in the European Union. Retrieved August 4, 2012 from: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+MOTION+B6-2005-0274+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN.

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  1. University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

    Marta Soler-Gallart

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  1. Marta Soler-Gallart
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Correspondence to Marta Soler-Gallart .

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Soler-Gallart, M. (2017). Dialogic Relations and Interactions as an Alternative to Power. In: Achieving Social Impact . SpringerBriefs in Sociology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60270-7_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60270-7_2

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