Séminaire

Seminar: The Capability Approach and Sociology of Poverty

Vendredi 3 décembre de 9h30 à 13h (Bruxelles, lieu à confirmer)

Presentation

The capability approach, first conceptualised by the economist Amartya Sen[1], has since its inception greatly influenced development studies (Nussbaum, 2011) and has served as a foundation for a comparative and pluralist theory of justice (Sen, 2009). More recently, social scientists have implemented this approach in different fields of study such as social norms, inequalities and democracy (Bonvin et al., 2017). The Re-Invest.be research project aims at building upon this approach by combining it with an analysis of social rights, to evaluate anti-poverty policies in Belgium. This seminar will serve as an introduction to the use of the capability approach and to discuss its different applications and limitations in a sociology of poverty and human rights.

It will explore the following questions:

• How can we apply the capability approach in sociological inquiries?
• How do capabilities and human rights interrelate?
• How does the capability approach affect sociological definitions of poverty?

Program

• Introduction: Basic capabilities and where to find them (Matthias Rosenzweig, CriDIS – UCLouvain)
• Ides Nicaise (HIVA, KUL): Capabilities and social investment
• Jean De Munk (CriDIS, UCLouvain): Capabilities and social rights
• Jean-Michel Bonvin (Cigev, Geneva University): Capabilities and the Welfare State

References

Bonvin, J.-M., De Munck, J., & Zimmermann, B. (2017). Introduction : The capability approach and critical sociology. Critical Sociology, 44(6), 859‑864. https://doi.org/10.1177/0896920517737144

Nussbaum, M. C. (2011). Creating capabilities : The human development approach. Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.

Sen, A. (1985). Commodities and capabilities. OUP India.

Sen, A. (2009). The Idea of justice. Penguin books.