 “I Am My Body”. Physical Selves of Police Officers in a Changing InstitutionDavid Courpasson (courpasson@em-lyon.com) and
Vanessa Monties
Post-Print from HAL Abstract: Most studies on identity work have overlooked the corporeal quality of occupational life. Despite calls to attempt such engagement, little is known about the role of the body in occupations for which corporeal elements are central in the affirmation of identity. This study aims to answer such calls by providing a detailed ethnography of police work. Focusing on four bodily practices, we demonstrate how fitness, intimidation, cleanliness, and toughness are central elements to the officers' construction of self. We thereby highlight the notion of physical selfhood as a way to understand the body/identity nexus among police officers and their capacity to resist new work requirements. We view bodies through a lens of resistance, rather than docility and compliance as much previous research has done. We aim to contribute to scholarship on identity work by portraying the politicization of bodies as a powerful component, thereby helping professionals to deflect some important institutional pressures affecting their work. Keywords: bodily practices; body; identity work; physical selfhood; police work; resistance (search for similar items in EconPapers) Published in Journal of Management Studies, 2017, 54 (1), 32-57 p. ⟨10.1111/joms.12221⟩ There are no downloads for this item, see the EconPapers FAQ for hints about obtaining it. Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-02311902 DOI: 10.1111/joms.12221 Access Statistics for this paper More papers in Post-Print from HAL |
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