The `Lifeworld' as a Resource for Social Movement Participation and the Consequences of its Colonization

Abstract

Habermas may be best known for a `structural strain' approach to movement mobilization, but he also offers an untapped `resource' focused appproach which this article seeks to unearth. Social networks, collective identities, and cultural formations have been seen as key resources shaping participation in social movements. These three types of resources map on to what Habermas calls `the lifeworld': society, personality, and culture. Combining theoretical and empirical observations, I look at how the lifeworld can be viewed as a resource for social movement participation, and the consequences of its colonization. I draw upon a case study of the UK National Union of Teachers (NUT) and use interview data (N = 45), and Labour Research Department survey data (N = 1252), to argue that the colonization of schools results in an erosion of `lifeworld resources' necessary for the mobilization of trade unionists in the current UK context.