Friendship and Diversity Class, Ethnicity and Social Relationships in the City
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Do people make friends with those who are culturally and socially different to themselves? Friendship and Diversity explores the social relationships of adults and children living in highly diverse localities in London. The authors examine how social class and ethnic difference affects the friendships of children in primary schools and their parents. The book draws on original and in-depth conversations 8 and 9 year olds about their classroom relationships, with parents about their own and their children’s friendships, and with teachers about supporting children’s friendships at school. Through detailed discussions of friendships, everyday multiculture, and attitudes towards shared social space, cultural difference and social class, the authors reveal what these friendships tell us about the nature and extent of social mixing and social divisions in cities with diverse populations.
Friendship and Diversity will be of interest to students and scholars across a range of disciplines, including sociology, geography and psychology, as well as education practitioners.
“Scholars today seem more interested in hating than liking. This insightful book shows why this is misplaced. It demonstrates that in spaces of ethnic diversity, friendship practices reveal the ambivalent dynamics of sociality. The authors ... analyse the plural, fluid and networked dimensions of friendship, and the ways these negotiate cultural differences in an increasingly global world.” (Greg Noble, Western Sydney University, Australia)