theory of 'joining the tribe'??

[Sinead Devane]

hello fellow interesteds in theory..

can anyone point me in the right direction for finding some theory/discussion of the practice of joining groups/tribes/companies? I am looking in to the practicalities of starting work in a new place, and want to marry it with some theory.

thanks for any pointers you might have!

Sinead.

[Fredric Hohlen]

If you're looking at how people join groups, network analysis would be one way to go; I'd start out with Boissevain 1968 here. The downside of network analysis is that in and of itself I find it to be rather thin in terms of describing how individuals experience their connections with others, their entrances and exits from social systems.

Also, there's always the symbolic anthropology literature on rites of passage (Turner, et al.), though the focus here is much more on the ritual aspects of integrating individuals into a whole than on the subjective.

[Sinead Devane]

thank you Fredric!

Fredric Hohlen said:

If you're looking at how people join groups, network analysis would be one way to go; I'd start out with Boissevain 1968 here. The downside of network analysis is that in and of itself I find it to be rather thin in terms of describing how individuals experience their connections with others, their entrances and exits from social systems.

Also, there's always the symbolic anthropology literature on rites of passage (Turner, et al.), though the focus here is much more on the ritual aspects of integrating individuals into a whole than on the subjective.