Who Practises Practice Theory (and How)? (Meta-)theorists, Scholar-practitioners, (Bourdieusian) Researchers, and Social Prestige in Academia
| Published date | 01 June 2020 |
| Date | 01 June 2020 |
| Author | Leonie Holthaus |
| DOI | 10.1177/0305829820935177 |
| Subject Matter | Book Review |
https://doi.org/10.1177/0305829820935177
Millennium: Journal of
International Studies
2020, Vol. 48(3) 323 –333
© The Author(s) 2020
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DOI: 10.1177/0305829820935177
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Who Practises Practice
Theory (and How)?
(Meta-)theorists, Scholar-
practitioners, (Bourdieusian)
Researchers, and Social
Prestige in Academia
Leonie Holthaus
TU Darmstadt, Germany
Abstract
Practice theory has become a popular and avowedly pluralistic research programme in European
and Canadian international relations (IR). It promises the end of monolithic grand theorising and
armchair analysis. Yet, taken together, practice theory’s pluralist character and methodological
promises raise the question: who practises practice theory (and how)? I deal with this question
through a discussion of three different, representative, and sociologically important books. On
this basis, I depict three (ideal-)types of authorship. They include the (meta-)theorist, the scholar-
practitioner, and the Bourdieusian researcher. I show that authors remake practice theory’s
theoretical claims by relating practice to theory in different manners, such as deep theorising,
reworking of experience in inductive theorising, and reflexive conceptualisation. I focus less on the
enduring position of (meta-)theorists. I rather argue that the different academic practices indicate
that the authors seek prestige within practice theory and neighboring scientific communities. For
this purpose, I approach prestige as durable esteem due to occupational achievements. Finally,
I ask how the new scientific demands of practice theory might impact young, less established
academics.
Keywords
practice theory, prestige, methodology
Corresponding author:
Leonie Holthaus, TU Darmstadt, Doliviostr 15, Darmstadt, 64283, Germany.
Email: holthaus@pg.tu-darmstadt.de
935177MIL0010.1177/0305829820935177Millennium – Journal of International StudiesHolthaus
research-article2020
Book Review
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