Thinking Allowed

The Corruption of Capitalism & the rise of the rentiers. Laurie Taylor talks to Guy Standing, Professor at the School of Oriental and African Studies, who claims we're living through a Second Gilded Age, one which mirrors the vast inequality and concentration of wealth in the hands of the few which characterised late 19th century America. The difference now is that it's global and its beneficiaries are mainly the owners of property. So is capitalism now rigged in favour of a rentier class? They're joined by David Smith, the Economics Editor of The Times.Also, Protest camps: Anna Feigenbaum, Senior Lecturer in Digital Storytelling at Bournemouth University, charts the transnational history of tents pitched for political change.

Political polarisation in America. Laurie Taylor talks to Marc Hetherington, Professor of Political Science at Vanderbilt University, about why distrust of the opposite party is now so common in the US. Is the same pattern emerging in Britain? They're joined by Robert Ford, Professor of Political Science at the University of Manchester. Also, an anthropologist's guide to names and naming with Barbara Bodenhorn, Emeritus Fellow, Pembroke College, University of Cambridge. Producer: Jayne Egerton.

Higher education - crisis or change? A special programme exploring the role, meaning and future of a university education in a globalised world. It was once assumed that university graduates, particularly those from working class backgrounds, had a route to social mobility via a degree. Sara Goldrick-Rab, Professor of Higher Education Policy and Sociology at Temple University, tells Laurie Taylor why her new study suggests the end of the American dream of self improvement. Half the students, in her sample of 3,000 disadvantaged young adults, dropped out of college due to a lack of financial resources. Lorenza Antonucci, Senior Lecturer in Sociology at Teeside University, compared the lives of students in England, Italy and Sweden and found that, contrary to what is assumed by HE policies, participating in university education now exacerbates inequality. Thomas Docherty, Professor of English and of Comparative Literature at the University of Warwick, joins the discussion, placing these developments in the cont

Shyness: Laurie Taylor talks to Joe Moran, Professor of English and Cultural History at Liverpool John Moores University and the author of study of the 'shrinking violet' in history and sociology. Also, a sociology of naming. Jane Pilcher, Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Leicester, explores the relationship between names and our sense of identity. Producer: Jayne Egerton.

The male 'suit': Christopher Breward, Professor of Cultural History at the University of Edinburgh, talks to Laurie Taylor about the myriad forms and meanings of a garment which has dominated men's wardrobes for 400 years. From Saville Row to Wall St; in times of crisis, as well as celebration; the tailored suit is so ubiquitous that we take it for granted, ignoring its complex history and many varieties, including the Zoot Suit and Le Smoking. Although it embodies ideas of traditional masculinity and respectability, it has also been subverted by women, musicians and revolutionariesAlso, men 'dressing up'. Barbara Brownie, a senior lecturer at University of Hertfordshire, explores how, in recent years, the wearing of costumes has become an increasingly masculine pursuit. Through historical re-enactment, superhero 'cosplay', and the personalisation of characters in online games, a new generation of men are taking pleasure in costume. Producer: Jayne Egerton.

Airport security: what are the costs of a surveillance regime which turns us all into potential suspects? Laurie Taylor talks to Rachel Hall, Associate Professor in Communications at Syracuse University, New York, about her study into the 'transparent traveller' who must submit their bags and bodies to technologies aimed at countering terrorism. Also, Anya Ahmed, Senior Lecturer in Social Policy at the University of Salford, explores the pleasures and pitfalls of retiring to Spain in her research into the lives and times of working class British women who've made this choice. Producer: Jayne Egerton.

Hunger pains: Life inside foodbank Britain. Kayleigh Garthwaite, Leverhulme Trust funded researcher in the Centre for Health and Inequalities Research , Durham University, interviewed hundreds of people who depend on emergency food provision, one of the most controversial by products of the UK government's 'austerity' programme. Critics of these economic policies claim that food poverty has now become a major issue for many citizens - Trussell Trust foodbank use is at a record high with over one million three-day emergency food supplies given to people in crisis in 2015/16. Beyond the statistics, the study focuses on the experience and feelings of users of foodbanks, as well as the volunteers. Stewart Lansley, Economist and visiting fellow at the School of Policy Studies, University of Bristol, joins the discussion, providing a historical perspective on hunger in Britain.Also, food poverty in Europe. Owen Davis, Doctoral Candidate in Social Policy at the University of Kent, places hunger in Britain in a wider

The English Defence League: A study of the individuals who comprise this far right movement. Hilary Pilkington, Professor of Sociology at the University of Manchester, provides fresh and timely insights into a politics built on English identity and opposition to 'Islamism'. They're joined by Nasar Meer, Professor of Comparative Citizenship and Social Policy at Strathclyde University,Who's a 'real' immigrant and who's 'not really' an immigrant? Martina Byrne, Lecturer in the School of Social Policy, Social Policy and Social Justice at University College, Dublin, discusses her study into middle class attitudes to immigration. Why do white Irish professionals consider that white Eastern Europeans are immigrants but white French and Australians are not? Producer: Jayne Egerton.

Political women, gender and speech: Laurie Taylor talks to Deborah Cameron, Rupert Murdoch Professor of Language and Communication at the University of Oxford, about her analysis of the performances of the three female party leaders who took part in televised debates during the 2015 UK General Election campaign. What were the similarities and differences between the women and their male colleagues, as well as between the women themselves and how was it taken up as an issue in media coverage of the campaign? Also, the morality of sleep medications. Jonathan Gabe, Professor of Sociology at Royal Holloway, University of London, talks about his study into attitudes towards the prescribing and taking of sleeping pills. Producer: Jayne Egerton.

Good Neighbours and the democracy of everyday life. Our neighbours do small favours and greet us on the street. They also, on occasion, startle us with noises at night and even betray us to the authorities. Laurie Taylor talks to Nancy Rosenblum, the Senator Joseph Clark Professor of Ethics in Politics and Government at Harvard University, about her study into our many and varied encounters with the people 'next door' - from suburbia to popular culture; in peaceful times & during disasters and across time and culture. They're joined by Graham Crow, Professor of Sociology at the University of Edinburgh. Also, the connection between sporting events and violence against women. Jodie Swallow, Post Graduate Research Student at Chester University, discusses her research into women's experience of domestic abuse in the context of the FIFA World Cup and the Six Nations Rugby Union Tournament.Producer: Jayne Egerton.

Secrecy at Work: the hidden architecture within our organisations. Laurie Taylor talks to Christopher Grey, Professor of Organization Studies at Royal Holloway, University of London, about his study into the secrecy which is woven into the fabric of our lives at work - from formal secrecy, as we see in the case of trade and state secrets based on law and regulation; informal secrecy based on networks and trust; and public or open secrecy, where what is known goes undiscussed.Also, drug taking and employment: how does the UK anti drugs policy shape our concept of 'employable citizens'? Charlotte Smith, Lecturer in Management at the University of Leicester, argues that drug consumption, in neo liberal times, is positioned as the antithesis of economic potential.Producer: Jayne Egerton.

Northern accents at work: Trainee teachers are under pressure to speak the Queen's English. Laurie Taylor talks to Alex Barrata, lecturer in Linguistics at the University of Manchester, & author of a study which finds that certain regional accents are frowned upon in a profession that would normally oppose discrimination. They're joined by Paul Kerswill, Professor in the Department of Language and Linguistic Science at the University of York.Sensible drinkers: the drinking discourses of real ale enthusiasts. Thomas Thurnell-Read, Lecturer in Cultural Sociology at the University of Loughborough, explores the way in which some drinkers construct themselves as sociable and self controlled, in contrast to their hedonistic and unruly counterpartsProducer: Jayne Egerton.

'Queer' Wars: The claim that LGBT rights are human rights meets fierce, sometimes deadly opposition in many parts of the world. Politicians and religious leaders invoke tradition to deflect such universal claims, accusing Western activists of neo colonial interference. Laurie Taylor talks to Dennis Altman, Professorial Fellow in Human Security at La Trobe University, Melbourne, who has examined the international polarisation over sexual rights. He asks how best we can advocate for change in contexts where people face violence and imprisonment for their sexuality and gender. They're joined by Lama Abu- Odeh, Professor in Law at Georgetown University, Washington.Also, Nigerian Beauty Pageants. Juliet Gilbert, Teaching Fellow in African Studies and Anthropology at the University of Birmingham, reflects on the popularity of such spectacles in a country where crowned winners use pageantry as a 'platform' for success, hoping to overcome the double bind of gender and generation in a deeply religious and patriarchal

Glasgow & Russian gangs: Laurie Taylor explores their origins, organisation and meaning in two strikingly different cultures. He talks to Alistair Fraser, Lecturer in Criminology and Sociology at the University of Glasgow, whose fieldwork with young Glaswegian men, demonstrates that gangland life is inextricably bound together with perceptions of masculinity and identity and the quest to find a place in the community. They're joined by Svetlana Stephenson, a Reader in Sociology at London Metropolitan University, who found that Russian gangs, which saw a spectacular rise in the post Soviet, market economy in the 1990s, are substantially incorporated into their communities, with bonds and identities that bridge the worlds of illegal enterprise and legal respectability. Alistair Fraser was in the final shortlist of six for this year's BSA/Thinking Allowed Ethnography Award.Producer: Jayne Egerton.

Migrant women in Britain: Laurie Taylor talks to Linda McDowell, Professor of Human Geography at the University of Oxford and author of a sweeping study of generations of immigrant working women in Britain. From textile mill workers in the 1940s to shopkeepers in the 50s, nannies of the 90s and software developers of today, these first and second generation migrants have been in the vanguard of a social revolution in women's contribution to the economy in the second half of the 20th century. In factories and hospitals, care homes and universities they've played a lasting role in British society, in spite of recurrent discrimination. But what do they have to say about their work and experience?Also, Julia Carter, Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the Canterbury Christ Church University, considers the reasons why, in an era when weddings have never been more liberated from cultural norms and official control, couples still choose to follow the same assumed traditions.Producer: Jayne Egerton.

Walking in the city: The flaneur and flaneuse. Laurie Taylor presents a themed programme which explores the history and meaning of the urban stroller, past and present. Keith Tester, Adjunct Professor at the Thesis Eleven Centre for Cultural Sociology, LaTrobe University, Melbourne, charts the origins of the 'Flaneur'; the "man of the crowd" of Edgar Allan Poe and Charles Baudelaire, and one of the heroes of Walter Benjamin's Arcades Project. Matthew Beamont, co-director of University College London's Urban Lab, contends that the city idler isn't simply a by product of modernism, illuminating London's past via the nocturnal wanderings of poets, novelists and thinkers. And Lauren Elkin, lecturer in the department of English and Comparative Literature at the American University of Paris, counters the implicit assumption that the city belongs to a figure of masculine privilege and leisure. She introduces us to the transgressive 'flaneuse' who claims the right to city space.Producer: Jayne Egerton.

Happiness - Should the government promote it? Danny Dorling, Halford Mackinder Professor of Geography at the University of Oxford, talks to Laurie Taylor about the necessity to inspire a better politics with new measures of what matters most to us. These would include the avoidance of misery, the gaining of long term life satisfaction, the feeling of fulfilment, of worth, of kindness, of usefulness and love. Politicians, he contends, should promote a collective good which incorporates these priorities. They're joined by Paul Ormerod, economist and Visiting Professor at UCL Centre for Decision Making Uncertainty, who contends that policymakers should not claim that they can increase happiness through public policy decisions.Also, do dominant ideals of 'good' parenting contain a class bias? Esther Dermott. Professor of Sociology, argues that the activities of the most educationally advantaged parents are accepted as the benchmark against whom others are assessed.Producer: Jayne Egerton.

The winner of the 2016 British Sociological Association & Thinking Allowed Ethnography award, Maxim Bolt, Lecturer in Anthropology and African Studies at the University of Birmingham, talks to Laurie Taylor about his groundbreaking study of insecure lives on the border farms between Zimbabwe and South Africa. How do people create homes and stability in times of mass unemployment and uncertainty? Also, transcultural sport: Max Mauro, Associate Lecturer in Sports Studies at Southampton Solent University, considers young Congolese migrants establishing a sense of belonging in a Dublin football team.Producer: Jayne Egerton.

The Ethnography award 'short list': Thinking Allowed, in association with the British Sociological Association, presents a special programme devoted to the academic research which has been short listed for our third annual award for a study that has made a significant contribution to ethnography, the in-depth analysis of the everyday life of a culture or sub culture. Laurie Taylor is joined by three of the judges: Claire Alexander, Professor of Sociology at the University of Manchester, Helen Sampson, Director of the Seafarers International Research Centre at Cardiff University and Olivia Sheringham, Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the School of Geography at Queen Mary, University of London.Producer: Jayne Egerton.

Dance halls: a social and cultural history. James Nott, Lecturer in History at the University of St. Andrews, talks to Laurie Taylor about the origins, meaning and decline in a ritual which was once central to many young people's romantic lives and leisure time. He's joined by Caspar Melville, Lecturer in Global, Creative and Community Studies at SOAS.The 'Seduction Community': a study into the mores and codes of self styled, male 'pick up artists'. Rachel O'Neill, Phd graduate at Kings College London, interviewed men whose attitudes to women have attracted considerable condemnation in the wake of the banning of Julien Blanc, US 'pick up artist', from the UK.Producer: Jayne Egerton.