Abstract

Burawoy distinguishes between policy sociology, professional sociology and public sociology. Based on my own research experience in critical ethnography to analyze welfare organizations and policies, I show that these three types do not necessarily contradict one another. In a strategy echoing Bourdieu’s notion of «martial art», I propose to consider them rather as three possible stages. First, commissioned research allows access the field and data. Provided the researcher preserves his or her an autonomy, this provisional stage proves necessary to build innovative academic knowledge on the concrete forms of public policies. Then, this autonomous scientific use of first-hand, internal and detailed information, enables the researcher to disseminate critical knowledge outside the academia. As in a martial art, the critical researcher can use the strength of the partner-adversary (here public bodies) to «fight» him, that is, to contribute to the public critique of its policies