Food social space: A tool to study food patterns

Abstract

Thinking food from Social Sciences implies overcoming certain epistemological obstacles which have rooted in theoretical positions since the foundation of this discipline: the positivism and the social autonomy. The concept of social space suggested by Georges Condominas to understand the interrelations between a human group and his background finds in food an application field particularly fruitful. Thus, we have suggested the concept of "food social space" as a tool to study the food patterns. The "food social space" marks the bioanthropological connection of a human group to his background. It gathers six main dimensions: the eatable products, the food production, the culinary aspect, the food habits, the temporality and the social differentiations. A food pattern is a particular configuration of the food social space.