(Im)mobilities on the margins: a Bourdieusian approach to socio-spatial inequalities

Abstract

The literature on the nexus between spatial mobility and social inequalities tends to focus on the hypermobility of individuals of high social status, with little attention paid to the (im)mobility practices of the marginalized. This paper combines Bourdieusian spatial theory and mobilities studies to investigate the (im)mobility patterns of the residents of a peripheral Hungarian village. Based on a qualitative study, we examine how structural necessities are transformed into inculcated spatial dispositions guiding (im)mobility practices and preferences. In addition to patterns of residential (im)mobility, the analysis covers the villagers’ everyday mobilities and uses of space. The findings from this specific empirical setting provide broader insights into how spatial (im)mobility practices intersect with structural inequalities. They reveal that in some contexts, immobility (whether residential or everyday) can be an adequate adaptive strategy and mobility a dysfunctional one. Another conclusion of the paper is that a gradual view of mobility capital can be problematic, as the local value attached to mobility varies even among those with similar social status. Hence, the degree of mobility alone is not indicative of social status. Instead, the paper proposes the concept of the ability to dominate space to interpret the inequality dimension of (im)mobility.