The subject of this master’s thesis is political failure and more precisely the social representation of political failure at men and women politicians.
First of all, notion of failure seems to have been much studied by researchers. Indeed, there are many studies in psychology about notion of school failure, professional failure and sport failure. However, despite researchers in psychology showed a particular interest for failure, political failure has not been given special attention by them. Yet, psychology have studied the politics, in particular about political personality, leadership and power relation and social influence and persuasion. Against all odds, notion of political failure have studied very little by sociology, anthropology and even political science. Research on the subject talk about the failure like results of a process, but authors indicates also the men and women politicians are very sensitive to the there image. So, in this research political failure was analyzed through socials representations theory.
The socials representations are social forms of knowledge which are elaborate and share, having a practical purpose and allowing the construction of common reality. They have a function of knowledge, identity, orientation and justification.
In this study, we assume as a hypothesis that men and women politicians have social representation of political failure, and rather negative.
Data collection achieved by qualitative study and specifically by interviews. The population comprised of twelve elected politicians (seven women and five men) with different political status, different seniority and in cities of different sizes (form 1,000 to 300,000 inhabitants).
At the analysis of interviews four themes emerge: electoral failure, failure of political projects, the professionalization is seen as an indicator of failure and the current political system is failing. Firstly, electoral failure is the notion more evoke by interviewers. Indeed, lose election can be complex and complicated psychologically. Furthermore, the failure is again more violent when this is publicized. Secondly, many elected politicians talk about failure of political projects. That is, when they don’t succeed set up them political program. Then, it’s also when there is an inadequacy between expectations of citizens and reality. Thirdly, some interviewed explain that for them to become a professional of politics it is a failure. Thus, there is failure when the primary motivation is no longer for the common interest but for an individual interest such as status or financial contribution. Lastly, a smaller number of interviewee have speak of the current politics can be seen as a failure. In particular because they judge current policy to be inadequacy with today’s realities.
Furthermore, elected politicians explain that political failure is systematically collective and individual. Indeed, political failure is necessarily a collective failure because work is always done in a team. Collective it is also what makes it allow more easier to face at failure, it’s a support. However, there is also in political failure a part of individual. Indeed, they put a lot of hope and personal ambition into the political projects they carry. In addition, some take political failure very personally and interpret this like an individual rejection.
In conclusion, in view of these elements and five criteria of Moliner (1993) (polymorphic object, common representation within the group, identity challenge, dynamic object and independent of a control system), this study despite a very small population, demonstrate a trend about the existence of a social representation of political failure at men and women politicians.
Vocabulary:
Failure: L’échec
Data collection: Collecte de données
Current political: La politique actuelle
to be inadequacy : être en inadéquation
A rejection: un rejet
A trend: une tendance
elected politicians: élus politiques
Bibliography:
Moliner, P. (1993). Cinq question à propos des RS. Les cahiers internationaux de pschologie sociales, 20, 5-14