The uses of Pierre Bourdieu’s theory to study body and health in the academic-scientific field of physical education

Abstract

This integrative literature review examines the use of Pierre Bourdieu’s concepts in the academic field of Physical Education (PE) in Brazil to explore body and health in scientific articles published from 2016 to 2021. The findings indicate that these concepts are often applied in isolation to support or refute arguments without systematically utilizing Bourdieu’s sociological framework. Such applications fall short of fully conveying the theoretical intentions of Bourdieu. Nonetheless, they reflect an attempt by PE researchers to critically engage with the theory of practice. Moreover, the review underscores the presence of inequalities and dominance within the realms of body and health in PE, particularly through economic and symbolic capital. It reveals how dominant players within these subfields continue to enforce domination via symbolic violence in both bodily practices and sports or public health contexts. The findings confirm that habitus dispositions are not innate, illustrating that the dominations and inequalities prevalent in the social sphere disproportionately impact those with less economic and cultural capital in terms of body and health.