Dynamics of the social practices of political elites in Ukraine before and after 24 February 2022: an analysis in the context of Pierre Bourdieu's theory

Abstract

This article attempts to analyse the social practices of political elites in Ukraine before and after 24 February 2022. Using the theory of French sociologist and philosopher Pierre Bourdieu, the author analyses the changes taking place in the functioning of Ukraine's political elites and the country's political system as a whole before and during the escalation of the full-scale conflict. The analysis presented here is a continuation of the author's previous research, which looked at the social practices of parliamentary elites in Ukraine between 2002 and 2016. This research was conducted in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and was based on ethnographic observations and in-depth interviews with 55 respondents, mostly MPs' assistants, but also MPs, journalists, political advisors and political scientists.

In this study, the author also used later interviews conducted in 2019-2021. In addition, several interviews were conducted for the purpose of the article, in particular with one MP of the parliamentary club 'Servant of the Nation', one MP of the parliamentary club 'Holos', one political scientist and one journalist specialising in reporting on parliamentary proceedings.