Abstract
Professionals increasingly seek to develop careers that positively impact society and theenvironment and do so by engaging in internal activism. While research recognizes this trend,
knowledge of the intersection of careers and internal activism is still underdeveloped. The thesis
aims to explore this intersection in the specific career context of a professional service firm
(PSF) that has traditionally left little opportunity for deviation from the neoliberal norm.
Specifically, the research draws on Bourdieu’s theory of practice to examine two climate
change initiatives (CCIs). Based on a case study approach and 58 qualitative semi-structured
interviews with professionals involved in internal activism in one PSF, the study investigates
the following research question: How do professionals navigate the intersection of careers and
internal activism, and how do organizational structures influence their practices?
The study identifies two groups: Career integrators, who integrate activism and career practices
by, e.g., engaging in tamed activism and positioning themselves as sustainability experts, and
activist separators, who separate activism and career by, e.g., hiding it and changing
involvement due to exhaustion or lack of recognition. While both groups gain career capital,
career integrators actively translate it into symbolic capital recognized for career advancement
in the field. By appropriating internal activism in this way, this group sustains and reproduces
the field’s professional career habitus and career structures. In contrast, activist separators show
partial resistance to the “rules of the game” in the field and reclaim personal agency in partially
denaturalizing the social order. The analysis suggests that differences in professionals’ career
dispositions and career practices contribute to this.
These findings contribute to scholarship on careers and activism by providing a socially situated
perspective grounded in Bourdieu’s work. It further offers insights into how responsible careers
are constructed through internal activism and how dominant norms are reproduced in the field.
Additionally, reflecting on best practices and lessons learned from the two CCIs, the thesis
proposes ways organizations might support internal activists in staying motivated and
sustaining their involvement.
A first-person narrative is occasionally used to address the personal perspectives of the author,
a former employee and activist within the organization. Therefore, the research also offers
reflections and recommendations on the impact of insider research on both the research process
and the researcher.
| Date of Award | 22 Jan 2025 |
|---|---|
| Original language | English |
| Awarding Institution |
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| Supervisor | Katharina Chudzikowski (Supervisor) & Stefanie Gustafsson (Supervisor) |