Toward a sociology of ignorance in leisure studies.

Abstract

Although ignorance is pervasive within contemporary society, it has been largely overlooked within the social sciences, and has remained completely unnoticed within the study of leisure. This paper advances the case for a sociology of ignorance within leisure. An overview of ignorance is provided, before the lack of attention paid towards the concept is explored. The paper discusses the concept of ignorance, with a focus upon deliberate, motivated and wilful ignorance, as opposed to more general, or inadvertent ignorance. The functions of ignorance are then outlined. To illustrate the potential applications of a sociology of ignorance to leisure, we discuss how the study of ignorance may augment knowledge and understanding related to leisure and social justice, with a focus upon race and leisure. The paper concludes with a discussion of the methodological issues related to the study of leisure and ignorance and proposes a framework for its study.