Socio-psychological aspects of economic processes Proximity of mental belonging Marianne Ehrlich *

Abstract In this work, we will discuss the relation between psychology and economics and the use within this subject matter of the theory of social representation (Moscovici, 1961, Abric, 2001, Vergès, 1997) with respect to the notion of proximity in economy. What do we think of the notion of proximity in social psychology? What does this notion mean to us? What are its similarities with the science of economics? The goal of this research is to demonstrate the manner in which social representations can help in the identification of agricultural communities unified by what we have defined through the aid of the new concept of « proximity of mental belonging ». To answer these questions, we present three independent studies. In theses studies we try to demonstrate the existence of mental communities. The studied subjects are therefore grouped according to their « proximity of mental belonging », their way of thinking about their agricultural practices and perception of environment. Key-words Social representation, proximity of mental belonging, dynamic of proximity in economy.

I. Introduction Each individual thinks and acts according to the way in which he represents the world through a system of knowledge based on main beliefs, values, interdicts that he shares with members of his group. This common knowledge does not correspond to an objective representation of the surrounding world, but to a socio-cognitive rebuilding of reality. To understand the way in which the individual mentally represents the world is to understand the way in which he proceeds. The objective of our research is to confront this approach of social representations with that of proximity in economy. The concept dynamic of proximity, introduced by the French school of proximity, makes it possible to analyze the existence of "savoirs communs" what connects individuals and explains relational phenomena (Moquay, Lardon, Marcelpoil, Piveteau, 2001). This postulate could find an extremely good application in the field of social representations. In this article, we will discuss the contributions of the concept of proximity and their mobilization in this field. How do we understand the concept of proximity in social psychology? What brings this concept to our disciplinary fields? What are commons points with economic sciences? In the current context of farming community, it can be of major interest to analyze the social representations in agricultural environment insofar as they correspond to ways of thinking, thus functioning as an action guide for the individuals. Farming practices today are very topical adaptinging the encountered environmental problems. To slow down the evolution of these problems (water, ground pollution, erosion...), several steps aiming at changing of agricultural practices to favor of the environment (i.e. environmentally friendly practices) are proposed. *

INRA-INAPG, 16 rue Claude Bernard, 75005 Paris, [email protected] 1

However, a majority of farmers does not adhere to these changes voluntarily. Consequently, principal interest of a study of social representations consists in exploiting, through the perception of the individuals, their motivations and their attitudes towards the environment. Indeed to analyze the mental image that a farmer has of his environment includes the understanding of the manner in which he apprehends it, and of his positions towards it. Thus, it is a question of taking into account the implication and the interest of farmers vis-a-vis environmental-friendly approaches, because this knowledge helps to target interventions in regard to the environment and is also very useful in adjusting by farm advisors’ counseling farmers. The work which we present in this article results from three independent studies aimed at highlighting the existence of communities of farmers, who belong to these communities through the perception which they have formed of their trade and environment. Three examples were selected: the first is that of Breton stockbreeders, the second relates to cereal growers of Seine-etMarne and a third study was conducted around different categories of farmers in Picardie. Thus, after having developed respectively the concepts of social representation and proximity in social psychology and economy in the first two parts of this article, we will evoke in a third part these three examples illustrative of the way in which the concept of proximity can be apprehended through representations. These examples will take us, in the last part of this presentation, to discuss the bringing together of the concept of proximity in the fields of social sciences, and, more precisely, of economic and psychosociological sciences. II. Theoretical Framework Concept of social representation 2.1. General aspects The social representations correspond to various modalities of knowledge (attitudes, stereotypes, values, standards...), conveyed by the surrounding community, which make it possible for an individual to apprehend his social and physical environment. Thus, the representation of an object does not correspond to the objective and intrinsic reality of this object, but rather to a social construction of reality, as Denise Jodelet (1989) defines it classically. "It is a form of knowledge, socially constructed out and shared, having a practical and consensual aiming; the construction of a reality common to a social group". This definition enables us to approach a first aspect inherent to the social representation: it is a reality common to a social unit of individuals. A representation is "social", because it is "the result of a social interaction" and, on the other hand, "because it is shared by the individuals of the same group" on which it confers its specificity (Guimelli, 1994). It is formed, changed and transmitted through social interactions. It is the product of a cultural heritage and personal experiences past and present. Thus the social representations are not static; they are dynamic and change over time with the image of the society. From the characteristics which we have just presented, the representations are "social" but they are also "individual cognitive processes" (Grize, Vergès, Silem, 1987), insofar as they correspond to a structured set of modality of knowledge. Thus, they are controls of the cognitive processes of the individuals, following specific rules. The social representation corresponds to the way in which a social group represents a concrete or abstract object mentally. This subjective appropriation of reality calls upon cognitive processes. The way of functioning of these processes 2

depends on the social conditions under which the representations of the individuals are worked out and change. Thus, Moscovici (1961) shows how a representation is born according to the social context. It proposes an ideal model making it possible to understand how a scientific subject is changed and adapted by the social context. This genesis highlights two processes: the objectivation and the anchor effect. The purpose of objectivation is to materialize through images of abstract concepts, so that they become communicable: few elements are linked in one representational nucleus that has a concrete reality for the individuals. The anchor effect, second phase in the construction of a representation, relates to the social rooting of the representation. The individuals appropriate and transform cognitively elements of social reality to integrate them into a pre-existing thinking system. Information selected is built-in in familiar networks of categories. By the study of various social backgrounds (middle-class, communist, catholic), Moscovici thus shows how the formed representations are dependent on the social context they are a part of. The social representations thus are strongly contextualised. Their significance depends on the social context in which they are activated, the discursive context, and their development depends on the context in which they fit and evolve (Abric, 2001). 2.2. Function of social representation As mental processes of knowledge, social representations fulfill an intermediate function between scientific concepts and action (Schiele, 1984). They articulate two different theoretical universes, one in relation to the conceptualization and the reasoning in which an individual functions as a cognitive system (Morf, 1984), and the other in relation to the social determinations: socio-economic, cultural, ideological, etc. (Grize and Al, 1987). In other words, the cognitive activity of the individuals is intersected by social determinants (Vergés, 1986). This interactive intersection is possible thanks to an underlying logic, which is the base for this type of knowledge (Grize, 1982). Its basic characteristic is to proceed by the multiple articulation of dimensions coming as much from the individual factors (cognitive, conative, emotional) as from the collective ones (social, economic, cultural, political). The social representations are the guarantors of the safeguarding of the social relationship (Moscovici, Vignaux, 1994). From their collective aspect, they set up the interindividual interactions. They are worked out to organize our reports and our behavior with others. They make it possible for an individual to interpret the world, to be located in an environment and to control it (Jodelet, 1989). Through this double aspect of interpretation of the world and behavior model, Abric (2001) indexes four essential functions of social representations. The first function is the knowing, which makes it possible to explain the reality. The second is a function “identitaire” which makes it possible for the group to preserve its specificity. A third function is that of orientation, authorizing the orientation of behavior. Finally, the justificatory function makes it possible to justify the standpoint of the individuals and their behavior. Consequently, social representations, although they can be studied individually, must be placed in a collective context to be accurate. Just as underlined by Moscovici (1961), such a study has interest only if one takes into account the context, the nature and the motivations of the group to build a representation of an object. "To solve problems, to give a form to social reports, to provide an instrument to control, are powerful reasons to build a social representation" (Moscovici, 1961).

3

2.3. The study of the social representations The identification of contents and the location of a structure simultaneously characterize a thorough research of the social representations. The contents of a representation inform us on beliefs, attitudes, opinions shared by a community of individuals in regard to a given object. "One then seeks to highlight the way in which reality is rebuilt by the group and is integrated in its system of values" (Guimelli, 1995). The study of this organization highlights the structure of the representation. To this end several authors developed a theory based on the identification of structural invariants. These invariants are thus named "core", "noyau central", or "figurative core", integrating the abstract and normative concepts (Bourgeat, 1999). They are the implicit elements, which determine the significance and the organization of the representation. They ensure its perenniality. They are related to the historical, sociological and ideological conditions in which the representation is created and transform. They correspond to the stable and consensual part of the representation. Two essential functions characterize the core, or "noyau central". First, a generating function which generates the representation and gives it direction, secondly, an organizing function which determines the nature of the link between the elements of a representation (Abric, 1994). Around this core a certain number of elements are organized, known as "peripheral elements". The peripheral elements play a role of interface between the core, to which they are directly attached, and reality. Their functional property corresponds to the concrete and explicit part of the representation. According to Flament (1989), the peripheral elements, functioning like a script, prescribe behaviors and standpoint. More flexible, they make it possible for the social representation to adapt more easily to context evolutions and preserve the core from external influences. 2.4. The social practices and representations Certain orientations of research (Abric, 1989) show that practice and social representations are mutually influenced. The nature of their link is determined by the characteristics of the situation, i.e. it depends on the share of autonomy of the actor and on the emotional load of the situation. Abric (2001) poses the assumption that the social representations determine the behaviors when the emotional load is strong, or when the individual has certain autonomy. On the contrary, when the individual finds himself in a situation with strong constraint (material, social or practical), practice and representations come into play. If new practices intervene and appear contradictory with the system of values of the individuals, and consequently with their system of representation, the individuals will be brought to judge the reversibility of the situation in order to adjust their behaviors. Therefore, in this case, practices will determine the representations. If the situation is considered to be reversible, only contents of the representation will change, i.e. elements will change at the peripheral level and not at the central level. On the other hand, if the situation is considered to be irreversible, the social representation will be brought to change. Thus, the nature of practices is determinant, for these practices have the power to transform a progressive transformation into a brutal one (Flament, 2001).

4

2.5. Concept of proximity in economy According to the economic theory, the concept of proximity arises from quite a particular definition, which we will briefly analyze, in order to bring together proximity and the theory of social representations. The concepts of proximity, such as the group of Dynamic research «of Proximity» defines it, give account of economic analyses beyond the simple concept of space. It allows the identification of the mechanisms of coordination, which are set up within the social or institutional networks, to be territorialized (Rallet, 2002). For its researchers, this concept "must be used to treat distance between the individuals, the organizations or the activities" (Gilly, Torre, 2000), while referring as much to the geographical separation of the agents as to their economic separation. The concept of proximity refers to the existence of interaction of space or organizational nature between the actors and holders of different resources. Thus, two major components intervene in the dimension of proximity. First, organizational proximity dealing with economic separation, and its links in term of organization of the production, is based on two types of logics. On the one hand, the membership of an organization results in the existence of interactions between these members. It is the logic of membership: two members of an organization are close to one another because they interact, and that interaction is facilitated by the rules or routines of behavior (explicit or tacit) that they follow. In addition, members of an organization are considered to share the same system of representations, or a set of beliefs and similarity of knowledge. This social link is mainly of tacit nature. It is the logic of similarity. Two individuals are known as close relations because they "resemble each other", i.e. share the same system of representations, which facilitates their capacity of interacting. Then, geographical proximity translates the distance in kilometers between two entities (individuals, organizations, and towns.). It has two essential properties. In fact, it is of binary type: there are infinite graduations (more or less far from, more or less close to) but the examination of the geographical proximity has for object to know if one is "far from" or "close to". It is also doubly relative. Firstly, the geographical distance, which is based on the division between proximity and distance, relates to the means of transport. Secondly, the proximity is not only one objective data. It proceeds of a judgement related to the perception of individuals towards the nature of the geographical distance that separates them. The individual’s judgement consists in treating the set of parameters that influences him: to reduce these parameters to a statement, according to which one is “near” or “far”. This set of parameters includes objective data (kms, time, and price) but also the subjective perception of the individual. 2.6. Concept of proximity in social psychology: proximity of mental belonging There exist in social psychology, and more particularly in the field of the social representations, some references to the concept of proximity (Grize and Al, 1987; Doise, Clemence, Lorenzi-Cioldi, 1992). The evocation of concept is more related to a semantic proximity of the words than to an organizational or geographical proximity. This semantic proximity is defined linguistically by the bringing together or the distance between elements according to their equivalence, their inclusion, their exclusion or their intersection in the structure of representation. However, another aspect of the concept of proximity rises from this definition, that we will name the proximity of mental belonging of the individuals. The latter can be defined 5

from the analysis of the various ways of thinking of the individuals. It is the use of this concept of proximity to which we refer in this chapter, and which we will now develop. When we speak about proximity of mental belonging, we evoke the idea that there are social representations of the same object, but that they are not the same from individual to individual. These distinctions appear at the level of the ways of thinking, when individuals belong to different social groups, or when they belong to the same population, but they differ according to certain characteristics (i.e. practical, resources...). This last aspect, which interests us here, is not contradictory with the theory previously developed. Indeed, we showed that a representation is relatively stable in time. It consists of abstract elements that organize the representation and the individuals, as guide for acting they refer to normative elements. Thus the central part of the social representation of an object, functions like a reference guide and cannot be modified easily. This is why there is a peripheral system of concepts constituting an interface between the core “noyau central” and reality, and protecting the core from the external threats likely to generate a transformation of the representation. This peripheral system is also, in fact, the reflection of contextualised individual variability, since it authorizes differences, even inside the same representation Thus, when we evoke the idea of proximity of mental belonging, we are talking about the central part of the representation, which gives access to cognitive elements (values, attitudes, beliefs...), stable and common to the studied population, like that of its peripheral part. This approach allowed us to link up the groups of individuals inside of the study population, according to a socio-cognitive proximity generated by modes of practice or similar standpoint This aspect of the proximity, in the field of the social representations, would be that which fits most closely the varied definitions of organizational proximity, which have been developed by economic sciences. The analysis of the individual’s proximity in organizational term follows two logics, as we previously defined them: the logic of belonging developing relations within the same network or the same firm, and the logic of similarity, developing relations within the same space of reference and knowledge. Just like in the field of social representations, these two dimensions are interdependent insofar as the belonging, determining the space of reference and knowledge of the individuals. As we eluded to in our theoretical presentation, to adopt specific practices (i.e. from its membership of definite professional networks) can affect the system of representation of the individuals. That goes back to the mutual influence between practices and representations. If the situation does not generate any constraint, representations will influence practices. In other words, it is the system of knowledge of the individual, which will dictate his control to him. On the other hand, if the situation becomes constraining and obliges the individual to adopt unusual behaviors, this one can be brought to change representation according to the perceived reversibility of the situation. If the person feels forced (i.e. socially, politically, economically...) to modify her practices then, she judges the situation as being irreversible (without possibility of returning to old practices), the adoption of these new behaviors will influence consequently the system of representation of the individual or the group. In this study we are aiming to identify these various groups of mental belonging through three examples of applied research. The goal of our research is to demonstrate the manner in which social representations can help in the identification of agricultural communities integrated through the support of a new concept, that of the « proximity of mental belonging ».

6

III. Study of proximity of mental belonging STUDY I 3.1. Example 1: Study of environmental and agricultural social representations Overview of the study In the first phase of this study, our objective was to highlight the perception that the farmers have of their trade. According to the concept of social representation theory, this would be a guide for their actions. Today, however, environmental problems force the farmers to modify some of their practices. (Ehrlich, Guillou, 2001) The second objective was to test the representation of object "environment". This second phase aims at gaining knowledge of the farmers’ opinion towards problems confronting today’s agricultural world. We would like to understand whether certain aspects of the environment are included or not as components of the social representation about the farmer’s trade. Finally, we aimed to highlight the link between the studied social representations and the specific farming practices. Therefore we selected the type of farm’s production as a principal characteristic in order to study differences in the social representations between the milk producers and the stockbreeders producers of pig. Methodology Field of study: to answer these questions, 31 interviews were carried out with farmers stockbreeders of Brittany. The sample was composed of 31 participants, all males taken randomly. The characteristic selected for our study as main independent variable was the "Type of farming production" in order to reveal differences in social representations. The distribution of the stockbreeders is the following: 1) 5 subjects produce only pigs 2) 16 subjects produce only milk 3) 10 subjects produce at the same time milk and pigs. We wished to take into account as a standard variable the "Type of breeding" which seems relevant to the environmental questions. In fact, in Brittany, a particularly high rate of water pollution is allotted to pig’s production. Research hypotheses: In this context, the stockbreeder’s social representation of environment may be different from others farmers. Materials and procedure The social representation of these two objects was studied by the method of associations of words used by the research in social representations (Bouedec, 1984; Grize and Al, 1987). The words "agriculture" and "environment" are employed as inductive words to induce the answers of the subjects. The interest of this test relies in its emphasis of the stereotypes related to inductive words (Bardin, 1998). Moreover, the choice of this technique is justified by the use of oral expression (speech) which seems to be one of the forms of appearance most appropriate to the study of social representations (Ehrlich, Alvarez, Dervin, 1997).

7

Measurements The analysis relates to the study of 93 words for each inductive term. The collection of data thus gives place to a multitude of induced words that cannot be subjected directly to an analysis. First, the procedure consisted of the selection of words of same significance, or semantically in close relations, under a general term. Then, we carried out the first analyses that lead us to treat the results according to the method developed by Ehrlich and Dervin (1999).Then, through a Factorial Analysis of Correspondences (FCA), we can obtain the perception, which the farmers have, of agriculture and the environment by establishing the salient relations between the elements. This analysis allowed regrouping words in the form of categories. Each category thus defines "groups of mental belonging" incorporating the subjects according to their similarity with respect to the perception of each object of representation. In other words, this method makes it possible to identify the contents of each social representation and individual differences. It only takes into account, the terms having a frequency of appearing higher or equal to 3, which corresponds to more than 10% of the total answers. Finally, in order to answer the questions concerning the correlation between representations and practices, we submitted the categories previously obtained through to Factor Analyses of Correspondences (FCA) according to the type of farm production: producers of pigs, producers of milk and mixed producers. The results of this research are presented below. To facilitate comprehension, we will analyze each inductive term independently. Results Agriculture With the aim of identifying the existence of community of farmers according to their practices (Ehrlich, Dervin, 1999) we carried out an analysis of the similarities. For each analysis, we retained the terms most frequently evoked. Concerning agriculture, this analysis highlights 5 categories related to various aspects of the trade of the farmer (figure 1). These categories define the groupings of farmers according to their mode of representation, i.e. according to the image, which they associate to the representation of their trade: A xe 1 ( 1 7 ,5 4 % )

A v e n ir L ib e rté d e tra v a il

C o n tr a in te s a d m in is tr a tiv e s C o n tr a in te s d e tr a v a il

R evenu

E le v a g eC u ltu r e

E n v ir o n n e m e n t

A xe 2 ( 1 3 ,4 6 % )

G e s tio n

V o c a tio n M é tie r A lim e n ta tio n N a tu r e

S ta tu t s o c ia l

Figure 1 - Social representation of Agriculture 8

Through figure 1, we do not seek to interpret the axes of this figure, but rather to identify communities of farmers according to their way of thinking. Thus, basically we retain here five groups: (1) farmers evoking their trade through his inherent characteristics (income, food, vocation, trade and environment); (2) farmers defining their trade according to their practices (culture, breeding); (3) farmers more evoking the advantages and disadvantages of their trade; (4) farmers more implied in the management of their exploitation (management); and (5) farmers more developing their trade through its characteristics (social status, nature). The identified communities are obviously not fixed; their borders are malleable and they can overlap. It is more precisely a question of representing categories, which are possibly the most representative ways of thinking of the farmers. The distinctions appearing above are strongly dependent on the practices as shown in figure 2. We carried out this last analysis with the aim of highlighting a possible bringing together between the categories identified above and the practices of the questioned stockbreeders. Those can be gathered in three categories according to their type of production: breeding of pigs, breeding of cows with milk, two types of breeding. The results are presented below (figure 2):

Axe 1 (76,43%) Pratiques Valorisant Lait Lait & Porc Avantages Inconvénients

Porc

Caractéristiques

Axe 2 (23,57%)

Gestion

Figure 2 - Social representation of agriculture according to type of breeding The first factor shows the differences between the producers carrying out a single production (milk or pig) and the general-purpose producer (milk and pig at the same time). The general-purpose producers appear on the side of the developing aspects of the trade, contrary to practice. The second factor opposes the producers of pigs to the milk producers. In a more precise way the producers of pigs, on the side of the management of the exploitation, oppose the milk producers in defining their trade by the practice of breeding and culture. Today, the porcine production is more and more industrialized, bringing the producers to evoke their trade more in terms of management, thus referring to the evolution of the trade towards an entrepreneurial image. In addition, in term of analysis of the social representations, we note that the concepts related to the category "characteristics of the trade" appear central and thus common with the whole of the population. Therefore Conclusion, there are distinct practices, which would reveal interindividual variances within the representation, thus allowing the description of various groups of mental belonging.

9

Environment The second analysis, concerning the social representation of the environment, makes it possible to distinguish four categories corresponding to four groupings of farmers (figure 3): A xe 1 ( 1 7 ,0 8 % ) A p p r o b a t io n

P o l lu t i o n

T r a n s m i s s io n A xe 2 ( 1 4 ,4 6 % )

R espect

N a tu re Eau

P r is e d e c o n s c ie n c e E n t r e t i e n d e la n a tu r e C oût

N o rm e s

Figure 3 - Social representation of Environment This analysis makes it possible to distinguish four groups: (1) the farmers who evoke more the environment in terms of description of the natural environment (pollution, transmission through the ground, respect, nature, water); (2) the more pragmatic farmers, who think more of the environment in term of action (awakening, maintenance of nature); (3) the farmers who perceive more the environment in terms of constraint (cost, standards); and, finally, (4) the farmers who approve the evolutions concerning matters of environment (approval). In addition, the concept of respect, which tends to approach the center of the axis, seems one of the organizing principles of the social representation of the environment. This idea seems common to the perception of all farmers. In order to show that the link between practices and representations, we have represented below the results of four analysis in function of the type of breeding (figure 4): Axe 1 (81,02% )

Contraintes

Lait Milieu naturel

Lait & Porc Axe 2 (18,98% )

Approbation Action Porc

Figure 4 – Social representation in function of breeding type Factor1 opposes the general-purpose producers (milk and pig) to the simple producers (milk or pig). The general-purpose stockbreeders evoke the environment in term of constraints. 10

Factor 2 opposes between them the simple producers. The milk producers have a relation with the environment strongly related to their relation with the ground. The producers of pigs evoke the environment in terms of approval of the standards. The producers of pigs are more often singled out concerning problems of pollution. Therefore, it is probably most important for them especially to improve their reputation, in a time of crisis of the pig industry. As for the milk producers, their relation with the farmland is more significant insofar as they are there, in its physical contact, as obligated by the culture of the fields of pasture. STUDY II 4.1. Example 2: Study of the social representation of farmland Overview of the study Research goal: to identify the components of the social representation of the farmland by cereal growers (Ehrlich, Germann, 1999). In certain agricultural zones, agronomic observations revealed the harmful impact of certain fertilization practices on the natural balance of the land. The environmental-friendly programs were launched in order to reduce ecological degradations resulting from the activity of the farmers. The objective of these programs consists in evolving or transforming the agricultural practices of the farmers. New working methods, established on the basis of agronomic and hydrological analysis of the grounds, are thus proposed to the farmers by the technicians and engineers consulting staff of “Chambre d’Agriculture”. Since 1993, through the efforts of the“Chambre d’Agriculture” of the Seine and Marne, in collaboration with the SAGEP (Limited company of Management of Water of Paris), a local action was thus organized. This environmental program concerns each 80 farmers belonging to a zone determined by agronomic criteria. The main point of this program focused the collective action and the effective engagement of the majority of these farmers. The support of the whole population is necessary in order to insure those perceptible changes and significant results appear at the level of the environment. This environmental program, aiming at the reorganization of activities of farmer’s production, confronts them with a local problem of water pollution. Agricultural politics related to these directives (methods respecting the environment) for agricultural practice aims to induce changes in farmers’ attitudes. Confronted with the failure of this action, the “Chambre d’Agriculture” of the Seine and Marne solicited us to analyze the complex network of factors intervening in individual decisions and structuring of territorial dynamics. The negative attitude of most farmers regarding this institutional request provided us with tracks of reflection in order to engage a study on individual motivations and structuring of local groups. Methodology Approximately sixty cereal growers of the Seine and Marne were concerned by this study. From the database provided by the “Chambre d’Agriculture”, we proceeded to the selection of subjects (pensioners, farmers in discontinuance of business, women-farmer) and we retained a group of thirty subjects as our sample of study. After examining the economic, sociological, geographical factors for each subject, our population proved to be homogeneous. The studied subjects are situated in the same area of production, characterized by agriculture of a cereal type. They have the same professional position as head of their exploitation. The only factor of 11

differentiation is the size of the tilled area of the exploitations, varying between 50 and 300 hectares. Field of study: collection of data carried out by a semi-directive interview with 30 subjects, all males, selected to compose a homogeneous sample of cereal growers from Seine and Marne. Empirical strategy In order to understand the motivations of the subjects, the socio-cognitive structures for each subject were studied through semi-directive interviews. The structure of directive interviews and the elaboration of guides leading to questioning of subjects were conceived taking as a model “The reports of the man to his environment” (Ratiu, DeVanssay and Al, 1997), adapting it to our research. Materials and procedure In reference to the theory of the core “noyau central”, the contents of the social representations were highlighted. Collection of data was based on a spontaneous association of words from the inductive term "farmland". This test technique of this test enabled us to approach the perception of the farmland in the farmer’s mind. Initially, it consists in making spontaneous association by subject of four words to inductive term "farmland" (evocation of row 1), then, immediately after the subjects associate three new words for each of the four induced words (evocation of row 2). According to this schemes, we guided and directed the verbal communication of the farmers towards the aimed topics: a) Perception of the state of the environment: from the space-time point of view b) Perceived utility of the environmental practices recommended by the agricultural consultants c) Evaluation of their own responsibility on the environmental state The test of associations of words "farmland" makes it possible to identify the contents of the social representation and prepares the subjects for the second step of the procedure by carrying out a semi-directive interview. Results The whole of the semantic contents resulting from the association of word was gathered in six conceptual categories according to the method previously evoked of Ehrlich and Dervin (1999). The dimensions approached by the farmers in reference to the word "ground" are economic dimension, original dimension, feeder dimension, descriptive dimension, abstract dimension and patrimonial dimension (table 3). Rank 1 Rank 2 Rank 3 Rank 4 Total 13 11 11 9 44 Economic 1 11 7 3 22 Feeder 10 2 3 1 16 Original 3 2 4 7 16 Descriptive 1 2 3 8 14 Abstract 1 1 1 1 4 Patrimonial Table n°3 - Distribution of the categories related to the ground according to their frequency of evocation and their row of appearance

12

This analysis makes it possible to aim principal dimensions related to the social representation of the term farmland. Data analysis reveals that this term is primarily related to the economic dimension, and is then constituted respectively according to feeder, original, descriptive, abstract and patrimonial dimensions. Following this first analysis, the researchers could show that there is a relationship between the social representation that the farmers have of the land and the perception, which they have of the environmental practices. The diagram below (figure 5) shows how the farmers positioning relates to their practices according to the representation, which they have of the farmland.

axe 1 (35%) pratiques : inutile

axe 2 (25%)

pratiques : défense RS polarisée

RS mixte

pratiques : aléatoire

pratiques : environnement

Figure 5 – Social representation of farmland However, according to farmers’standpoint concerning the utility of environmental practices, figure 5 also shows how the farmers positioning compares their practices according to the representation, which they have of the ground. This analysis of farmers’ representations enables us to define two distinct populations: (1) Farmers having a representation of the farmland associating economic dimension with another dimension (mixed RS) (2) Farmers who perceive the pro-environmental practices as useless (practices: useless) are mostly people who perceive the farmland only as one dimension, that being mainly the economic dimension (polarized RS). They evoke the utility of the pro-environmental practices for the defense of their trade (practices: defense of trade). We have grouped farmers according to their proximity of mental belonging. By using this technique, the analysis of the social representation of the farmland made it possible to distinguish two identifiable groups of farmers according to their way of thinking related to farmland. First, a mixed group which associated the economic dimension with one or more other dimensions, and secondly a polarized group, the members of which perceived the farmland under only one dimension (economic dimension).

13

The type of representation (mixed or polarized) has an influence on the attitude which farmers have towards their cultural practices. In other words, if a minority of people perceives the utility of the environmental friendly practices, it is not astonishing that the proposed program was a failure. However, it is possible to avoid this failure by intervening directly at the level of the farmers’ social representations, since ours results confirm that perception related to the farmland its primarily in economic dimension. It is possible that certain farmers do not perceive the harmful impact of their practices if they consider the farmland more like a working tool than a live element.

STUDY III 5.1 Example 3: The social representation of environment Overview of the study Research goal: to highlight relationships between the representation of the environment and farming practices (Guillou, Ehrlich 2004). A two-step analysis was carried out. 1) Within the framework of the comparison of representations and farm practices, we carried out analyses of social representation, taking into consideration the farmers belonging to each type of farming practice as a particular social group. 2) As a second step of this analysis, we tried to identify correlation between the peripheral elements of the social representation of the environment common to the farmers and theirs farm practices and their social values. Methodology Within the framework of the analysis of subjects’ knowledge (representation) as it relates to the environment, we tested the existence of differences between two groups of selected individuals. The studied population concerns the farmers in Picardie and participants were tested individually. The analyses were carried out of 205 questionnaires, which correspond, to the number of subjects (males) having completely answered the treated questions, which were retained, for analysis. Research hypotheses we supposed that different practice towards the environment lead to different perception (representation) from this environment. According to the theory of social representations, these differences should not be related to central elements of the core of the representation but to peripheral elements, since it is from their practices that we distinguish our populations. In order to test this hypothesis, we started by dividing our sample into two groups: The farmers belonging to pro-environmental programs and the farmers not engaged in this type of activities. The answers of each subject were submitted to the prototypic analysis (Bonec, Roussiau, Vergès 2002). The results are presented below. Thus we obtain two tables with four cases (cf table 2 and 3) representing the central and peripheral elements of the social representation of the environment for these two populations

14

Mean rank < 4,68

Frequency ≥ 40

Eau (62 ; 3,82) Respect (60 ; 3,44) Terre (61 ; 4,16) Paysage (58 ; 4,53) Nature (51 ; 4,07)

Mean rank ≥ 4,68 Faune (54 ; 5,04) Flore (54 ; 5,11) Protection (46 ; 4,68)

Pollution (31 ; 4,76) Qualité (39 ; 5,15) Ecologie (29 ; 5,03) Agri raisonnée (38 ; 4,57) Freqency < 40 Image (18 ; 6,33) Tout le monde (24 ; 3,29) Contraintes (16 ; 5,28) Engrais (7 ; 5,64) Table 2: Prototypic analysis of the farmer’s social representation of the environment: farmers belonging to the group not engaged in pro-environmental practices. This table reveals that the structure of the core of social representation of the environment in this group of individuals is identical to the social representation, which we previously highlighted. The elements integrating the core are the same ones in the two groups. Mean rank< 4,55

Mean rank ≥ 4,55

Eau (105 ; 3,88) Respect (103 ; 3,62) Terre (86 ; 3,88) Nature (79 ; 3,61)

Faune (93 ; 5,23) Flore (89 ; 5,20) Frequency ≥ 65 Paysage (89 ; 4,60) Agri raisonnée (67 ; 4,65) Protection (63 ; 5,29) Pollution (44 ; 4,43) Qualité (58 ; 5,19) Tout le monde (34 ; 4,34) Ecologie (47 ; 4,87) Frequency < 65 Engrais (1 ; 3,50) Image (25 ; 5,78) Contraintes (9 ; 4,67) Table 3 Prototypic analysis of the social representation of the environment Farmers belonging to the group that applied pro-environmental practices Results In comparing results of the two above tables, we note that the term "landscape"(paysage) integrated in the core of representation in table 2 (first group) appears in peripheral position for the second group of farmers (table3) belonging to subjects applying pro-environmental practices. However, for the core, with the exception of this element, no other modification appears between two groups of the farmers. We can thus conclude that our hypothesis corroborating the theory of the structure of the representation is confirmed, in particular when applied to the significant changes, which appear at the peripheral level between these two populations. As well, we note that the study element "agriculture raisonnée" has more integrating weight among the farmers engaged and applying pro-environmental practices, but this group in fact mainly point out terms such as «constraints» or «fertilizer»(Engrais).

15

V. The Use of Proximity in Social Sciences: Synthesis and Perspectives 6.1. Results Our objective was to show how social representations could contribute to the identification of communities of farmers, brought together through what we called a "proximity of mental belonging". With this goal, we have analyzed the results of three studies showing that farming practice and viewpoint and social representations are interdependent. Thus, in each case, the location of community of farmers, through proximity of mental belonging, enabled us to highlight various perceptions of the trade, the environment or the farmland. The analysis of the social representation of the farmer’s trade according to the type of breeding shows that the milk producers, who are most constrained in term of schedule (milking evenings and weekends...), evoke more their trade in term of disadvantages and advantages. These people aspire to a standardized rhythm of life (with weekends, holidays...). Holidays, contacts with the external community (outside of farming circles) and especially family life are increasingly required values for these populations. Since producers of milk do not benefit from these advantages, it is comprehensible that disadvantages come first in the description of their trade. In contrast, the producers of pigs are more numerous in evoking the managerial aspect of their trade. This fact can be explained since their professional activity is more advanced technologically in comparison to that of the others farmers, leading them to behave us a firms’ manager either a traditional farmers (small holders). These examples demonstrate the relationship, which exists between farm practices and social representation of individuals. The trade evolves (management, modification of living conditions...) thus the perception of farmers evolves in parallel according to new farm practices, their personal technical skills (know-how), but also in function of the nature of their social network and their own “farmers’experiences”. As for the analysis of the social representation of the environment, it indicates a majority subject’s attitude centered on respect. However, the current vision of the studied subject “respect of the environment” does not imply an aim at improving it. For the past ten years the environmental problems are dealt with environmental friendly practices, however the majority of farmers do not adopt them (Ehrlich, Germann, 1999). Thus, the study of the social representation of the farmland has enabled us to highlight the relationship between this representation and the perception that the farmers have of the utility of environmental friendly practices. Results show that people having a diversified representation of the farmland support practices, which favor environmental protection, contrary to farmers who perceive their land according to only one primary economic dimension. Since the latter do not perceive the utility of the environmental friendly practices, we can suppose that they reject their applications. These significant results are situated at the level of the social representation of the environment, which divides farmers between approval and restriction towards the environmental friendly approaches. Thus, we could note that most pig producers approve the implementation of a development plan to environmental standards. According to 20% of the interview subjects, tstockbreeders of pig production are predominately pointed to as those farmers most responsible for pollution. Therefore, there is 16

certainly a will and objective to modify this image. They are ready to act, being already integrated in systems of certification of their farms products. The subjects perceiving these steps as a constraint are located predominantly among producers. That can be related to the constraint of mixed production management. Conclusion The concept of social representation refers to a common universe of knowledge, shared by members of a group. Results, we presented, show that the interviewed farmers have a social representation of agriculture, the environment and the farmland. However, within this same representation, there appear disparities according to individuals’ farming system and standpoint. We interpreted these results according to the terminology of dynamics of proximity of mental belonging. This common knowledge shared by the farmers makes it possible to guide their behavior. Therefore, social representation governs the modes of interaction of the actors between themselves, and more broadly between themselves and their social or physical environment. 6.2. Discussion in term of proximity in economy and social psychology Beyond a simplified and exploratory presentation of our field of study, this article aimed to clarify the contributions of the concept of proximity to our analysis, and especially to establish its relation with the definition worked out in economic sciences. The concept of proximity was introduced into the economy in order to take into account local systems, based not only on the space analysis, but also approaching networks between actors. The economic analysis in term of proximity is thus an attempt to establish the relations between actors of a territorialized community, while being based as much on a space study (geographical proximity) than on a study of the organization of these networks (organizational proximity). On the basis of this theoretical point of view, we tried to recontextualize the concept of proximity within social psychology by establishing relations with the concept of social representation. Our reflection led us to define a new framework of reference, the proximity of mental belonging, that we define as the bringing together, or the distance between subjects according to their way of thinking. This way of thinking is, in turn, determined by practices or similar standpoint between individuals. This proximity of mental belonging is based on logics that we proposed to the organizational proximity defined by economic sciences: the logic of similarity or the logic of belonging (Gilly, Torre, 2000). The concept of proximity refers to the existence of interaction of space or organizational nature between the actors and holders of different resources. The actors belonging to the same space would be close in terms of membership and the actors who belong to the same space of reference and knowledge would be close in terms of similarity. The concept of proximity of mental belonging, defined previously, follows these two logics. Indeed, when we evoke the term "of belonging" we refer to farmers who, from the membership of networks or the division of practices (i.e. logic of membership), and from similar standpoint (i.e. logic of similarity), find themselves within community gatherings according to the familiarity of their ways of thinking. In addition these two logics are interdependent insofar as they form part of certain networks generating specific practices, which we have found to be simultaneously the source and the consequence of the universe of knowledge to which they refer. Finally, it would be interesting to continue this study within a multi-field research associating the various fields of the social sciences (economy, geography, sociology) and bearing on the analysis of the districts or the territorialized local systems. A study in term of proximity of mental belonging would contribute to identify the existence of similar or distinct ways of thinking and acting. The hypothesis of a similar system of representation within the district would 17

suggest the presence of a ground favorable to the establishment and evolution of relations between the relevant actors, contrary to the identification of different ways of thinking which could become a source of conflict.

References Abric J-C. (1989). L’étude expérimentale des représentations sociales. In : D. Jodelet (Ed), Les représentations sociales. Paris : PUF, pp.187-203. Abric J.C. (2001). Pratiques sociales et représentations. Paris : PUF. Abric J-C. (1994). L’organisation interne des représentations sociales: système central et périphérique. In : C. Guimelli (Ed), Structures et transformations des représentations sociales. Paris : Delachaux et Niestlé, pp. 73-84. Bardin L. (1998). L’analyse de contenu. Paris : PUF. Bonnec Y., Roussiau N., Vergès P. (2002). Categorical and prototypical analysis : a study on the quality-process in hospital institutions. European Review of Applied Psychology, vol. 52, n° 3-4, pp. 213-220. Bourgeat G. (1999). Prédictivité, efficacité et centralité des éléments d’une représentation sociale, Cahiers internationaux de Psychologie Sociale, 42, 75-89. Degenne A., Vergès P. (1973). Introduction à l’analyse des similitudes, Revue française de Sociologie, 15, 67, 7-26. Doise W., Clémence A., Lorenzi-Cioldi F. (1992). Représentations sociales et analyses de données. Grenoble : PUF. Ehrlich M., Alvarez L., Dervin C. (1997). Communication technico-scientifique, pratiques de production, transfert des connaissances et rôle des représentations sociales en conseil agricole, In : M. Ehrlich, S. Rouleau (Eds), Actes du Colloque en Psychologie Sociale : Développement technoscientifique, agriculture & sciences sociopsychologiques, Paris : INA P-G, pp. 29-56. Ehrlich M., Dervin C. (1999). Une étude expérimentale: l’origine de la motivation, la signification symbolique attachée aux biens par les consommateurs, Les cahiers de l’IUT, n° spécial, Université René Descartes-Paris V, pp. 15-35. Ehrlich M., Germann C. (1999). Effet de l'apparition de nouvelles pratiques sur la structuration des groupes territoriaux. Journées de la Proximité. Toulouse. Ehrlich M., Guillou E. (2001). Réseaux de relations professionnelles caractérisées par la proximité virtuelle d’appartenance mentales des individus. The third congress on Proximity : « New growth and territories », Paris, 13-14 dec., University of Paris South & INRA, 12 p. 18

Filippi M., Torre A. (2003). Local organisations and institutions. How can geographical proximity be activated by collective projects ? (coll. M. Filippi), International Journal of Technology Management, 26, n°2-4, 386-400. Flament C. (1989). Structure et dynamique des représentations sociales. In : D. Jodelet (Ed), Les représentations sociales. Paris : PUF, pp. 204-219. Flament C. (2001). Structure, dynamique et transformation des représentations sociales. In : J-C. Abric (Ed), Pratiques sociales et représentations. Paris : PUF, pp. 37-54. Gilly J.P., Torre A. (2000). Dynamiques de Proximité. Paris : L’Harmattan. Grize J.B., Vergès P., Silem A. (1987). Salariés face aux nouvelles technologies. Paris : Ed. du CNRS. Grize J. B. (1982). De la logique à l’argumentation. Librairie Droz S.A. II, Genève. Guimelli C. (1994). Structures et transformations des représentations sociales. Paris : Delachaux et Niestlé. Guimelli C. (1995). L’étude des représentations sociales, Psychologie Française, 40, 367-374. Guillou E. (En préparation). Agricuture et environnement. Sous la dir. De G. Moser et M. Ehrlich Jodelet D. (1989). Les représentations sociales. Paris : PUF. Le Bouede, G. (1984). Contribution à la méthodologie des représentations sociales, Cahier de psychologie cognitive, 4, 245-272. Moquay P., Lardon S., Marcelpoil E., Piveteau V. (2001). Contribution des représentations spatiales à la proximité institutionnelle dans les processus de développement territorial, Troisième Journées de la Proximité, Paris. Moscovici S. (1961). La psychanalyse, son image et son public. Paris : PUF. Moscovici S., Vignaux G. (1994). Le concept de thêmata. In : C. Guimelli (Ed), Structures et transformations des représentations sociales. Paris : Delachaux et Niestlé, pp 25-72. Morf A. (1984). Expérience, connaissance et représentation. Tentative d’unification. In : B. Belisle, B. Schiele (Eds), Les savoirs dans les pratiques quotidiennes, Ed. du CNRS, Paris, pp.418-438. Ralle A. (2002). L'économie de proximités. Propos d'étape, Etudes et Recherches (à paraître). Ratiu E., DeVanssay B. et al. (1997). Les citadins et l'eau. Contrastes et similitudes dans le monde. Paris : Laboratoire de Psychologie Environnementale, Université Paris V - René Descartes. 19

Schiele B. (1984). Note pour une analyse de la notion de coupure épistémologique. Communication-information, vol VI, nº 2/3, pp.43-98. Torre A., Gilly J-P. (2000). On the analytical dimension of proximity dynamics, Regional Studies 34, 2, 169-180 Vergès P. (1986). Une approche des représentations économiques par les sciences sociales et cognitives. Cahiers du CNRS.

20