Page - (000153) - in Knowledge and Networks

146 discussion leads me to investigate the following aspects underlying normative and competitive fields: Is there a core-periphery structure within both normative and competitive fields? Are these structures distinct from each other? What can be learned from the process of transition from one configuration to another? So far I have explored the macro-topological structure of competitive and norma- tive fields. In the next section, I explore the musicians’ trajectories as an analytical dimension additional to the topological. Networked Trajectories Most analyses of field structure rely on topological descriptions. In each cross- sectional analysis (or temporal slice), individuals are aggregated into positions. Rarely is an individual’s history in the field preserved. The best way to illustrate this problem is by evoking a Markovian world. In a Markov chain approach, social sys- tems are modeled as if trajectory were meaningless. Hence, if individuals are allo- cated to a position (whether core or periphery) at a given point in time, it does not matter where they were before that point. While this kind of approach simplifies the analysis, it generates several problems. First, it assumes that those individuals have no memory, and that their past experience is entirely subsumed in their present loca- tion. Second, from a relational point-of-view, it assumes that other individuals will be indifferent to one’s trajectory, without any consideration of reputation, pedigree, and other biographical factors.3 In contrast, the existing literature has shown that trajectory is an important con- struct because it reveals how similar outcomes are attained through different pro- cesses among, for instance, firms (Stark & Vedres, 2006), poets (Dubois & François, 2013), or painters (Accominotti, 2009). Moreover, I argue that individual trajecto- ries do indeed matter and that these are best understood as embedded in the field’s historical evolution (Bourdieu, 1993; Giuffre, 1999). In order to illustrate this idea, I take the example of a normative field, which is typically characterized by stable stylistic rules enacted by dominant players. One possible career track is the elite trajectory, represented by individuals who attain centrality in the field and who remain in central positions for a long period of time. On the other hand, there may be individuals who stay on the periphery but are able to survive in the field for a long time as well. Finally, some musicians might stay in the field only for a short time, limited to the periphery. One important line of inquiry is studying how dominant players interact with individuals from other trajectories. Do elite trajectory individuals relate only among themselves? If wanna-be trajec- tory musicians (short-lived and peripheral) attempt to break into the field, in what circumstances are they able to play with elite musicians? In normative fields, one 3 A third point could be added to this list: The sequence of events does not matter (Abbott, 2001). I do not explore this third point in this chapter because it would require an approach similar to sequence analysis. C. Kirschbaum