Socjologiczne aspekty badań górnictwa węgla kamiennego

Abstract

The paper is posits that sociological research on extractive industries (i.e. coal mining) in Poland is lagging behind in comparison to British studies. The article analyses examples of such lagging as well as their potential causes. At the same time, the development of Polish sociological research on coal mining is considered, as well as specific problem areas connected with mining. In particular, these reflections encompass mining communities, the issue of restructuring of the mining industry during the social and economic transformation, as well as the costs incurred by former miners in this process, and, moreover, reflections on the dominant narrative of transformation — in particular, on the preference for restructuration narrative over deindustrialization. The closing secion of the article discusses new areas of social sciences research on extractive industries and the consequences and challenges that this will have for Polish sociology.