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Sociology Research

 

Professor Christel Lane

BSc University of Essex 1964-68;
PhD London School of Economics 1968-72;
ESRC Post-doctoral Research Fellow, University of Cambridge, 1973-76
Lecturer in Sociology, University of Aston, Birmingham, 1981-1990
Lecturer in Sociology, Department of Social and Political Sciences, University of Cambridge, 1990- 2004;
Fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge 1990-
Reader in Sociology, Department of Sociology, University of Cambridge, 2000-2004
Professor of Economic Sociology, Department of Social and Political Sciences, University of Cambridge, 2004-2008
Professor Emeritus 2008-

Research Interests

Christel's research interest combines economic sociology , with cultural sociology, Food Studies, and organizational sociology.
The focus of her current research is on high-end cuisines and their chefs and studies the reconfiguration of the culinary hierarchy in London and New York, precipitated by processes of the globalization of cuisine. She also investigates the now global expansion of the rating/ranking activities of culinary intermediaries in this field.

Research Projects

Her current research project is in the above field. She collaborates with an American sociologist from Boston College, Cambridge/MAS,US. The project, which is not funded, is ongoing.

Teaching

Christel supervises PhD students in the fields of economic and cultural sociology. She currently has three students.

Key Publications - Books

C. Lane, From Taverns to Gastropubs. Food, Drink and Sociality in England. OUP 2018

C. Lane, The Cultivation of Taste. Chefs and the Organization of Fine Dining. Oxford: OUP 2014. Paperback 2016. 

C. Lane and G. Wood eds., Capitalist Diversity and Diversity within Capitalism. Routledge 2012. 

C. Lane and R. Bachmann eds., Trust within and Between Organizations. OUP 1998

National Capitalisms, Global Production Networks.With Jocelyn Probert. OUP 2009

Global Cuisines: the reversal of flows of culinary knowledge and chefs from the global periphery to the centre. With Pilar Opazo. Under consideration by Routledge US.

Key Publications - Book Chapters

'Institutions, Change and Diversity' (with G.T. Wood), Capitalist Diversity and Diversity within Capitalism. Edited with G. T. Wood. Routledge 2012

Key Publications - Journal Articles

C. Lane, 'Reverse Cultural Globalization: the case of haute cuisine in one global city' (2019), Poetics, Vol. 75, August.

C. Lane and D. Lup, ‘Cooking under Fire: Managing multi-Level Tensions between Creativity and Innovation in Haute Cuisine’, Industry and Innovation, (2015) Vol. 22, No. 8, pp. 654-676

C. Lane ‘Taste makers in the fine dining industry: the attribution of aesthetic and economic value’, (2013), Poetics, Vol. 41,No. 4 pp. 342-365

Christel Lane and M. Pilar Opazo , ‘From ethnic to high-end cuisine: Recategorization and status change in restaurants in global cities’. Cultural Sociology on line June 2023
Available at https://doi.org/10.1177/17499755231172825

Christel Lane and M. Pilar Opazo, ‘Constructing tastes: The role of culinary intermediaries in the process of reverse cultural globalization’. Food Culture and Society (forthcoming)
 

Christel Lane and M. Pilar Opazo, ‘Collaboration and competition in cultural fields: High-end non-core cuisines in global cities”. Food Culture and Society, 25, 5. 2021.
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15528014.2021.1932117

PhD Supervisor

Three Students

Awards

Christel's book 'From Taverns to Gastropubs' was selected by OUP editorial staff among the eight best books published by OUP in 2018.

Additional Information

Christel was the President of the international Society for the  Advancement of Socio-Economics (SASE) in 2006

Job Title:
Emeritus Professor of Economic Sociology, Fellow of St. John's College
Contact Information:

Study at Cambridge

About the University

Research at Cambridge