Supervisors info:
Γιώργος Θεοδωρίδης, Λέκτορας, Τμήμα Πολιτικής Επιστήμης και Δημόσιας Διοίκησης, ΕΚΠΑ
Χρήστος Λυριντζής, Ομότιμος καθηγητής, Τμήμα Πολιτικής Επιστήμης και Δημόσιας Διοίκησης, ΕΚΠΑ
Μαριάνθη Κοτέα, Αναπληρώτρια καθηγήτρια, Τμήμα Κοινωνιολογίας, Πάντειο Πανεπιστήμιο
Summary:
The Greek economic crisis is a subject of research in the social sciences. This thesis is conducted within the research field of political and social history and primarily addresses the Greek economic crisis by presenting the historical context and tracing back to the past, starting from the early years of the Metapolitefsi (called the period after the fall of the junta in 1974), in order to highlight the political, party, and social conditions within which Greek society developed. The case of food industry employees is a prominent example, firstly because it remains a relatively new research field, and secondly because consumption and consumerism are characterized as integral elements of Greek society and culture.
The purpose of this thesis is to attempt to answer the research question: how did restaurant employees experience the economic crisis of 2008-2018? The methodological framework of the thesis consists of two methods: first, a literature review to present the objective conditions of the crisis in the food industry, and second, oral history, using semi-structured interviews with a specific sample to capture the lived experiences of the narrators-interviewees and, primarily, to highlight the consequences of the crisis on all aspects of their lives. Additionally, it captures images, situations, and incidents as experienced by the narrators themselves.
During the processing and analysis of the interviews, explicit consequences of the crisis on the lives of the employees emerged. Detailed presentations show how economic, social, family and personal development were positively or negatively affected, while memories of social protests and historical events are also captured.
Finally, through the methodological tools, latent aspects of the crisis emerge that may not have been visible during the crisis but appear today, directly affecting the conditions and prerequisites for the existence and reproduction of the social subjects of the research.
Keywords:
crisis, food industry, employees, effect, oral history