ABSTRACT

As in the case of Chapter 7 this chapter is also almost entirely empirically based. It is the result of eight semi-structured interviews with British-based academics, administrators, and leaders in post-16 education. The academics were chosen because they are informed about issues relating to political correctness. This was to try to ensure that each interview would take the form more of a dialogue and conversation, rather than an artificially contrived set of responses on matters which were of little interest to the interviewee. As with the American interviews, I made no attempt to try to produce a particular quota of social groups in the interviewees. Their social identity make-up was taken as an accidental antecedent of either their knowledge or role, and agreement to take part. The interviews took place between November 2006 and July 2007 throughout England.