La thèse s’intéresse au travail de conduite d’une industrie de process à risques,les centrales nucléaires, et aux marges de manoeuvre dont disposent les équipes dans l’application des procédures techniques. Celles-ci doivent en effet être adaptées aux situations rencontrées dans la réalité, qui sont toujours nouvelles et finalement uniques. En effet, la technologie concernée est si complexe que les situations ambiguës sont fréquentes. Les exploitants sont souvent confrontés à des décisions techniques qui cristallisent en elles la pluralité d’exigences auxquelles sont soumises les industries à risques : sûreté nucléaire, disponibilité et productivité, sécurité des travailleurs, respect de l’environnement, etc.Exploiter une centrale nucléaire implique donc d’arbitrer entre des exigences qui devraient en théorie être conciliables mais qui ne le sont pas en pratique, ou difficilement. En effet, chaque terme de la décision concrète comporte des avantages vis-à-vis de l’un des critères et des inconvénients vis-à-vis des autres critères en présence. Ainsi, décider revient toujours à renoncer, et la décision technique dans les organisations à risques implique une prise de risque professionnelle et personnelle pour les acteurs de terrain. La thèse s’interroge alors sur les facteurs qui participent de l’engagement des opérationnels dans l’action. Les théories utilitaristes et culturalistes ne parvenant pas à épuiser toute la complexité des cas rencontrés (implication d’agents pourtant peu carriéristes, disparités individuelles fortes au sein de groupes socio-professionnels supposés homogènes. . .), la recherche s’intéresse aux théories de la reconnaissance sociale et du don/contre-don comme explication première de la motivation et de la coopération au travail. / This doctoral dissertation describes the running of a high-risk process industry,nuclear power plants, and the operators’ autonomy to apply technical procedures.The chosen procedures must fit the "real-life" situations, which are always new, andultimately unique. Nuclear power technology is so complex that ambiguous situations often arise. The operators have to make technical decisions that encompassall the demanding issues of high-risk industries : nuclear safety, plant availabilityand generation output, workers’ safety, environmental protection, etc.Operating a nuclear power plant thus involves trade-offs between theoretically compatible concerns that in practice are incompatible or difficult to reconcile.Each option in the actual decision will have advantages for certain criteria anddisadvantages for others. Deciding thus always means forgoing something, andtechnical decision-making in high-risk organizations forces the field workers totake professional and personal risks. The dissertation thus examines the factors explaining why operators are still interested in getting involved in the action.Self-interest and cultural theories cannot explain all the cases encountered in thefield (workers with high commitment but paradoxically little interest in career advancement, strong differences between individuals in a supposedly homogenoussocio-professional groups, etc.). The research focuses on social recognition andgift/countergift theories as the primary explanation for motivation and cooperation at work.

O paradigma intruso-residente vem sendo intensamente empregado em estudos para avaliar a memória de reconhecimento social em roedores. Tipicamente, ratos adultos, denominados residentes, são expostos a dois encontros sucessivos, de 5 minutos cada, com um mesmo rato juvenil ou com ratos juvenis diferentes, denominados intrusos; o intervalo de tempo entre encontros é 30 minutos. A quantidade de comportamentos sociais do residente (no segundo encontro) em relação a um intruso familiar é substancialmente menor do que o observado no primeiro encontro, o que não ocorre quando o segundo encontro envolve um juvenil novo; esse resultado caracteriza a memoria de reconhecimento social. Se o intervalo de tempo entre os encontros é aumentado para 60 minutos, a redução da investigação social do intruso familiar por parte do residente desaparece, levando à conclusão de que a memória de reconhecimento social seria um mecanismo para retenção temporária de informações. O objetivo central do presente trabalho foi contribuir para o entendimento da memória de reconhecimento social em ratos. Foram realizados três experimentos. No primeiro experimento avaliou-se se a expressão de comportamentos sociais e também da memória de reconhecimento social estão sujeitos à modulação temporal. No segundo experimento avaliou-se em que extensão o aumento do tempo de exposição ao intruso durante o primeiro encontro resulta num aumento da duração da memoria de reconhecimento social. No terceiro experimento avaliou-se se um procedimento de rotina na maioria dos laboratorios, o transporte dos animais da sala de experimentos para o biotério, interfere na memória de reconhecimento social, quando realizado 0,5 ou 6 horas após o primeiro encontro. Os resultados mostraram que (1) a expressão de comportamentos sociais e a memória de reconhecimento social estão sujeitos à modulação temporal, sendo mais intensos quando os testes são realizados na fase inativa (Capítulo 2), de modo que este fator deve ser levado em consideração quando do planejamento de experimentos envolvendo sociabilidade, (2) o aumento da duração do primeiro encontro para 2 horas ou mais revelou uma memória de reconhecimento social que dura pelo menos 24 horas (Capítulo 3), permitindo questionar que se trate de um dispositivo de curta duração, e (3) o transporte dos animais para o biotério 0,5 horas, mas não 6 horas, depois do primeiro encontro, prejudica a memória de reconhecimento social (Capítulo 4), indicando que se deve estar atento às rotinas laboratoriais pois as mesmas podem interferir no desempenho dos animais em testes de memória. Em associação com essas relevantes observações experimentais, foram propostas estratégias de análise dos dados gerados com esse tipo de experimentação e também discussões conceituais sobre a caracterização da memória de reconhecimento social, que contribuem marcadamente para essa área de estudos. / The intruder-resident paradigm has been extensively employed in studies of social recognition memory in rodents. Typically, adult rats, named residents, are exposed to two 5-min successive encounters with the same juvenile intruder or with two different juveniles; the time interval between the encounters is 30 min. The amount of social behaviors exhibited by the resident rats towards the same intruder juvenile in the second encounter is substantially smaller when compared to both that seen in the first encounter and that seen towards a different juvenile; these results characterize social recognition memory. When the time interval between encounters is increased to 60 min, that reduction of the investigation towards the familiar juvenile intruder vanishes, which is seen as evidence that social recognition memory corresponds to a short-term memory mechanism. The aim of this study was to contribute for our understanding of social recognition memory in rats. Three experiments were run. The first experiment evaluated to which extent both social behaviors and social recognition memory are influenced by temporal phase effects. The second experiment evaluated to which extent the increase in the duration of the first encounter renders social recognition memory longer. The third experiment evaluated to which extent the transportation of the resident rats from the experimental room to the animal facilities either 0.5 or 6 hours after the first encounter, interferes with social recognition memory. The results showed that (1) the expression of social behaviors and of the social recognition memory are modulated temporal phase effects, being stronger when animals are tested in their inactive phase (Chapter 2); thus, this aspect has to be considered in studies on sociability, (2) the increase of the first encounter duration for 2 hours or longer renders social recognition memory to last at least 24 hours (Chapter 3); this allows to question that social recognition memory corresponds to a short-term memory mechanism, and (3) transportation of the resident rats to the animal facilities 0.5, but not 6 hours, after the end of the first encounter disrupts social recognition memory (Chapter 4), indicating that one has to be cautious about usual laboratory routines, because they may interfere with performance of the memory tasks when executed a short time after training the animals.Associated with these relevant experimental observations, these studies allowed proposing novel strategies for data analysis and discussing conceptual issues about the characterization of social recognition memory that give a substantial contribution for this area.

Le domaine du plein air est un champ traditionnellement masculin où les filles et les femmes éprouvent généralement des difficultés à être reconnues par leurs pairs et subissent plusieurs formes de discrimination. Cette faible reconnaissance, ainsi que la discrimination subie par plusieurs d’entre elles, ont des impacts négatifs sur leur participation, leur confiance en elle, leur sentiment d’appartenance, le développement de leurs habiletés techniques, et même, sur leur longévité professionnelle dans le domaine. Plusieurs activités de plein air se déroulent en contexte de groupe dans lesquels les inégalités de genre du domaine sont susceptibles d’émerger et de se reproduire. Ainsi, les groupes d’expédition sont des contextes privilégiés pour observer comment opèrent l’émergence et le fonctionnement des inégalités de genre dans le domaine du plein air. Ce projet de recherche doctorale vise à développer une meilleure compréhension des processus entourant la reconnaissance sociale dans les groupes d’expédition éducative, et ce, en portant une attention particulière au genre. Une étude de cas ethnographique comprenant de l’observation participante au cours d’une expédition de canotage de quatre semaines a été menée auprès d’un groupe d’étudiants (17 hommes et 7 femmes) engagés dans un programme de formation universitaire de premier cycle en intervention plein air. Un cadre conceptuel sociologique bourdieusien a été utilisé afin de rendre compte des différents processus pouvant influencer la reconnaissance sociale des membres d’un groupe d’expédition. Les concepts de champ, d’espèces de capital et d’habitus ont permis de mener trois analyses distinctes mais interreliées. La première étude est basée sur la signification et la valeur symbolique des tâches et des activités inhérentes à la conduite d’une expédition de canot et porte sur la division sexuée du travail en expédition. Cette étude montre comment le genre, les représentations du genre de même que la classe sociale interagissent pour orienter les stratégies d’amélioration ou de maintien de statut. La deuxième et la troisième mobilisent certains constats issus des travaux sur les hiérarchies de statut dans les groupes ayant des objectifs à atteindre. Plus précisément, la deuxième étude est basée sur le postulat selon lequel la perception de 6 compétence et les attentes de performance à l’égard d’une personne jouent des rôles déterminants dans les processus d’attribution de statut dans les groupes. L’analyse des données a permis d’identifier différentes stratégies consistant à laisser implicitement sous-entendre, dans ses actions ou ses discours, la possession d’une certaine expertise. Cette analyse a aussi permis de mettre en évidence comment les rapports sociaux de genre jouaient des rôles importants dans les processus de distinction liés à la compétence et comment les compétences de certaines femmes étaient parfois ignorées ou encore utilisées par d’autres participants pour apparaître plus compétents qu’elles. Enfin, la troisième analyse s’appuie principalement sur les concepts de capital social et de champ comme espace de luttes dans lequel les agents cherchent à influencer le mode de perception et d’appréciation légitime. Cette troisième analyse a permis d’identifier des stratégies consistant à gérer les relations et les interactions sociales avec autrui de façon à en tirer des avantages en termes d’amélioration ou de maintien de statut au sein d’un groupe. Cette étude a permis de montrer comment les rapports sociaux de genre et de classe interagissent et influencent les relations et les interactions sociales dans le groupe et donc, les processus de reconnaissance sociale. L’ensemble de ces analyses permet de mieux comprendre les logiques d’action et le fonctionnement, en contexte d’expédition, des inégalités fondées sur le genre et la classe sociale. Parallèlement, ces études ont aussi permis d’examiner certains enjeux relatifs à l’apprentissage et à la gestion des risques en contexte d’expédition éducative. À cet effet, des pistes d’intervention praxéologiques susceptibles de favoriser une dynamique de groupe plus inclusive et d’accroître le bien-être des participants, leur apprentissage et leur sécurité ont été proposées. / The outdoor field is a traditionally male-dominated field where girls and women generally have difficulty being recognized by their peers and suffer from many forms of discrimination. This low recognition, as well as the discrimination experienced by many of them, have negative impacts on their participation, confidence, sense of belonging, development of their technical skills, and even on their professional longevity in the field. Many outdoor activities occur in a group context where gender inequalities in the field are likely to emerge and recur. Thus, expedition groups are privileged contexts to observe how the emergence and functioning of gender inequalities in the outdoor field operate. This doctoral research project aims to develop a better understanding of the processes underlying social recognition in an educational expedition group, with particular attention to gender. An ethnographic case study involving participant observation during a four-week canoeing expedition was conducted with a group of students (N=24; 17 men and seven women) engaged in an outdoor adventure leadership undergraduate program at a university in Quebec (Canada). A Bourdieusien sociological conceptual framework was used to examine the different processes that could influence the social recognition of expedition group members. The concepts of field, forms of capital, and habitus offered powerful heuristic tools to conduct three distinct but interrelated analyses. The first study is based on the significance and symbolic value of the tasks and activities of a canoe expedition and focuses on the sexual division of labor. This study shows how gender, gender representations, and social class interact to guide the strategies used by the participants to maintain or uplift their social status as outdoor leaders. The second and third studies built on and seek to contribute to the research on status hierarchies in tasks-oriented groups. More specifically, the second study is based on the assumption that perception of competence and expectations of performance towards a person play decisive roles in the status allocation process in groups. Data analysis allowed us to identify various rationales underlying the strategies used by group members to convey an impression of competence in their actions or discourse. This analysis also highlighted how gender relations play essential roles in competence8 related processes of distinction and how the skills of some women are sometimes ignored or used by other participants to appear more competent than experienced women. Finally, the third analysis is mainly based on the concepts of social capital and field as a space of struggles in which agents seek to influence the legitimate principles of perception and appreciation in force in the group. In this third analysis, we identified six relational strategies that consist in managing social interactions and relations with other group members in order to improve or maintain one’s status within the group. This study showed how gender and class interact and influence relationships and social interactions in the group and, therefore, social recognition processes. Taken together, these analyses provide a better understanding of the logic of action and how inequalities based on gender and social class work in the context of expeditions. Moreover, these studies examined some issues related to learning, risk management, and inclusion in educational expeditions. To this end, practical recommendations have been proposed to foster a more inclusive group dynamic and increase participants' well-being, learning, and safety.