Figurational sociology is associated with the writings of Norbert Elias. In his theory of 'the civilizing process' and his work on the activity of sociology, Elias devised an approach to the study of human life which is now recognized as one of the major contributions to twentieth-century social science.

Working in collaboration with Eric Dunning, Elias developed a series of writings on sport and leisure. These have been so influential that in some circles they are identified as the leading approach in the field. However, the figurational approach has also been widely criticized. For...