Based on a micro-sociological method (case studies), this article aims at illuminating the effect created by the strength of ties in the interdependence between the social networks and cultural practices of high-school students.
Drawing on the work of Granovetter, the sociology of culture has emphasized for over a decade the role of weak ties in both the construction and the diversification of individuals' tastes and cultural practices. The micro-sociological approach enables one to analyse the fine social mechanisms on which the macro-sociological effects observed by other authors are based. Above all, by providing the appropriate tools to observe the way ego experiences the cultural interactions with various members of its network, the case study is the most appropriate method to see what makes the strength of strong ties. These ties represent particular social contexts, described as enchanted, in which the individuals can update a wider variety of dispositions than in the network of more restrictive weak ties.