Zoungrana, OusmaneBologo/Traoré, MaïmounaMessan, Adamah2023-08-142023-08-142021-01-04Zoungrana, O., Bologo/Traoré, M., Messan, A., Nshimiyi mana, P., & Pirotte, G. (2021). The Paradox around the Social Representations of Com pressed Earth Block Building Material in Burkina Faso: The Material for the Poor or the Luxury Material? Open Journal of So cial Sciences, 9, 50-65. https://doi.org/10.4236/jss.2021.91002327-59602327-5952http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2029Compressed earth brick (CEB) is a masonry material which has the thermal properties that are better adapted to the hot and dry climate of tropical and Sahelian context like in Burkina Faso. Despite these advantages, CEB are still not largely used in the construction sector in the city of Ouagadougou. In order to better understand the obstacles linked to this low diffusion of CEB, the present empirical study proposes a deep analysis of the social representations of construction using CEB in the urban place. The results show that four main categories of social representations coexist in the construction sector using CEB: 1) the perception of CEB as the “material for the poor”, 2) the perception of CEB as “improved or precarious adobe” inherited from successive public policies to rehabilitate the material, 3) the symbolic perceptions linked to the red color of the brick and the durability of the material, and 4) the contemporary post-materialist perception (luxury materials), according to a minority of wealthy elites who have built their houses using CEB. These social representations are essential to take into consideration for the implementation of new public housing policies in general and promotion for the usage of CEB in particular. This could accompany the studies which aim at improving the technical performances of CEB and lead towards the socio-economic acceptance of the materialsenAutochthonyBurkina FasoCompressed Earth BockPublic PolicySocial RepresentationPhilbert NshimiyimanaGautier Pirotte2iE College of EngineeringInstitut International d'Ingénierie de l'Eau et de l'Environnement (2iE)EngineeringArticle