Sociological theory is an essential part of doctoral dissertation thesis. But while empirical research often has a clear set of methodological rules of how to be conducted, building a theoretical basis for doctoral thesis can be tricky, opaque or even confusing to many students.
We therefore invite PhD students within and outside the 4EU+ network to participate in a series of online seminars on theorizing in sociology. Students can take part in all seminars as a course or only in one or two of them of their choosing (or by requirement within their home uiversity doctoral seminars). Each seminar is 2-3 hours long and the participants are invited to prepare by reading the recommended literature. Instructions for preparation and participation will be send some time before each seminar.
You can enroll to a 4EU+ virtual mobility course to participate in the seminars and gain ECTS credits for completing the course. In that case, you would be required to: a) prepare for each seminar, b) participate in at least 4 seminars incl. the last workshop, c) submit a written statement about theorizing in your PhD thesis (3-5 norm pages). More information about the virtual mobility course HERE.
Contact person: Eva Richter (eva.richter@ff.cuni.cz)
Max-Weber-Institut für Soziologie, Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg
9:00 (3 hours)
In the first part, students will think about important and seminal contribution in their field and discuss with other why they think they are important. Thereby reflecting on and developing cirteria for identifying important theoretical contribution in their field and how their own project is related to them. In the second part students will make excerises that help to identify the role ans usefullnues of theory in different parts of the project. Showing the multiple funcitons that theory can fullfil in the course of a phd project.
Literature:
Salmons, Janet (2019. Little Quick fix: Find the theory in your research. Sage
Swedberg, R. (2016). Before theory comes theorizing or how to make social science more interesting. The British journal of sociology, 67(1), 5-22.
Student preparation:
Students submit a list of important (theoretical) authors and/or texts in their field of study and a commentary on wow does their project draw on those and relate to them.
University of Geneva
9:00 (3 hours)
There are various approaches to introducing views on group-focused enmity that reflect different traditions of social theory. These approaches begin with a) racism and the colonial past, including dynamics of racialization, b) intergroup dynamics, and c) structural analysis of discrimination. We will discuss these approaches and attempt to identify links and differences between the traditions.
Literature:
Koshy, Yohann (2021). “The last humanist: how Paul Gilroy became the most vital guide to our age of crisis.” Guardian August(5).
Student preparation:
Ideally, the student prepares a one-to-two-page document that presents a concrete (observed or experienced) case of racism. The document should include a detailed description of the case, explaining why it is considered a case of racism. It should also discuss the potential personal, social, and societal consequences of this act. Finally, the document should identify the main dimensions that characterise the case as a case of racism.
Department of Social and Political Sciences, University of Milan
9:00 (2,5 hours)
For a while, posthuman perspectives have been at the forefront of the debate in social theory stimulating a new gaze on classical theoretical issues. Indeed, “posthuman” refers to different epistemological and theoretical stances and this notion involves different empirical objects, from viruses to algorithms. While a part of this theorization concerns mainly the deconstruction of the modern notion of subject, another is more focused on technology and its consequences. The aim of this seminar is twofold: a first part will highlight in which way, to what extent and with what issues posthuman approaches are challenging the classical items of Sociological theory and its way of theorizing; a second part will introduce a more specific focus on machine learning systems, that is, a type of AI technologies commonly employed in a number of fields, from online content recommendation to financial trading. Since machine learning systems recursively update their computational models and adapt their behaviour based on patterns in human-generated data, new sociological theorizations regarding AI agency and its consequences on social structure have recently emerged, opening novel directions for a posthuman sociological theory.
Literature:
Braidotti, R. (2017) Posthuman Critical Theory https://rosibraidotti.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/369.-Posthuman-Critical-Theory-1.pdf ;
Susen, S. (2021). Reflections on the (Post)Human Condition: Towards New Forms of Engagement with the World? Social Epistemology, 36(1), 63–94 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02691728.2021.1893859
Charles University
9:00 (2,5 hours)
Is theoretical eclecticism a problem or an advantage in writing the PhD dissertation? The seminar will focus on discussing the possibilities of combining different theoretical approaches. The seminar will include an “eclectic workshop” during which we will experiment with the compatibility of seemingly incompatible theoretical approaches.
Universität Bielefeld
9:00 (3 hours)
In sociological theory, the image of the lonely ‘grand theorist’, obsessed with the production of Theory (with a capital T), is still widespread. This seminar proposes to discuss an alternative approach that understands theory production as a genuinely social practice. It asks: What forms of collaboration exist in the social sciences, and which collaborative practices could also be helpful for the development of individual research projects (such as a PhD)? To kick off the seminar, Tobias Werron will report on his own experiences with such practices and present a few ideas on how they can be described sociologically and made methodologically productive.
Tobias Werron is a Professor of Sociological Theory at the University of Bielefeld, Germany. His work focuses on practices of theorizing, historical sociology, globalization, nationalism, and competition.
Werron, T., Brankovic, J., & Ringel, L. (2023). Theorizing together. Distinktion: Journal of Social Theory, 25(2), 228–249. https://doi.org/10.1080/1600910X.2023.2259288
Charles University
9:00 (2 hours)
To conclude the seminar series we will meet for a roundtable discussion and a workshop in which students will be encouraged to work on theorizing in their dissertation thesis, to discuss the contents of the seminar series and whether and how they applied any insights in their own work and thinking. The main goal of this last seminar is to inspire each other and get critical insights.
Literature:
TBD
Student preparation:
Students should prepare a short written statement on the theoretical background of their PhD thesis (as a state of thinking, i.e. description of what theories they stem from) and on their theorizing (as a process, i.e. how they use these theories). Can be a part of their dissertation or any other text they have already written.