BSA Regional Postgraduate Day School in association with the University of Warwick
22nd January 2010
Sociologists look at a disparate set of social issues across time and space. From work and welfare to sexualities, human rights, class, race, or disability studies; a binding thread running through much sociological research is politics. Whether it be the institutional politics of government, the anti-institutional politics of grass roots activism, or the micro politics of family relationships, sociology is often dealing with politics in some form. At some point most of us engage in teaching, possibly leading seminars on grand narratives such as Marxism, discussing class inequality and debating its relevance today, or teaching connected to politically sensitive issues such as poverty, inequality, race or sexuality. Many sociologists are engaged in a specific area of research as a result of personal politics, often through a concern for social justice, and have to negotiate a perceived tension between personal politics and objectivity. Social researchers of recent times have also had to position themselves and their research within debates surrounding the postmodern condition and the legitimacy of ‘post-politics’.
This event is being sponsored by the British Sociological Association as part of a series of regional events for sociology postgraduates. It will be held at the University of Warwick, and will address the connection between social research and politics. A central aim of the day is to initiate debate about the political expression of social research, encouraging consideration of the following key questions: How do/should social researchers approach the issue of personal politics and activist space? How are the personal politics of social researchers communicated? Can/should social research be a political forum? What can sociologists contribute to political studies?
The event is organised around academic speakers facilitating workshops on the academic/activist distinction, and practical sessions on communicating with actors outside of academia as well as teaching the political within universities. We hope to bring together a group of postgraduates interested in the social/political nexus and what it means for how they approach their research, how they teach, and how they might communicate their findings to non-academic stakeholders. Here we are taking politics to be broadly defined and yet we do not wish to delimit the field through prescribing what it is that can and cannot count as political.
