Activities
May 2012
Richard Sennett spoke about his new book 'Together' 29th May
Molly Andrews, Maria Tamboukou and Corinne Squire deliver their inaugural lectures May 25th
April 2012
BSA Annual Conference 'Sociology in an Age of Austerity' 11th-13th April, University of Leeds
Michael Skey was the joint-winner of the Philip Abrams Memorial Prize for his book National Belonging and Everyday Life: The Significance of Nationhood in an Uncertain World, and received this prize from the BSA President John Brewer.
Justin Spinney and Rachel Aldred presented papers on their research projects in the Cities, Mobility, Place and Space stream at the conference.
Jenny Thatcher (UEL postgraduate student) questions Michael Burawoy after his plenary address to the conference ‘On Occupations’ 12th April.
Georgia Dona (UEL) convened a panel on ’Violence and Society’ in the Law Crime and Rights stream at the BSA Annual Conference, Leeds, 13th April 2012 (left to right) Larry Ray, Sylvia Walby, Georgia Dona, Erica Cudworth (UEL), Liza Schuster.
March 2012
BSA Postgraduate Forum Conference: Social Class and Educational Aspirations 20th-21st March
Owen Jones, author of Chavs: The Demonisation of the Working Class (2011) spoke at the BSA Regional Postgraduate Conference 20th-21st March, co-organised by Jenny Thatcher (UEL PG). Among the other keynote speakers were Prof. Derek Robbins and Prof. John Preston.
Watch Prof. Derek Robbins on Bourdieu and the BSA P/G Conference on Social Class and Educational Aspirations at UEL 20th-21st Mar 2012 and Prof. Derek Robbins talking about his new book French Post-War Social Theory
February 2012
Prince Charles visits the Bromley-by-Bow Centre Feb 16th
Michael Skey
'Sod them, I'm English’: The changing status of the ‘majority’ English in post-devolution Britain.
As well as prompting an urgent reassessment of constitutional and legislative matters, processes of devolution have also contributed to a series of wide-ranging debates on identity in Britain. Yet, outside of survey data and a growing body of work looking to assess the status of minorities in Britain, relatively little has been heard from the wider population. This is particularly true for those who constitute the majority group within Britain, the English. In this paper, I want to offer a complementary perspective by using data from qualitative interviews to explore the ways in which members of the ‘ethnic majority’ in England discuss these issues. The findings suggest a tentative, but noticeable, shift towards an English identity, which is often defined as a necessary response to the increasing assertiveness of ‘other’ national groups within Britain. Read more Ethnicities 2012 Vol.12 No.1
Michael Skey is the joint convenor of a symposia on ‘Everyday Belongings: Theorising the Self, Society and Social Change’ which will take place at the Morgan Centre, University of Manchester on Friday 17th February 2012. The event, which is co-hosted by the Centre for Research on Migration, Refugees & Belonging, draws together experts from a range of disciplines and will conclude with a round-table discussion featuring some of the leading scholars currently working in the field, including; Professor Richard Jenkins (Sheffield), Professor Gill Valentine (Leeds) and Professor Nira Yuval-Davis (UEL). For more information, contact: Dr Michael Skey or Dr Vanessa May
January 2012
Maria Tamboukou
“Maria Tamboukou has recently been elected to become co-editor of, Gender and Education , a major international journal in the Sociology of Gender Studies. This leading 23 year old journal is part of all major academic indexes, including the Social Sciences Citation Index and the European Reference Index for the Humanities.
The journal runs a democratic editorial policy with editors being elected every six years from the members of the editorial board. Maria has been on the Editorial Board of this journal for the last 6 years. The editorial team of four includes, Cambridge, Cardiff and Melbourne universities.
Molly Andrews
The Unbuilding of East Germany: Excavating Biography and History, Funded by the Wissenschaftzentrum of Berlin
In the spring of 1992, just as the Stasi files were opened to the public, I conducted interviews with 40 East Germans, most of whom were anti-state activists who had participated in significant ways in 'the bloodless revolution' of 1989. In the current follow-up study, I re-interview the original participants.
Using an innovative methodology, the study explores how activists reflect on their political engagement over time and the dynamics of intergenerational dialogue in a particular moment of heightened social upheaval. By interviewing participants in these two time frames (the revolutionary moment, and twenty years later), it avoids the presentism characteristic of many oral accounts of historical change, examining what it means in the long run to ‘make history.’ Other topics explored include: the transformation of national identity in the context of the loss of a nation; the representation of former East Germany in popular culture; personal and political reflections on aging; and the political psychology of forgiveness.
December 2011
Michael Skey
The British Psychological Society (Welsh Branch) has invited Michael Skey to present arguments from his recent book at a seminar in Cardiff County Hall on Wednesday 7th December 2011. For more information.
November 2011
Michael Skey
Michael Skey was invited by the Association for the Study of Ethnicity & Nationalism (ASEN) to discuss his new book. The seminar, which took place on Wednesday 9th November at the London School of Economics, was attended by around 60 people and provoked some lively discussions, among academics, students and policy makers.
Research and Expertise seminars
Michael Skey has been invited to present a papar at a conference focusing on; Cosmopolitanism in a Wider Context: Conceptualizing Past and Present. His paper, entitled; Are we all cosmopolitan now?’: An Examination of the Varying Meaningfulness and Commensurability of Everyday Engagements with ‘Otherness’, offers a critique of much of the current literature on cosmopolitan, arguing that we need to focus more on the conditional nature of many of these engagements, the resources and constraints that different actors operate with or under and, as a result, the varying commitments they have to different ‘others’. The event will be hosted by Södertörn University/The Nobel Museum, Stockholm between 24–26 November 2011
October 2011
Michael Skey’s monograph, entitled ‘National Belonging and Everyday Life: The Significance of Nationhood in an Uncertain World’ was published by Palgrave in October. Drawing on insights from sociology, social psychology and anthropology, this work addresses the following questions;
Why do so many people take-for-granted the idea that they live in and belong to a nation?
Do national identities matter and, if so, to whom?
To what extent are processes of globalisation undermining or reinforcing attachments to the nation?
Through an examination of the views and attitudes of a group that has been overlooked in much of the recent literature, the ethnic majority, Skey demonstrates the link between a more settled sense of national belonging and claims to key material and psycho-social resources.
By analysing what is at stake for the majority, the book offers a more complete understanding of recent controversies over immigration, multiculturalism and community cohesion in Western settings, as well as a framework for theorising the significance of nationhood in the contemporary era.
Find out more information about the book or contact Dr Skey Sample chapter
