Presentation

The research at the Department of Sociology covers a number of different fields, theoretical approaches and methods. The department, being the first department of Sociology in Sweden, has a long tradition of basic research in Sociology and sociological Social psychology, addressing fundamental epistemological and ontological issues concerning society, the social and the individual, as well as empirical research of an in many cases innovate kind. The profile of the department links theoretical and philosophical issues to the analysis of social problems of high relevance to society.

Framed by the basic discussions on Sociology and Social Psychology the rich empirical research since several years encompasses four major areas: Social Gerontology, Disability studies, Gender studies and Housing and Urban Sociology. This research is conducted by research groups connected to professor chairs within respective area. The gender studies area is divided in one general part and one separate unit within the department Samgenus, the latter connected to a professor chair. Some areas have newly established long term research groups such as IMER, International Migration and Ethnic Relations; Sociology of childhood and youth and Studies on working life, health and organization.

There are also productive links between the groups and to other researchers with overlapping interests for instance in intersectional analysis, as seen in several dissertations. There are also links to ongoing research in cultural studies, sexology, and sociology of education.

That the department in addition to two general seminars, invites to permanent topical seminars connected to some of the research areas, offers a focused research environment for the various fields. Open seminars give an opportunity to get highly qualified discussions in the intersections between the streams of research such as the intersection disability/youth/gender or old age/gender/housing. There is also, with a centre in a seminar series, a vivid methodological discussion at the department with an impact on both teaching and research. It promotes a development towards triangulation of qualitative and quantitative approaches, linked to and applying different theoretical perspectives. This work has produced a text book.

Several of the research groups have established interdisciplinary contacts within the university. The Sociology of childhood and youth is connected to an interdisciplinary research network: Network for Childhood and Youth Studies. NECYS. This was initiated by professors from the Departments of Cultural Anthropology and Ethnology; Sociology and Law, and is working in collaboration with the Centre for Multiethnic Research, the Department of Education, and the Faculty of Educational Sciences.

The research at the department is to a high extent also conducted in close interaction with the respective international research fronts via networks, exchanges, participation at international conferences and international publication. This includes multidisciplinary cooperation in research and research education.

In addition to the still active professores emeriti Ulf Himmelstrand, Tom R. Burns and Jan Trost, 9 professors are employed at the department. Two professors, one postdoctoral fellow and four pre-doctoral fellows at the Institute for Housing and Urban Research (a multi-disciplinary sector research department in the area of housing, urban studies and planning), share their time between the Institute and the Department of Sociology. The doctoral fellows follow the doctoral program in sociology.

Professors of sociology:

• Karin Barron (Professor of sociology, with emphasis on disability research)

• Hedvig Ekerwald (Professor of sociology)

• Mats Franzén (Professor of sociology with a specialty in Housing and Urban Sociology (at the Institute for Housing and Urban research (IBF) Gävle))

• Bo Lewin (Professor of sociology)

• Rafael Lindqvist (Chair in Sociology with a specialization in Disability Studies)

• Orlando Mella (Professor of sociology)

• Vessela Misheva (Professor of sociology)

• Elisabet Näsman (Professor of sociology)

• Keith Pringle (Professor of sociology with a specialty in social work)

• Eva Sandstedt (Professor of sociology with a specialty in Housing and Urban Sociology (at the Institute for Housing and Urban research (IBF) Gävle))

• Sandra Torres (Professor of sociology with a specialty in Social Gerontology)