European Sociology Research Articles

Culture(s) on the Margins: An Introduction

Sociologists and those working in related disciplines have often found more of interest on the margins than in the centre. It is where innovation takes place, where the new replaces the outmoded, where ‘outsider’ or heterodox voices challenge the orthodoxy, and where culture creators are most able to follow the laws inherent to their specific region of the cultural field. The margins are where you will find ‘underground’ or ‘cutting edge’ scenes. Moreover, ethnographic traditions in sociological research have produced fine-grained accounts of cultures of subaltern, subcultural, diasporic groups, and the ways in which these groups and individuals engage in counter-hegemonic practices. At the same time, sociologists have also drawn attention to how those occupying the margins of societal fields are characterised in terms of lack: dominated individuals and groups lack the requisite cultural capital or social connections to get on in life. This special issue, which derives from discussions held at the Culture(s) on the Margins mid-term Sociology of Culture Research Network (European Sociological Association) conference at University of Portsmouth in the summer of 2022, contributes to debates on the relatively underexplored topic of culture(s) on the margins through several conceptual and empirical interventions. In doing so, it focuses on three interrelated aspects of marginality: first, marginality as a site of domination; second, marginality as opening up spaces of resistance; and third, marginality as enabling different ways of seeing and thinking.

Eccentric Circles: Rudolf Goldscheid and the Unrealized Goal of Menschenökonomie during the Era of Socialization

Abstract This article explores the sudden rise in popularity and limited long-term impact of Rudolf Goldscheid's work around the time of the Great War. Goldscheid is remembered as a founder of central European sociology, a creator of fiscal sociology, and a fin-de-siècle feminist and pacifist. His reputation ranks behind many of his peers in the social sciences, however. A reevaluation of Goldscheid's position within the fin-de-siècle intellectual landscape of Vienna and central Europe reveals why his sudden success—which was really decades in the making—did not endure in the same way as that of Joseph Schumpeter or Otto Neurath, among others. Goldscheid's ideas seemed innovative in the revolutionary years 1918–1920, yet they were frequently misunderstood. His eccentric position in the socio-liberal sphere of fin-de-siècle Vienna seemed to mute his political impact after the war. A better appreciation of Goldscheid's work not only enriches our understanding of his innovative proposals but also illuminates a frenetic, experimental era in central European history.

A Sociological Panorama after the Great War. A Central and Eastern European Comparatist Attempt

Abstract This article attempts to draw a general outline of comparative Central and Eastern European sociology. It focuses on the year 1918, when the Great War ended, and it explores the background and continuation of the (re)birth of sociology. The study is justified by the fact that the history of the national schools of sociology has been approached in correlation with Western centres, and therefore a regional approach is needed. First, the study differentiates between countries that were allied to the victorious powers in the First World War and countries that lost the war, between countries where sociology gained momentum and countries where science suffered. In the countries that were at an advantage – Czechoslovakia, Poland, Romania, and Serbia –, sociology was at very different stages of institutionalization, but it registered significant progress until the 30s. The countries that lost – Bulgaria, Russia, and Hungary – were not only more weakened after the war but also plagued by revolutions, civil wars, and retaliations; they were not a fertile ground for sociological production. Apart from Russia, it is only in the 1930s that sociology started to considerably develop in these countries. The article does not only compare the status of sociology in the seven countries, but it also explores the evolution of the relationships between them. After an understandable dependence on the Western academic centres, there was the possibility for a regional identity to form.

Intersectionality and food consumption: a roundtable

Intersectionality is a concept that has received little attention in scholarship on consumption, despite its significant relevance. Marie Plessz and Stefan Wahlen organised a roundtable held at the European Sociological Association (ESA) Consumption research network (RN5) interim meeting, 2 September 2022, in Oslo. This is a summarised and edited transcript of this roundtable discussion. As such, it advances the conceptual lens of intersectionality applied to (food) consumption studies and critically assesses possible future avenues of research that build on existing approaches. It first discusses the role of social and political positions that might be considered intersectionally, to then outline central characteristics as well as empirical strategies when investigating food. This transcript also showcases a possible novel format that is welcomed in the journal Consumption and Society.

Family in Challenging Circumstances: Ways of Coping

The aim of the thematic issue Family Supportive Networks and Practices in Vulnerable Contexts is to provide a cross‐national perspective on the current state of caregiving and support practices within family networks in Europe. The articles featured in this volume were selected from among the presentations made in 2021 at two conferences promoted by the research network Sociology of Families and Intimate Lives of the European Sociological Association (ESA RN13). Authors of the most promising, topical, and up‐to‐date research papers were invited to contribute to this thematic issue.

Students' educational drive and ethnic capital.

Class has been central to European sociology and especially to sociology of education. Class origins (through one's parents) do indeed largely determine one's educational attainments and through them, with further support from one's class origins, determine one's class destination. And the cycle continues in one's own children. However, class does not affect all ethnic groups in the same manner, given that different groups bring different resources to any given situation, in this case, education, through their ethnic capital. Ethnic capital is the social capital that may be distinctive to a particular ethnic group and so can vary across groups. It can motivate, support and channel the behaviour of members of a group. This article focuses on the ethnic capital of one set of parents and the wider community. It is based on qualitative research undertaken with a small group of British Kashmiris who have been educationally successful. The investigation explored the contribution of their parents and the wider community to their education: how the parents and the wider family communicated their expectations on education and thesupport and encouragement they provided to the young people. The findings showed that in a socioeconomically disadvantaged context the ethnic capital of the parents and the community can be a driving factor in their children's education.

Introduction: Assimilation, integration or transnationalism? An overview of theories of migrant incorporation

Introduction: Assimilation, integration or transnationalism? An overview of theories of migrant incorporation

Ibn Khaldun in early German-language sociological theory

In the course of recent debates, Ibn Khaldun has been (re-)claimed not as a precursor, but as one of the “founding fathers” of sociology. This entails the suspicion that Ibn Khaldun’s legacy, especially his Muqaddima as an important reference in the foundational phase of modern European sociology, has been sidelined in the construction of the sociological canon and thus remains an unacknowledged source today. This paper presents a historical case of South-North reception of sociological theory. A systematic assessment of the reception of Ibn Khaldun in early German-language sociology reveals that while his acknowledgment was quantitatively rather low, it was indeed qualitatively interesting. In particular, two important early sociologists, Ludwig Gumplowicz and Franz Oppenheimer, mobilized references to his Muqadimma in the context of their “sociological theory of the state.” They discovered the fundamental theoretical convergence between their approach and the early Arab scholar. Against the ahistorical philosophical idea of the state and the non-historical juridical idea of the state, both authors defended the sociological idea of the state. It is the conquest of one tribe over another with the aim of economic exploitation through political subjugation that gives rise to the state. Here, Ibn Khaldun appeared as a particularly reliable reference. His reception in the works of Gumplowicz and Oppenheimer also sheds a different light on the much-voiced refusal of imported social theory as being irrelevant.

Raymond Aron, Pierre Bourdieu, and the Ford Foundation: Exploring the Borderlands of Human and Social Sciences at the Center for European Sociology

The article explores the borderlands of national and international, political and scientific fields in the genesis and development of the Center for European Sociology (1950s–1970s). Headed by Raymond Aron and Pierre Bourdieu, the center received support from the Ford Foundation as part of its European strategy to develop research oriented towards European integration. Although this did not exactly go as planned, the Center for European Sociology built a transnational research program of its own, in the more general context of the Cultural Cold War. The article thus addresses the relationship between research funding and scientific autonomy in the human and social sciences at the interface of national and international processes.

THE BEGINNING OF EUROPEAN FEMINIST SOCIOLOGY: HARRIET MAR-TINEAU

The relevance of the work is due to the problem of the emergence of such a well-known trend in modern science as feminist sociology. The article attempts to consider the beginning of the formation of feminist sociology in Europe. Based on the analysis of primary sources, the author reveals the contribution of the English researcher Harriet Martineau to the development of this direction. Her contribution to the development of sociology as a science is currently beyond doubt, since the name of this English sociologist is put on a par with recognized classical sociologists such as O. Comte, G. Spencer. Martino was one of those sociologists who drew attention to a different vision of social reality, namely the fact that women see the world differently than men, their thoughts and feelings are socially and culturally conditioned. Martino’s vision and approaches to the study of social issues are distinguished by originality and are based on his own numerous empirical studies. The author of the article made an attempt to trace the research logic of the English sociologist. If the first positivists were engaged in the search and justification of the laws of the stages of social progress, then for Martino one of the main tasks was to study social life in society in its concrete manifestation, everyday patterns of interaction between people formed in various cultural and historical contexts. The author shows that the work of the English researcher really allows us to talk about her socially critical approach to the study of society and the great im-portance of the problem of discrimination against women in modern society. Martineau’s sociology can be regarded as feminist, which marked the beginning of women's studies and the general socio-critical orientation of thinking in science, to some extent opposed to the sociological canon.

Perceptions of Living Conditions across Europe and Their Impact on Xenophobia

Abstract This study investigates whether European reference frames – the rating of living conditions in other countries – affect the prevalence of xenophobia among respondents in different European countries. For justifying such assumption, the author builds on two literatures: a large body of literature investigates the effect of individual and collective relative deprivation on xenophobia. Moreover, studies in the field of European sociology show that, in light of deepening European integration, people compare living conditions in different European countries. The author argues that such European reference frames matter for the development of stereotyped categorization processes and thus xenophobia. Based on original survey data, the author shows that country comparisons matter at least indirectly and he points at apparently important country differences, indicating the salience of the respective countries in public debates and warranting further research. With these insights, this article offers an important contribution to research on xenophobia as well as to European sociology.

Feminism is a project not an identity

Sylvia Walby is a sociologist who has written extensively on gender inequality, patriarchy and feminism in, for example, books such as Theorizing Patriarchy (1990), Patriarchy at Work (1986), Gender Segregation at Work (1989), Out of the Margins (1991), Gender Transformations (1997) and The Future of Feminism (2011). She was a founder of the Feminist Studies Association and the European Sociological Association. Her work theorising social change includes books such as European Societies (1999), Contemporary British Society (2000), Globalization and Inequalities (2009) and the recent book Crisis (2015). In recent years much of her work has been on violence, including The Concept and Measurement of Violence against Women and Men (2017) and work for the UN on violence against women. She is Professor of Sociology and Director of the Violence and Society Centre at City, University of London, UK, and UNESCO Chair in Building Peaceful Societies through Research on Gender Equality. In this interview Sylvia Walby talks to Jo Littler about gender inequality; why feminism is better understood as a project than as an identity; how gender dynamics were sidelined during Covid; ways to understand crises; and what we mean by 'violence'.

Why does Sociology Need a New Integrative Paradigm?

The article is devoted to analyzing a new sociological paradigm proposed by Nikolai Genov, a European sociologist of Bulgarian origin, known for his work in the history and theory of sociology, social transformation in Eastern Europe and globalization. His new monograph is characterized by his desire to offer the sociological community an original outlook on the theoretical trends in the development of the discipline over the past few decades, as well as to construct a new paradigm of social interaction as a way to overcome the current theoretical crisis. It presents a rational analysis of the current state of theoretical sociology while substantiating and describing the heuristic possibilities of sociology, revealed by means of paradigmatic synthesis based on the concept of social interaction as rethought by the author. Social interactions are the prerogative of key actors operating in networks of social relations and within social processes. The new paradigm can provide sociologists with explanatory models that can serve as the basis for creating mid-level theories that would incorporate previously accumulated sociological knowledge. According to Genov, this synthesis can open up new ways for advancing sociological comprehension of controversial social problems at different levels of their consideration (macro-, meso- and micro-) and while considering modern global development trends.

Franz Oppenheimer (1926), Die soziologische Staatsidee. (Die Eroberung) [The Sociological Idea of the State (The Conquest)

AbstractF. Oppenheimer's System der Soziologie is a multivolume publication that contains a general sociology as a common basis for all social sciences; a theory of development; as well as specialized sociologies: sociology of the economy, of law, of the state, etc. Oppenheimer conceived sociology as a historically grounded universal science. Ibn Khaldun came into play in relationship with Oppenheimer's state theory. His approach directly built on Gumplowicz's “sociological state theory”. An overview on Oppenheimer's works shows that Ibn Khaldun was by no means the starting point of theorization on the state. We do not find any reference to him in an earlier publication, Der Staat (1912), that already contained the full elaboration of Oppenheimer's theory. Nevertheless, his reception of Ibn Khaldun is important: Ibn Khaldun was mobilized within the framework of a scholarly debate that was ongoing amongst European sociologists at the time, and whose key representative, Ludwig Gumplowicz, contributed significantly to his reception in the concerned period. In this context, Oppenheimer did not merely mention Ibn Khaldun in an encyclopaedic endeavor to present a complete overview on “precursors” of sociology, but as a representative and contributor to a theoretical approach which, Oppenheimer believed, they both shared.

Classics and classicality:JCSafter 20 years

This article provides an introduction to the 20th Anniversary Special Issue of the Journal of Classical Sociology. It begins with some brief observations on the key developments that have shaped the disciplinary core of sociology over the past decades. It goes on to reflect on the role of classical sociology in Europe and beyond, drawing attention to its continuing presence in British and Anglo-American intellectual circles. Far from existing in a bubble of academic ivory towers, the paradigms emerging from disputes in the social sciences in general and in sociology in particular are profoundly shaped by wider historical trends – notably those influenced by different forms of collective action, as illustrated in the impact of social movements on the university sector in the late 1960s. In light of recent calls for ‘the decolonization of academia’, we ask to what extent sociology can, and should, strive to go beyond the hegemony of the ‘Western’ canon. Having given a succinct overview of the 20-year history of JCS, we elucidate the different formats of the material published in the journal, stressing the importance of editorial flexibility. On a more substantive note, we point out that the thematic scope of the work published in JCS has been wide-ranging and inclusive – not only because of its editors’ broad conception of ‘classics’ and ‘classicality’, but also because of the interdisciplinary spirit permeating the journal. This commitment, as we explain, manifests itself in the wide range of thinkers and topics discussed – from a multiplicity of perspectives – in the journal. We also grapple with noteworthy challenges posed by the academic publishing industry in the early 21st century, including the difficulties arising from peer-review processes. Finally, we express our gratitude to those who have contributed to this 20th Anniversary Special Issue and emphasize the journal’s commitment to defending the legacy of classical sociology.

Antidiscrimination Meets Integration Policies: Exploring New Diversity-Related Challenges in Europe

Contemporary European societies are increasingly diverse. Migration both within and to Europe has contributed over the past decades to the rise of new religious, racial, ethnic, social, cultural and economic inequality. Such transformations have raised questions about the (multi-level) governance of diversity in Europe, thus determining new challenges for both scholars and policy-makers. Whilst the debate around diversity stemming from migration has become a major topic in urban studies, political science and sociology in Europe, Critical Race Studies and Intersectionality have become central in US approaches to understanding inequality and social injustice. Among the fields where ‘managing diversity’ has become particularly pressing, methodological issues on how to best approach minorities that suffer from multiple discrimination represent some of the hottest subjects of concern. Stemming from the interest in putting into dialogue the existing American scholarship on CRT and anti-discrimination with the European focus on migrant integration, this paper explores the issue of integration in relation to intersectionality by merging the two frames. In doing so, it provides some observations about the complementarity of a racial justice approach for facing the new diversity-related challenges in European polity. In particular, it illustrates how Critical Race Studies can contribute to the analysis of inequality in Europe while drawing on the integration literature.

Remapping the Portuguese social space: Towards a Bourdieusian class scheme

Class analysis is intimately linked to the very development and consolidation of Portuguese sociology after the Carnation Revolution. Throughout the last decades, different research programmes assessed the nature and extent of class inequalities, drawing on Marxist, Weberian and functionalist paradigms. After a highly productive and intensely debated phase, a syncretic and compact approach prevailed. While this approach captures relevant features of class inequality, its current version overshadows critical aspects of difference and misrecognition in the social space in Portugal. From an analysis of occupational, qualifications and income data, we first propose a scheme of class fractions, which draws on the relational and multidimensional approach to class originally proposed by Bourdieu and recently taken up in European sociology. Using multiple correspondence analysis and nationally representative datasets, we demonstrate the validity of this tool for studying class and linkages to fields and its potential for replication in further statistical and qualitative research.

Populism, authoritarianism, and charismatic-plebiscitary leadership in contemporary Asia: a comparative perspective from India and Myanmar

ABSTRACT Much of the revived interest in new – populist and/or authoritarian – styles of leadership has been a response to developments, initially in Europe, from the late1980s on, one aspect of which has been a renewed interest in charisma and in plebiscitary leadership. How applicable are approaches to leadership developed primarily in European political science and sociology to contemporary South and Southeast Asia? Building both on Weber’s classical account of charismatic authority, and on more recent work, we propose a relational conception of charisma as an interaction between leader and followers. This leader-follower dialectic is a key characteristic of contemporary populist politics. In order to investigate the ways in which populist leaders appeal to followers, we apply this relational conception of charisma to two Asian national cases: India under Narendra Modi and Myanmar under Aung San Suu Kyi during the – now arrested – period of transition from military rule. We shall be primarily concerned with one specific form of charisma: plebiscitary leadership.

‘No radical critique ever comes from the centre’

In addition to providing an overview of some of the major milestones of Professor Bruce Johnson’s scholarly trajectory spanning over three decades in the fields of popular music and (new) jazz studies, the subsequent dialogue represents a critical approach to dominant trends characterizing Western jazz historiography. Drawing on Johnson’s influential scholarly works as well as on his research experiences in Australia and Europe, the interview sheds light on the meaningful ways through which geographical differences are intertwined with epistemological distinctions related to the construction of global jazz histories. The thematic areas covered, such as the complex relationship between the notions of popular music and jazz, or the revolutionary potential of marginal positions to challenge conventional Anglo-European narratives, are conceptually connected to the emerging field of diasporic jazz research of which Johnson is one of the major pioneers. The particular dynamics stemming from the interviewer’s position as an Eastern European sociologist and a senior Australian popular music scholar lend a particular dynamic to the discussion over some relevant contemporary issues in global jazz scholarship.

Lev Chernyi’s Anarchistic Sociometry

Anarchist teachings have become popular in the modern world. Due to this fact, it is necessary to examine the history of this movement, because many important anarchists of the past are hardly known today. This article focuses on the ideas of Lev Chernyi (Pavel Dmitrievich Turchaninov), who was a Russian anarchist in the early 20th century. The author analyzes his program work “A New Direction in Anarchism: Associational Anarchism”, first published in 1907. The goal of the analysis is to introduce Chernyi not only as a dedicated anarchist, but also as a social scientist, familiar with the traditions of European sociology. Such a perspective is possible due to the terminology used by Turchaninov. In particular, the Russian anarchist divides social sciences into sociology and sociometry, defining the subject area for each field of knowledge. To reach the goal, it is necessary to answer several key questions of social sciences, namely, how Chernyi explains action, social order and social changes. The author claims that answers to these questions very well might be found in the work of Turchaninov. The conclusion is that Chernyi’s ideas are interesting not only for researchers of anarchism, but also for social scientists and philosophers, since Turchaninov has several concepts similar to the ideas of the classics of sociological thought.