XVII ISA World Congress of Sociology: Sociology on the move
Gothenburg, Sweden
Determinism is dead in the social sciences. Despite a strong interest in social structures, social mechanisms, forms of reproduction, we are all aware that human beings are not completely dominated by them. The world changes, and this change to a large extent depends on human action and imagination.
If sociology is to be useful, it has to contribute to an understanding of change - and it has to change itself. It is on the move and has to be on the move because the world, the societies, collective and individual actors are on the move.
Our congress - devoted to this topic - will focus on developments and themes that have not always been the strong sides of sociology but that are of utmost importance for an understanding of the contemporary situation:
1. Violence and War
2. Sustainability
3. Worlds of Difference
4. Action and Imagination
5. Religion and Power