New Developments in Political Sociology

Distinctions are often drawn between sociology of politics, political sociology, and political science. In the political science field, scholars sometimes define themselves as sociologists or political sociologists. We currently speak of sociological concepts, hypotheses, and problematic. But what is a sociological approach to politics? What are the theoretical, methodological and empirical contributions of sociology to the study of politics? Scholars involved in this project are interested in the discussion of the most recent developments of the interactions between sociology and political science. Do founding fathers (Durkheim, Marx, Pareto, Weber) and sociological traditions (structuralism, interactionism, ethnomethodology, constructivism, frame analysis, historical sociology) still influence current political science? How contemporary sociologists' works (Becker, Bourdieu, Elias, Garfinkel, Giddens, Goffman, or others) are used in political science research? What has been drawn from current sociological methodologies (analysis of correspondence, in depth interviews) and empirical sociological studies? Two types of panels - empirical and theoretical - would be organized within the section. The first type aims at assessing uses of sociological tools for the analysis of various political subjects. Henrik Bang (University of Copenhagen) is willing to convene a panel on The Political Sociology of Governance . Olivier Fillieule (University of Lausanne) would chair a panel on The Sociology of Collective Action. Daniel Gaxie (University of Paris) and Alfredo Joignant (University of Chile in Santiago) plan to discuss some results of Sociological Approaches to the Study of Voting Behavior. Alfio Mastropaolo (University of Turin) would like to focus on The Democratic Common Sense, notably on the understanding of what ordinary citizens mean by Democracy. Two German colleagues have been asked to organize panels on sociological approaches of respectively Political Parties and Political Elites . If people demonstrate their interest, Jean-Yves Dormagen (University of Paris) is ready to chair a panel on Historical Sociology of Politics, with possible contributions on subjects like transformations in elections and electoral practices, the construction of the State, and changes in collective actions and social movements. Other ideas in the same vein would be welcome. Theoretical panels would focus on a given sociologist or on a sociological tradition. Erik Neveu (Political Studies Institute of Rennes) and David Swartz (Boston University) would invite papers that offer illustrations and explore the advantages and limitations of uses of Pierre Bourdieu's sociological tools for the analysis of politics. Niilo Kauppi (University of Helsinki) proposes to hold a panel on the uses of constructivist approaches by political scientists (from the classical topic of the construction of social problems to more recent constructivist analyses of European Union institutions and international relations). This section on New Developments in Political Sociology would welcome colleagues wishing to question the relevance or the influence of other national or international tradition of mobilization of sociological works in political science research (i. e. Norbert Elias in the Netherlands and France, or Anthony Giddens in the United Kingdom). This section aims at opening new prospects of research intermingling theoretical, methodological, and empirical resources of sociology and political science. It could also be a first step in the creation of a standing group on political sociology.