Who Studies Social Theory?

rograms in Social Theory attract serious students who are self-directed and able to make use of the resources of various disciplines. Social Theory programs usually bridge the social sciences and the humanities, and have the partipation of faculty members and students who are capable of crossing these bridges. Our students can speak for themselves. See what they have to say:

Michael L. Dorn Department of Geography, Univ. of Kentucky

I am a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Geography at the University of Kentucky. My masters work in urban social geography at Penn State was devoted the forces that marginalized social groups in urban areas, initially focusing on disabled people and the impacts of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which was just then being implemented, on their ability to meet their financial and social needs. While a doctoral student at the University of Kentucky, I have pursued studies in medical and social geography, and combined them a specialization in social theory. I have found social theory to be very useful as I have developed my research interests in the history of representations of physically anomalous people, and as I have networked with other scholars in the emerging field of disability studies.

I view the 'disabled' category as a hegemonic construct that typically serves to stigmatize and preserve status quo social relations, while still potentially available for recapture under favorable circumstances, to became a locus of resistance by oppressed individuals and groups. In attempting to trace the history of disability activism in the United States, it became clear that there was tremendous historical and geographical variation the way 'disabilities' get defined. Social theory has been very useful in assisting me to conceptualize this shifting moral topography.

During my studies at the University of Kentucky I been active in the offerings of the Committee on Social Theory. The members of the committee-scholars in a wide array of departments in the humanities and social sciences-appreciate the usefulness of contemporary social and political theory as a lingua franca across disciplinary boundaries. The research seminars and lecture series sponsored by UK Social Theory foster exchange and collaborative research between areas of disciplinary expertise.

An example of this collaboration is the annual journal disClosure, edited by a graduate student collective. I have been a member of this collective for three years, writing book reviews, interviewing prominent social theorists, and, as head editor, supervising the production of the 1996 issue on reason and embodiment.

As a university professor, I plan to pursue a research program informed by contemporary social theory that will contribute to debates and open new lines in inquiry in medical and social geography, disability studies, and urban social history:

The relations between late-Enlightenment socio-medical ideas and current debates over the role of social theory in medical geography The emergence and diffusion of Enlightenment notions of rationality and civility Social marginalization as a historically contingent and contested process The historical geography of the Western body and city

Jeffery L. Nicholas Philosophy Graduate Student Association, Univ. of Kentucky

I am a member of the Social Theory program at the University of Kentucky and its presence here was a major factor in my decisions to attend this graduate school. My primary field is philosophy; I am currently working on the intersections of reason/rationality and political theory. The Social Theory program here at UK has been vital to my research in this field. In particular, it has provided a larger number of faculty who are interested in the same sort of issues as I to work with - such issues as social reality, social institutions, liberation, marxism, modernity and postmodernity, fields of oppression and resistance, etc. The Social Theory program at UK has specifically allowed me to attend courses on the early Frankfurt School and another one on Habermas. It has also introduced me to areas and people that lie very close to my own research field. To find colleagues in different primary disciplines who work across the disciplines and can discuss and understand different areas of research on one topic has provided enormous research and social benefits - finding out that there are others with similar concerns, discovering different approaches and methods to the same problems, being baptized into new ways of seeing such problems.

Of course, any Social Theory program worthy of the name can provide these general benefits. Social Theory allows cross-polination of disciplinary research programs, encourages dialogue. The reason I was originally attracted to an institution which toted a social theory program was because of the basic need for research in social problems and social institutions. What am I saying that I didn't say above-just that any social theory program provides one with tools to address the social ills and oppressive institutions which define our society. A social theory encourages the praxis that Paulo Freire discusses: one where reflection and action are combined aimed at transforming society.

Esther Neuwirth Social Theory and Comparative History, UC-Davis

I am a Ph.d candidate at the University of California-Davis in the Department of Sociology, pursuing a special graduate certification program (called a designated emphasis) in Social Theory and Comparative History (STCH). The program is offered through the UC Davis Center for History, Society, and Culture (CHSC). The designated emphasis involves taking several graduate seminars, attending and presenting at conferences sponsored by the CHSC, and most importantly, working with CHSC faculty to complete a dissertation that integrates theoretical, comparative, and historical methods and analysis. In light of the programs offered by the Center, I have had the opportunity to take a host of really interesting and thought-provoking seminars. These include: "Comparative Methods in Historical Sociology" and "Political Movements" with Professor John Walton; "Historical Models of Western Modernity: What Happened in the Twentieth Century," with Professor Bill Hagen; and "Cultural Sociology" with Professors John Hall and John Walton. I've also attended and presented at several CHSC conferences, and participated in a CHSC affiliated "Editorial Workshop." Being a participant and active program committee member of the CHSC has given me a chance to explore my own research interests in an environment that encourages comparative and theoretical approaches to examining empirical social issues.

In my first year of study at UC Davis, 1993-1994, I enrolled in Professor John Walton's two quarter seminar on "The Comparative Methods in Historical Sociology." This seminar sparked my interest in comparative historical work. With Professor Walton's guidance, I read case studies where authors applied various methods to empirical and theoretical questions. I learned how exciting such research could be. In this seminar, I researched and wrote up a longitudinal comparison of two rebellions in Palestine: the 1936-1939 Arab revolt and the December 1987 Palestinian nationalist uprising, the Intifada. I discovered that although the 1936-1939 rebellion was relatively "unsuccessful," memories of this collective resistance were stored in the cultural history of the Palestinian people and were later called to mind by the leaders of the Intifada as a resource for mobilization. I found the research process exciting and personally compelling. After the seminar, Professor Walton encouraged me to participate in the STCH designated emphasis and the Center, and I have been actively involved ever since.

Prior to beginning graduate work at UC Davis, I completed my B.A. at Brandeis University in Sociology and Women's Studies. I also spent several years working with a U.S. based non-profit organization called the Overseas Development Network (ODN). My education at Brandeis University gave me a strong theoretical grounding in social theory; and working with an organization dedicated to international development and social justice gave me insight into the relationship between theoretical models and the empirical world. As an undergraduate, with the help of the Overseas Development Network, I travelled to the Philippines to conduct research for my thesis on Filipino women's historical role in land tenure struggles and grassroots development.

I have chosen to complete the STCH designated emphasis because working with the CHSC gives me a forum for learning how to develop theory in light of historical and ethnographic research. With the help of CHSC faculty affiliates John Walton, Diane Wolf, and John Hall, I recently completed a doctoral qualifying paper on social movements and collective action in Israeli society.

In my qualifying paper, "The Emergence of Mizrahi Collective Action in Israeli Society From 1959-1973," I explore two historical moments of collective action in the state of Israel: a 1959 urban uprising and the 1970s Israeli Black Panther Movement. I began this project wondering how and why collective action is possible. In the paper I argue that these two cases of collective action are not merely reactions to structural inequality or social strain. They emerge only indirectly out of structural processes but more directly from political opportunities, internal organization, and a collective belief in injustice that arose out of contradictions in state rule. In addition, although these two moments of collective action failed to change structural conditions of race and class inequalities, they actually paved the way for today's growing awareness of ethnic issues in Israeli society as well as national efforts at redefining the distribution of entitlements and the meaning of social citizenship. I presented my initial work on this project at the 1997 CHSC UC-wide conference on "Modernity's Histories." Now, I am continuing to explore the theoretical questions posed in my qualifying paper as I develop my dissertation project - a comparative analysis of the connected processes of privatization, collective action, and changing ethnic relations. Serving on my committee are a sociologist and a sociological anthropologist from UC Davis, as well as a historian from Stanford University.

Attending CHSC sponsored lectures, workshops, and conferences has been very helpful for my intellectual growth. The CHSC gives me a chance to discuss my own interests and theoretical insights in an interdisciplinary manner with academics throughout the UC system, and at times with academics from around the world. At these conferences and colloquia, I've had in-depth discussions with other sociologists, as well as political scientists, anthropologists, historians, and area study specialists. Participating in the Center for History, Society, and Culture helps position me to think about my own work in light of other disciplinary approaches and contributions.

Working closely with the Center has also given me a chance to get to know the academic journal Theory and Society: Renewal and Critique in Social Theory. As part of my participation with the Center, I was introduced to the journal and its executive editor, Professor Janet Gouldner, who is affiliated with the CHSC. While working as the journal's Assistant Managing Editor from October 1995 - December 1997, I had first hand exposure to the editorial side of academic publishing. During this time, I learned how theoretically compelling research gets produced, and the practical stages of editing that are involved in the creation of substantive contributions to our understanding of empirical problems. I continue to be involved with the journal as a member of its editorial review committee.

Completing the designated emphasis in Social Theory and Comparative History and participating in the CHSC conferences and other events have been important learning experiences which have given me a good deal of insight into my work. The Center for History, Society, and Culture has been a vital part of my academic community. Throughout my endeavors as a scholar at UC Davis, its faculty and graduate students have been an important source of intellectual nurturing and guidance.