Social Movements

Aims and Central Research Questions

The research of the working group is primarily concerned with the genesis of social movements, their organization, and their perception in the public sphere. Under what social and political conditions do movements emerge? What prompts people to join a movement? What tactics are used by movements and what influence do they have on public opinion? These and related questions are examined from both a national and comparative perspective and analyzed by means of a sociological toolkit. The aim is to gain a better understanding of movements as a specific form of organized reaction to real and perceived inequalities.

In addition, the group also conducts research on topics such as protest, solidarity and civic engagement. Like movements, these represent possible reactions to perceptions of inequality and are woven into a network of norms, expectations and discourses. Of particular interest here are the factors that lead to their success (e.g. implementing political demands) or failure.

Background
The group's work draws methodologically and analytically on political sociology and, in so doing, attempts to understand inequality both as the driving force of movements and protests and as the backdrop against which they take place.

Methods
- Standardised population and protest surveys
- Survey experiments
- Expert interviews

Discipline
Sociology

Startindg Date
November 2021