News from the Academy

In an official statement on 29 June 2025, the International Sociological Association (ISA) announced that, as part of its public stance on the Israel–Gaza conflict, it no longer maintains institutional relations with public institutions in Israel. Because, in the ISA’s view, the Israeli Sociological Society (ISS) has not taken a clear position condemning the current situation in Gaza, the ISA Executive Board has decided to unilaterally terminate the ISS’s collective membership.

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The AS introduces a novelty in sociology: Every two years, 1 to 2 papers will be honoured that have made a special contribution to the verification of research results by repeating central elements of another study in the form of a reproduction, reanalysis, replication or adversial collaboration.

Studies can be nominated by all AS members. (The authors of the replication study, however, do not have to be members of the AS). Further information on the current call for proposals (application deadline: 30 April 2025) can be found here. We look forward to receiving your submissions. Help us to ensure that authors can win the first replication prize in sociology!

Reliable science depends on replications that test the robustness and generalisability of research results. Replications are becoming increasingly important in research. Nevertheless, they are still relatively little used in research practice. With the AS Replication Prize, we want to change this and help replications gain more recognition and visibility.

For the fourth time, the Academy for Sociology is awarding its biennial prize for the best dissertation in the field of analytical-empirical sociology. The award comes with 1500€ prize money.

Eligible to apply are researchers whose doctoral thesis (German or English) was successfully de-fended between 1 January 2023 and 31 December 2024.

Dissertation advisers of outstanding analytical-empirical candidates are invited to encourage their doctoral candidates for submission.

AS membership is not required for application.

Submissions should be made to dissertationspreis@akademie-soziologie.de by 30 April 2025.

For detailed submission information click here.

On January 13, 2022, the general meeting of the Academy of Sociology adopted the “Code of Ethics of the Academy of Sociology” at its regular meeting (online). The code formulates central principles that sociologists must observe when searching for scientific knowledge and when disseminating and assessing research results. This code is now available in English and can be found here.

At the regular general meeting of the Academy of Sociology, a new board was elected for the years 2024-2025. The board includes: Rolf Becker (Bern, chair), Katrin Auspurg (LMU Munich, deputy chair), Felix Wolter (Konstanz, treasurer), Malte Reichelt (Nuremberg-Erlangen, secretary) and, as assessor, Martin Abraham (Nuremberg-Erlangen), Gunnar Otte (Mainz), Anina Schwarzenbach (Bern) and Richard Traunmüller (Mannheim).

The German sociologist, philosopher and scientific theorist Hans Albert passed away on October 24, 2023, at the age of 102. Born on February 8, 1921 in Cologne as the son of a Latin and history teacher, he studied business administration at the University of Cologne, where he also received his doctorate and completed his habilitation in social policy. From 1963 to 1989, he held a chair for sociology and scientific studies at the University of Mannheim as the successor to Eduard Baumgarten, a nephew of Max Weber.

Along with Karl Popper, Hans Albert is considered one of the most important representatives of “Critical Rationalism”. One of his central contributions to this is what he calls the “Münchhausen Trilemma,” which contains a criticism of classical reasoning. He became internationally known above all with the so-called “Positivismusstreit” (Positivism Controversy), in which Karl Popper and Hans Albert discussed with the two representatives of Critical Theory, Theodor W. Adorno and Jürgen Habermas. In addition to …

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Dr. Bujar Aruqaj (FU Berlin) received the Academy of Sociology Award for the best sociological dissertation 2022/23. Dr. Aruqaj was honored for his monograph on “Social Cohesion in European Societies. Conceptualizing and Assessing Togetherness.” The jury, consisting of Josef Brüderl, Marita Jacob, Malte Reichelt, and Pia Schober, highlighted his innovative approach to conceptualize and measure social cohesion in Europe. The book was published by Routledge in 2023. The dissertation prize, which was handed over at the Academy congress 2023 in Bern, is endowed with 1,500 euros.

Dissertations created in 2023 and 2024 can be submitted for the next AS award in 2025.

The Academy of Sociology supports young researchers in their academic careers and offers funding for research stays. The visiting scholarships are designed to foster research exchanges with other scholars both abroad and in Germany or the respective country of scholarly affiliation. With this fellowship program, we address young researchers who are committed members of the AS – with already existing research contacts and affiliations to German analytical-empirical sociology. Individuals who join the AS just when applying for the fellowship must demonstrate credibly that they intend to become a committed member who contributes to the AS well beyond the duration of the planned visiting fellowship.
We are now accepting applications for research visits taking place in 2024. The deadline is October 31, 2023. For details click here.

In February 2023, the Academy of Sociology established the new working group ‘Methodology of the Social Sciences’. The working group focuses on fundamental methodological issues concerning social science theory construction and empirical research. The working group aims at facilitating research publications and position papers, including contributions on how to integrate topics in the methodology of the social sciences in teaching programs in analytical-empirical sociology. To that end, over a period of two to three years, several workshops will be held.

The first workshop on theory construction and testing theories is scheduled for September 6 and 7, 2023 at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz. The working group has been initiated by Gunnar Otte, Natascha Nisic, Nico Sonntag, Hartmut Esser, and Werner Raub. Colleagues who would like to join the working group or to receive updates on workshops and other activities, including Calls for Papers, should send an email to as-methodologie@uni-mainz.de.