Sociology conferences

Sociology at Salford has hosted a number of conferences, symposia and seminars throughout its history. Some of these meetings addressed public issues and key policy questions, such as the Symposium on Work and Leisure in Contemporary Society, organized by Michael Smith in 1973; the conference on Ethnic Relations and Research (Lorraine Baric, 1981); and the major international conference on The Public Sphere in Free Market Societies (Steve Edgell, Sandra Walklate and Gareth Williams, 1993), that featured Frances Fox Piven, Elliott Currie and Richard Sennett as plenary speakers. Others have had an interdisciplinary focus, reflecting Salford sociology’s strong ties to the neighbouring disciplines of politics and history. These included a joint British Sociological Association/Political Studies Association conference on the Middle Class in Politics (John Garrard, Mike Goldsmith and David Jary (1973) and the BSA History and Social Theory conference (David Jary 1981).

The Sociology group has also been successful in securing ESRC support for themed seminars. These have included the Conceptualizing Consumption Seminar Series (Steve Edgell, plus colleagues from Keele and Lancaster Universities) that from 1994-96 attracted such luminaries in the field as Robert Putnam, Alan Warde, Mike Savage, Patrick Dunleavy, Claire Ungerson, Pasi Falk, and Michael Harloe (later to become the VC of Salford University). Other ESRC Seminar Series have included one on Immateriality (Paul Taylor 1999-2001), while Paul Bellaby has just concluded a series of symposia on patients’ self-care initiatives (2008).

Over the years, sociology at Salford has welcomed a number of distinguished speakers for one-off seminars, including Dennis Wrong, Zygmunt Bauman, Alasdair MacIntyre, Paul Walton, Jock Young, Dorothy Smith and Jean Briggs. In addition, Sociology has encouraged the University to award honorary doctorates to such noted figures as Beatrix Campbell, Anthony Giddens, Ann Oakley and Karl Popper. Sociology’s host role continues through to the present, most recently in the form of the Salford Human Rights Forum which included talks by, among others, Peter Tatchell (Jo Milner, Chris Birkbeck, Jim Newell and John Garrard, 2007-08).

Last, but far from least, mention must be made of the collegial exchanges among Salford Sociology staff that have been fostered by a variety of formal and informal staff and student seminars, reading and discussion groups. For many years in the 1970s and 1980s Doug Webster convened a Friday lunchtime seminar that was long a scene of lively debate that often spilled over into the neighbouring Crescent Inn. Also, in the 1980s, Pat Walters initiated staff and postgraduate seminar days, many of the presentations of which were published subsequently in the Salford Sociology Papers Series. In the early 1990s a reading group spanning staff in sociology, English and geography met regularly to discuss texts in cultural studies and cultural theory. It was a major impetus for the writing of the first textbook in this area, Introducing Cultural Studies (Baldwin et al. 1999). Today, reading groups in critical social theory and ethnography continue to flourish as sites of intellectual exchange.

Greg Smith