Centre for Sociological Research

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Research domains Solidarity lectures 2017 Research Education Calendar News Media

The Centre for Sociological Research (CeSO) is a network of researchers studying social change from a sociological perspective. CeSO researchers conducts research in a wide variety of sociological sub-disciplines, including social policy and social work, sociology of work and organization, political sociology, demography and family sociology, science and technology studies, sociology of culture and religion, theoretical sociology and research methodology. In doing so, CeSO members have the ambition to provide insights that help us to understand the key challenges for contemporary societies.

The Centre was founded over 50 years ago and has since then been a prominent player in the field of Sociology. This rich history is still visible in the present-day research agenda of CeSO, as several traditional lines of research are continued (e.g., family sociology or sociology of religion). At the same time, CeSO members explore new subfields and engage in emerging sociological debates.

The Centre for Sociological Research (CeSO) at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven consists of 11 professors and about 80 educational and research assistants, organised into 8 research areas.

The main research topics at the Centre are: work, organization, family, historic demography, population, health care, social policy, sociological theory, cultural studies, art, education, innovative methodology and political opinion research.

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SEARCH in CeSO

Institute for Social and Political Opinion Research

The Institute for Social and Political Opinion Research (ISPO) does scientific research in the fields of elections, values patterns and ethnic minorities. Using quantitative, qualitative as well as mixed-methods approaches, ISPO investigates (changes in) attitudinal and behavioural patterns of citizens in contemporary societies.

Life Sciences & Society Lab

Here we study the political and social implications of the life sciences, including its profound effects on the making of sociality and social life, the very subject of social scientific research.

Research Institute for Social Policy, Social Work, Family and Population Dynamics (ReSPOND)

ReSPOND broadly focuses on responses of societies, families, organisations and institutions to a changing environment, notably in the context of European welfare states, inequalities, and global climate change.

SoMethin'k

SoMeTHin'k actively pushes towards the development of methods and models for positive change in society. We test, evaluate, implement, improve and re-appropriate existing methods, techniques, models or d.a.t.a sets generated in fields such as urban development, the public art, design and technology sector, community-based research practice and the global sustainable development area. Where necessary, we develop our own innovative methodology to respond to emerging social challenges, whilst remaining sensitive to quality control and empirical grounding. Our perspective is multimodal in nature, combining numerical, textual, sensory and/or arts-based research d.a.t.a to study complex social phenomena. We develop theoretical frameworks as a basis for how such phenomena can be understood and organized. Our group currently focusses on two specific research areas and provides methodological guidance on a consultancy basis: survey methodology and qualitative inquiry.

Sociology of education

Research within the field of sociology of education of the Centre of Sociological Research regards the structures and processes influencing educational opportunities in our society.

Theory, culture and religion

Within the research line Theory, Culture and Religion (TCR) we study processes of (post-)modernization, religion and secularism, and culture production and participation from the more recent social-theoretical paradigms as wel as from a critical-theoretical perspective.

Work & Organisation

This area focuses on topics such as quality of work, labour markets, division of labour, organisational change, collective bargaining and industrial relations.

Ceso Solidarity lecture SERIES 2017

This lecture series provides in-depth theoretical and applied knowledge of the notion of solidarity in European societies of the 21^st century as well as of its sources, manifestations, dynamics, and social consequences.

Shifting solidarities: trends and developments in European societies. Ine Van Hoyweghen, Valeria Pulignano, and Gert Meyers, Cham, Palgrave Macmillan, 2020, 284 pp., €88.40 (hardback), ISBN: 978-3-030-44061-9, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-44062-6
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Centre for Sociological Research (CeSO)