About
The Sociology of Emotions Group brings together a growing body of theory, methods and interconnected research on social emotions. This relatively new area contains sociological accounts of the importance of emotions within a range of social spheres. It also recognises that emotions drive the functioning of many social policies, and are also the object of policies aimed at improving wellbeing or reducing loneliness or depression or anger-related violence.
The group builds on the long history of investigating emotions in society developed by key thinkers such as William James, Georg Simmel, G.H. Mead, Arlie Hochschild, Norman Denzin, Tom Scheff, Theodore Kemper, Randall Collins, Jack Barbalet and others. It has become an internationally recognised subfield within sociology.
Aims and Objectives
The intention of this group is to provide a platform to encourage research into the social aspects of emotions. The group's objectives are to:
- Explore the role of emotion as a primary sociological concept and force
- Reveal the common emotional components of disciplines and sociological sub-disciplines
- Encourage new and critical sociological/social theorising on emotions
- Employ new methodologies in their exploration
- Understand the role of emotion as it relates to the social research and policy process