Polish Sociological Review

The Routledge Handbook of European Sociology explores the main aspects of the work and scholarship of European sociologists during the last sixty years (1950-2010), a period that has shaped the methods and identity of the sociological craft. European social theory has produced a vast constellation of theoretical landscapes with a far reaching impact. At the same time there has been diversity and fragmentation, the influence of American sociology, and the effect of social practice and transformations. The guiding question is: does European Sociology really exist today, and if the answer is positive, what does this really mean? Divided into four parts, the Handbook investigates: intellectual and institutional settings regional variations thematic variations European concerns. The Handbook will provides a set of state-of-the-art accounts that break new ground, each contribution teasing out the distinctively European features of the sociological theme it explores. It will be of interest to students and scholars across the social sciences and humanities.

This title was first published in 1987: This is the autobiography of Fay Afaf Kanafani, an Arab Muslim woman born in Beirut in 1918. Through telling the story of her difficult life as a woman in such a society and her struggles to free herself from her father, brother and father-in-law, it offers a feminist view of a people and culture.

This book is about long-term changes to class and inequality in Poland. Drawing upon major social surveys, the team of authors from the Polish Academy of Sciences offer the rare comprehensive study of important changes to the social structure from the communist era to the present. The core argument is that, even during extreme societal transformations, key features of social life have long-lasting, stratifying effects. The authors analyse the core issues of inequality research that best explain “who gets what and why:” social mobility, status attainment and their mechanisms, with a focus on education, occupation, and income. The transition from communist political economy to liberal democracy and market capitalism offers a unique opportunity for scholars to understand how people move from one stratifi cation regime to the next. There are valuable lessons to be learned from linking past to present. Classic issues of class, stratification, mobility, and attainment have endured decades of radical social change. These concepts remain valid even when society tries to eradicate them.

This ground-breaking book provides a compelling account of the social sciences in post-war Central and Eastern Europe. The first English-language monograph to analyse the history of sociology in Poland up to the present day, it maps transformations in the discipline against political and social change. Related in an accessible and engaging manner, it offers a comprehensive examination of sociology as a part of Polish society and culture after 1945. It can also be used as an introduction to the subject and a guide to further reading. Part of the influential Sociology Transformed series, Sociology in Poland will interest social and political scientists, historians and policymakers.