Professor Sujata Patel utnämns till hedersdoktor
We are delighted to announce that the Department of Sociology at Uppsala University nominated Professor Patel to the Faculty of Social Sciences for a Honorary Doctorate and that she has received this prestigious recognition for her numerous academic achievements, which is why we have asked her to give a lecture in celebration of this honorary conferment. The lecture will take place January 25th between 3:30-5 pm at Thunbergsvägen 3H, Segerstedt’s room (2-1026) and via Zoom.
Professor Emerita Sujata Patel holds at present the 2021 Kerstin Hesselgren Professorship which is based at the Department of Sociology, Umeå University. In addition. she has also been collaborating with colleagues at the Centre of Gender Studies, Umeå University, The Division of Migration, Ethnicity and Society (REMESO), Linköping University, SASNET affiliated to the Department of Political Science, Lund University, and at the Department of Sociology, Uppsala University. This prestigious professorship is awarded and financed by the Swedish Research Council.
Abstract: Critical reflection of ‘Western’ theories and methodologies has become quite common in debates regarding global sociology. These interventions follow the opening up of the intellectual spaces that occurred due the breakdown of sociology’s late 19th century positivist perspective which assessed regularities, made law like analysis, and used regression-based variable models to comprehend the ‘social’. From the late 70s and early 80s the discipline adopted a more eclectic stance with some scholars continuing to use quantitative methods while critiquing positivist methodology, others abandoning it and applying hermeneutics, interpretative, and constructivist analysis while some others suggesting a need to historicize the discipline by displacing its cannons in order to design new social theories to comprehend contemporary modernities being constituted within Europe. From the beginning of this century, global sociology has been introduced to the perspectives postcolonialism and decoloniality. It is in this context that the paper discusses the contours of anti-colonial thought and explores its various dimensions and argues why it remains the best option among the many normative turns that have been introduced recently to comprehend the discipline of sociology.
Short extract from the nomination letter that the Professor’s Collegium of this department submitted: As a researcher focusing on topics as varied as neoliberalism, urban studies, social capital, working conditions, gender relations, colonialism and citizenship (to name but a few), Professor Emerita Sujata Patel has been contributing to contemporary social scientific debates for close to four decades. She defended her dissertation in economic history back in the 80’s, and has since contributed to an array of social scientific disciplines across the globe while holding visiting professorships and fellowships in Germany, France, Japan, South Africa, The Netherlands and Singapore, and acting as a scholarly bridged between the East and the West. As a former member of the Executive Committee of the International Sociological Association, and one of the Vice Presidents (for National Organizations) for that organization, she has contributed immensely – in various capacities – to the international scientific community in sociology. […] In a world as divided as ours, we need social scientists that can both inspire us, and challenge us, to utilize social theory to make sense of our surroundings, and bridge gaps between disciplines and countries. In our humble opinion, the breath (and depth) of Professor Emerita Sujata Patel’s contributions to the social sciences make her a worthy candidate for an honorary doctorate of our Faculty.