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Visual Sociology is
an emerging field in the social sciences; yet its theoretical and
methodological contributions are just becoming known. Thus, while
it is common to refer to contemporary society as postmodern and
as "a society of images", most sociologists’ appreciation
and understanding of the role that images play in social life and
could play in the sociological research process are not as developed
as they should be. The IVSA (International Visual Sociology Association)
has provided a forum for scholars who have fully integrated the
study and use of images at the core of their research.
IVSA scholars have
developed numerous rigorous protocols for conducting research with
images as well as innovative applications tailored to particular
research sites. Visual sociologists have also contributed to the
development of Visual Cultural Studies in the field of Cultural
Studies. In this endeavour, attention is focused on the ways in
which the visualizing process is enlisted in the social construction
of ideologies of class, race and gender.
The Summer School
in Visual Sociology offers a well-organized one-week course of theoretical
and empirical study. Planned sessions will focus on both creating
images for social research objectives as well as the sociological
interpretation and analysis of those images that are routinely produced
in processes of individual and institutional communication. Thus,
the Summer School has two goals:
1. To develop students'
potential to interpret the products of visual communication in a
rigorous and sociologically disciplined fashion;
2. To demonstrate
the utility of video-photographic technologies in field research,
based on the Grounded Theory first developed by Anselm Strauss and
Barney Glazer. All the teachers are members of the IVSA.
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