5th ISA Forum of Sociology (6-11 July 2025)

Under the catchphrase "decolonization of methods", current debates follow on from the now widely established approaches of postcolonial criticism. They address the fact that Western sociological concepts and theories of "society", such as "individualization", "nation" or "modernity", reproduce Eurocentric and Occidental thinking and set them as the norm. We agree that these debates must be seen in their (trans-)regional contexts. However, according to the findings of several researchers (Lentz 1992; Baur 2021), methodological questions remain rather marginal compared to questions of decolonizing social theory. Concrete examples of empirical research based on decolonized methods, or suggestions as to what they might look like, are rarely offered. This finding also applies to interpretative and, in particular, biographical research.

For this session, we invite contributions that draw on empirical qualitative and interpretative research in order to discuss how methods critical of domination and power can be applied. We thus encourage the exploration of qualitative research approaches with the potential to ensure that familiar theoretical concepts are not simply imposed on social phenomena when trying to understand and explain them but which will enable us to go beyond a standardized or “colonized” conceptual organization. Which methodologies do we need in which contexts? But also, how do we understand sociological research itself? These are open-ended questions that invite your unique perspectives and ideas.