Research Seminar on the Sociology of Culture (“Kulttuurisosiologian sekaseminaari”, KuSoSe)
From the autumn term 2018 onwards, the Tampere Group for Sociology of Culture has organized a regular research seminar on sociology of culture, including students and researchers from several career stages. Our meeting time is Thursday at 2 p.m. New MA students interested in doing theses broadly on the topics relevant to our research interests are welcomed every fall. Don’t hesitate to contact and join us!
Recent examples of completed MA theses from our seminar:
- Milla Hynynen: ”Työläistaustaisten opiskelijoiden kokemuksia ja näkemyksiä opiskelusta Tampereen yliopistossa” (February 2023)
- Tiina Helin: ”Two different school realities within one city: Resources and social capital at primary school according to teachers” (May 2022, Full text)
- Eeva Leskinen: “Konservatorio ja kulttuurinen pääoma: Taidemusiikkiharrastuksen merkitys lapsiperheiden kulttuurisessa reproduktiossa” (March 2022, Full text)
- Milla Aho-Mantila: “Suomalaisten eliittien elämän käännekohdat ja rekrytoituminen korkeisiin asemiin: narratiivinen elämäkerta-analyysi” (January 2022, Full text)
- Mikael Wallin: “New Media Incentives: A Cross Platform Analysis of Social Media Discourses on 4Chan, Twitter and YouTube” (May 2021, Full text)
- Eeva Karjalainen: “Symbolic Boundaries in the Everyday Life of Underprivileged Finns” (May 2021, Full text)
- Tanja Rajala: “Kansainvälisyysosaaminen kulttuurisena pääomana ammatillisessa koulutuksessa” (August 2020, Full text)
- Ossi Sirkka: ”Verkostot ja maku: verkostoanalyyttinen lähestymistapa sosiaalisten suhteiden ja kulttuurisen pääoman yhteyteen” (December 2019, Full text)
- Sara Sivonen: “Politiikka ja kulttuurin kuluttaminen: puoluekannan ja konservatiivisuuden yhteys kulttuuriosallistumiseen Suomessa vuosina 2007 ja 2018” (August 2019, Full text)
- Katariina Penttilä: “Kasvisruokavaliomuutos – valintaa ja muutosta edesauttavat ja vaikeuttavat tekijät” (May 2019, Full text)
- Petro Leinonen: ”Peruspalvelujen tuottavuus ja hyvinvointivaltion reformi – Syyt ja keinot kuntien vastuulla olevien peruspalvelujen tuottavuuden nostamiselle valtiovarainministeriön talous- ja kuntapoliittisissa linjauksissa 2010–2015” (May 2019, Full text)
- Veli-Matti Patjas: ”Luonnollinen valitsija ja myrskynhenki: Vakavan väkivallan ihannointi koulusurmiin liittyvissä tapauksissa Suomessa” (May 2019, Full text)
- Emmi Kauppila: ”#FinnishBeer: Suomalainen panimoteollisuus Facebookissa” (June 2018, Full text)
- Minttu Haaparanta: ”Nuori suomalainen ja brittiläinen eliitti, 1970–2010: Sosiaalinen tausta, nykyasema ja harrastukset” (August 2017, Full text)
Courses and individual lectures
Academic year 2022–2023
A multi-method “Questions of Sociological Research: A Researcher’s Perspective” (being a part of the teaching of the MA social science program at the Tampere University) is held by Semi and Sara on spring term 2023.
Academic year 2021–2022
A multi-method “Questions of Sociological Research: A Researcher’s Perspective” (being a part of the teaching of the MA social science program at the Tampere University) is held by Semi and Sara on spring term 2022.
Academic year 2020–2021
Cultural stratification: Current research and ongoing debates
5 ECTS (study units SOOS02 & SOOS04, master’s level in sociology); Period II, from 21 October to 2 December 2020, Wednesdays 2 p.m.-4 p.m. (7 lectures); Teacher: Professor Semi Purhonen and researchers from Tampere Group for Sociology of Culture.
Brief description: This lecture course provides an overview on the current research on cultural stratification – a field of study in sociology of culture focusing on the link between inequalities and cultural practices. Special emphasis will be given to projects and concrete research examples currently ongoing among the researchers working on the topic at Tampere University, such as the stratification and dynamics of cultural participation, media usage, culinary tastes, cultural reproduction, and cultural practices in relation to social networks and politics.
Other teaching 2020–2021
A multi-method course “Questions of Sociological Research: A Researcher’s Perspective” (being a part of the teaching of the MA social science program at the Tampere University) was held again by Semi and Jarmo on spring term 2021.
Academic year 2019–2020
A lecture course “Social Change” (being a part of the teaching of the BA and MA social science programs at the Tampere University) was held by Semi on spring term 2020.
A multi-method course “Questions of Sociological Research: A Researcher’s Perspective” (being a part of the teaching of the MA social science program at the Tampere University) was held by Semi and Jarmo on spring term 2020.
Riie supervised a BA thesis seminar on spring term 2020.
A lecture course “Cultural Stratification” (being a part of the teaching of the MA social science program at the Tampere University) was held by Semi and Taru on fall term 2019.
Academic year 2018–2019
A lecture course “Social Change” (being a part of the teaching of the BA and MA social science programs at the University of Tampere) was held by Semi on spring term 2019.
A lecture course “Introduction to Sociology of Culture” (being a part of the teaching of the BA social science program at the University of Tampere) was held by Taru on spring term 2019.
A new, thematic MA thesis seminar, on the topics broadly related to DYNAMIC’s interests, started in fall term 2018, run by Semi, Riie and Taru (the first meeting was after the general orientation period/idea paper stage, compulsory to all new MA students in the social science program, in mid-October 2018).
Teaching in previous years at Tampere University and University of Helsinki has included, for example, courses entitled “Cultural sociology” (2018), “Questions of Cultural Stratification” (2015), “Bourdieu, Cultural Capital and Taste” (2012), “Cultural Capital and Social Differentiation (2010), along with multiple BA and MA seminars and methods courses (basic and advanced levels, both qualitative and quantitative methods).