Forwarded on behalf of the Social Research Association (please do not
respond to me).
SOCIAL RESEARCH ASSOCIATION (SRA) ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2006 " CHALLENGING
MYTHS, RESEARCHING REALITY - THE ROLE OF SOCIAL RESEARCH"
Dear all,
This is a reminder about the SRA Annual Conference being held on Wednesday
6th December 2006.
There are still some places available so to avoid disappointment please
book as soon as possible for what promises to be a most exciting and
informative event.
More information about the day can be found below and here:
www.the-sra.org.uk/documents/pdfs/sra_conference_programme_06.pdf
whilst an electronic booking form can be found here:
www.the-sra.org.uk/documents/word/sra_annual_conference_booking_form_2006.doc
BACKGROUND TO THE CONFERENCE:
Understanding and explaining the society we live in is a key task for
social researchers. This year the SRA's annual conference "Challenging
myths, researching reality the role of social research" provides an
opportunity to focus on some of the problems faced by social research when
investigating and presenting complex social issues.
Through key note speakers and eight workshop sessions, the conference aims
to promote discussions about the nature of social research and the role it
plays in informing the research and policy community as well as the general
public.
In the morning, Ian Diamond will examine the capacity of social research to
challenge misconceptions of social issues, whilst John Curtice and Greg
Philo will address the issue of how social and political attitudes,
perceptions and actions are formed, including examining the role social
research and the media plays in shaping people's understanding of "reality".
In the afternoon, eight workshops delivered by research experts from
academia, government and the private sector will provide opportunities to
examine robust evidence on headline (and often myth laden) topics such as
community cohesion, user involvement in health services and attitudes to
poverty and rural disadvantage. Other workshops will identify and discuss
some of the methodologies, analytical tools and technologies that can be
used to enhance our understanding of the world.
Finally a panel of expert users of social research including the Director
of the European Parliament's UK Office, the Head of UK and International
Policy at the Refugee Council and the Chair of the Treasury Select
Committee will discuss their use of social research to combat some of the
common myths and misperceptions in their policy fields.
OUTLINE OF THE DAY
Registration: From 9.30am
10.00am > SRA ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING (SRA MEMBERS ONLY)
10.30am > CONFERENCE OPENING
= Welcome and Introduction from the Chair, Barbara Doig, SRA Chair
= Plenary speakers:
Ian Diamond, Chief Executive of the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)
Professor Diamond will address the role and capacity of social research to
challenge misconceptions of social issues.
Greg Philo, Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Applied Social
Sciences, University of Glasgow
Professor Philo will address the issue of the role the media plays in
shaping people's understanding of "reality".
John Curtice, Department of Government, University of Strathclyde
Myths and Reality in Social Attitudes
= Panel discussion with comments and questions from the floor.
12.30pm > LUNCH
1.30pm > Workshops Session A (workshops 1 to 4)
* Workshop 1: Housing and Rural Communities
Private landlords and tenants their real issues and concerns.
Afi Adjei and Maggie Davidson, Building Research Establishment
Challenging the Myth of the Rural Idyll: Using Market Segmentation
Techniques to Understand Rural Attitudes to Disadvantage.
Ruth Bradshaw, Thematic Studies Manager, Commission for Rural Communities
* Workshop 2: Community Cohesion
Refugees are abusing our system, aren't they?
Siddig Elzailaee, Researcher, Working Lives Research Institute, London
Metropolitan University
Whose 'problem' is cohesion anyway? Challenging misconceptions about social
integration and community cohesion.
Dr Adele Smaill, Community Cohesion Evaluation Officer, Strategy and
Resources, Oldham MBC
*Workshop 3: Healthy Involvement
The Patient Advisory and Liaison Service as a catalyst for change: Myths
and realities of the implementation of the NHS user involvement agenda.
Sarah Booker, Research Fellow, Faculty of Health & Social Care, University
of the West of England
Obesity, social control and the tyranny of health.
Dr Michael Gard, Charles Sturt University, Australia and Carnegie Research
Institute, Leeds Metropolitan University, UK
*Workshop 4: Understanding Poverty and Managing Money
Managing money in older age: Are pensioners really as financially excluded
and vulnerable as commentators suggest?
Annie Irvine and Katharine Nice, Social Policy Research Unit, University of
York and Peter A. Kemp, Department of Social Policy & Social Work,
University of Oxford
The Reality or Myth of Poverty a Method for Applying Objectivity to
Poverty Studies.
Wendy Olsen and Jamie Morgan, Cathie Marsh Centre for Census & Survey
Research, University of Manchester
2.50pm > TEA
3.20pm > Workshops Session B (workshops 5 to 8)
* Workshop 5: Binge Drinking
'Binge drinking' in the UK: the recent history of a confused concept.
Rachel Herring, Research Fellow and Virginia Berridge, Professor, Centre
for History in Public Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical
Medicine, London; Betsy Thom, Reader, School of Health and Social Sciences,
Middlesex University.
* Workshop 6: Shifting public beliefs about poverty
Shifting public beliefs in the UK about poverty.
Julian Thompson and Sarah Castell, Ipsos MORI HotHouse
* Workshop 7: Approaching Stereotypes
Approaching stereotypes and myths in social surveys: the example of British
Social Attitudes.
British Social Attitudes Team, NatCen
* Workshop 8: Challenging myths and stereotypes
Using the ONS omnibus survey to challenge myths and stereotypes.
Chris Dowsett, Research Officer, Social & Vital Statistics, Office for
National Statistics
4:15pm > PANEL DISCUSSION "Challenging myths, researching reality - the
role of social research"
Chaired by Ceridwen Roberts, Vice Chair of the SRA
With:
John McFall MP, Chairman of the Treasury Select committee
Nancy Kelley, Head of International and UK Policy, Refugee council
Dermot Scott, Director of the European Parliament's UK Office
5:20pm > DRINKS RECEPTION
|