Understanding Global Tensions: A Sociology and Political Science Workshop Proposal, Istanbul, June 2004

Ohio State University Research Foundation -Do Not Use, Columbus OH

Investigators

Abstract

The PIs will hold a three-day workshop to assess the state of social science knowledge about the role of global-level processes and institutions in shaping the character, causes, and consequences of global tensions broadly defined. The workshop will focus on the Middle East.as both a site and a source of global tensions. It will be organized by the Mershon Center at Ohio State University and the United Nations Development Program Center at Bogazici University in Istanbul, Turkey. The workshop will hosted by Bogazici University. Workshop sessions will center on the global system itself: what is its structure, how is it changing, and how do its features and trajectory affect global tensions. An international group of social scientists conducting research on different aspects of globalization and global conflict will articulate research priorities that will provide the basis for future collaboration especially the formation of international research teams. Workshop participants will be social scientists from the U.S., Europe, and the Middle East. The workshop will be interdisciplinary with participants drawn mainly from Sociology and Political Science--two disciplines centrally engaged in the study of globalization, social movements, and political violence. Participants will summarize the current state of knowledge in their particular area of research about globalization and its impact on global tensions, identify cutting edge research questions relating to global tensions, and outline a future research agenda to advance social science understanding of global tensions. The ultimate goal is to encourage the development of research projects that examine global factors that contribute to conflict and tensions within and among states. Workshop sessions will be divided into three sections: The Global System and Global Tensions, Global and Local Synergies and Flashpoints, and Developing a Research Agenda for Understanding Global Tensions. This project's broader impacts are four-fold: First, the papers and discussions in this workshop are of great interest and immense importance to scholars, policymakers, and students interested in understanding the causes, character, and consequences of contemporary global tensions. Second, the recommendations of the workshop participants for productive and promising ways to conceptualize and study global tensions will strengthen future research and scholarship in this area. Third, the gender, national, ethnic, methodological, and disciplinary diversity of workshop participants will serve not only to provide a broad array of ideas and approaches to understanding global tensions, but will provide many opportunities for future collaborations among colleagues working in different disciplines and national settings; our decision to hold the workshop in Istanbul was, in part, to facilitate the participation of international scholars who might find it difficult to attend a workshop held in the U.S. Finally, the international diversity of workshop participants will contribute to social science research capacity building in NSF's three priority areas: people, ideas, and tools.