Research themes
Research at Cambridge's Department of Sociology is organised into three core themes.
These fields encompass a variety of research projects and initiatives, each with its own aims and ambitions.
Theory and Culture
Social and political transformations over the past decade have been dramatic, even by historical standards. From ongoing geopolitical conflict to the rise of new technologies such as AI and biomedicine, major societal shifts are underway. We need innovative sociological concepts to make sense of these changes.
Our work at the forefront of social theory and political development provides the essential tools to understand and explain an era of profound change, from the emergence of different forms of nationalism and populism to knowledge production and intellectual practices to digital citizenship and social organising.
Politics and Inequality
Our research investigates politics and inequality as a defining feature of contemporary social worlds. Global sociology is a key characteristic of this work, with many of our researchers studying political processes in Britain, continental Europe, the Americas, the Middle East, South Asia, and Africa. Much of our research uses comparative-historical methods to trace broad patterns beyond borders, examining issues such as violence and popular uprisings.
In examining the causes and effects of social inequalities, our research spans quantitative studies of insecure employment in the UK to the precarity of digital labour and the gig economy to ethnographic studies of the ‘lived experience’ of racism in Latin America, gendered violence in India and South Africa, and global studies on human rights and changing understandings of freedom.
Science and Technology
Rapid and extensive changes in science and technology are having profound effect on social life. Our research on the social study of science and technology examines fields from AI and diagnostic health technologies to digital platforms and climate technologies to make sense of these changes and propose concepts, practices and policies for creating more equitable and sustainable worlds.
We use innovative interdisciplinary approaches and often collaborate with Cambridge’s scientific community to investigate how science and technology impact societies. Working alongside colleagues in the physical, natural, medical, and engineering sciences, we analyse the influence of emerging technologies on society and political life. We investigate how health and medical techniques, ranging from diagnostics to addiction management, shape social processes. We also examine the ethical, environmental, and governance implications of how computational systems are transforming through AI.