Since 2016, those affiliated with Social Science Works have published a large number of articles and reports. Long and short articles, detached or polemical, very thorough or more associative, but always written in a way that can be understood by a wider audience. Some articles have appeared only in English, or only in German, some in both languages. The German articles can be found on the German pages of this website. The topics cover the themes central to Social Science Works’ activities: democracy, deliberation, populism, social cohesion, migration and integration, social criticism, science criticism and Usable Knowledge. To make the articles easier to find, they have been divided into categories. However, to make sure you don’t miss anything, below you will find all articles published since 2016 in chronological order.

Since the categories naturally overlap, some articles can be found in multiple places. The following categories have been created.

  • Democratic Theory: empirically based theoretical articles on democracy, deliberation, pluralism, radicalization, extremism.
  • Project and Research Reports: articles about the projects and research we have carried out. Each project always has a research component as well, and also aims to generate general insights into the theme in question. Articles on all other themes can therefore also be found here.
  • Articles on populism: the overlap with democratic theory, among others, is obvious. Nevertheless, a separate category has been created because the articles in question explicitly address the populist movements that can be observed over the past decade in almost the entire Western world.
  • Science Criticism: articles that critically examine existing practices in academia and science.
  • Social Criticism: explicitly socially critical articles, a category with considerable overlap with populism.
  • Refugees and integration: articles that are often unrelated to the projects we have implemented in this field.
  • Urban Sociology and Tourism: integration, social cohesion and development, as well as socially and ethically responsible tourism are close to our hearts.
  • Finally, in order not to miss a single article by your favorite author, the articles are also listed by author.

All English Blog articles in chronological order

The Rewards from Deliberation: Researching the Feedback of our Workshops

by Hans Blokland and Raíssa Silveira Since 2016 Social Science Works has organized and implemented almost forty rows of deliberative workshops with refugees and German natives. Together with the participants, in our workshops we try...

The Limits Of Survey Data: What Questionnaires Can’t Tell Us

All research methodologies have their limitations, as many authors have pointed before (see for example Visser, Krosnick and Lavrakas, 2000). From the generalisabilty of data to the nitty-gritty of bias and question wording, every method...

The Identity Politics Of Being A Foreign Body

Quickly after moving to Berlin I assumed the title of ‘expat.’ Being an American expat became part of my identity. For better or worse, it was something I was stuck with. For better, it established...

The French “Crisis of Authority” Is A Crisis Of The Authorities

In France, you lose count of how many times you’ve heard about the “crisis of authority”. It has become a central preoccupation, amongst and spread by, a wide range of influential people. First of all...

The failing integration of newcomers in Germany: can Artificial Intelligence help?

Since 2016, Social Science Works has carried out dozens of integration projects with and for refugees for a wide range of clients. In addition, we have conducted extensive quantitative and qualitative research, particularly in Brandenburg...

The Crisis of Masculinities – A Brief Overview

The so-called crisis of masculinity has drawn much attention and concern by politicians, academics, the public, and most dominantly, the media. This crisis is characterised by a widely perceived fear, uncertainty, and hysteria about the...

The Center Does Not Hold: The Supply & Demand of the New Right’s Success

The year 2016 experienced unheard of electoral turbulence. While many thought that Brexit would mark the political event to be remembered for a generation, ‘The Donald’ put paid to that. These processes have tempted some...

Ted Cruz, Global Warming, & The Need For Data Transparency In Politics

by Namwan Leavell Republican Senator and prospective presidential candidate Ted Cruz doesn’t believe in global warming. “Many of the alarmists on global warming, they’ve got a problem because the science doesn’t back them up,” Cruz...

Talking straight to youngsters in Hamburg

We are in a less affluent part from Hamburg for a two-day Workshop. About 70% of our 32 participants have a migration background. We talk for about 10 hours with two different groups of about...

Taking people seriously: a new approach for countering populism and furthering integration

In our deliberative democracy and integration projects we treat our participants – natives as well as migrants – as citizens, able and willing to discuss in a rational way the big themes like democracy, freedom...

Some Countries Are More Corrupt Than Others And We Shouldn’t Be Afraid To Say So

At Social Science Works we are interested in giving second opinions on research, to help enable policy makers make informed choices about policy and empower decision makers to make the best possible use of science...

Social media are useless for civic and political participation: experiences with a project in Germany

The political participation of young people in general and rural youth in particular is not optimal. Consequently, they are underrepresented in politics, which in turn affects the extent to which their interests are reflected in...