Area served Worldwide Founded 1951 | Publication Social Problems | |
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Type Professional Organization Focus Pursuit of Social Justice through Social Research Location University of Tennessee
901 McClung Tower
Knoxville, TN 37996-0490
United States Key people Dr. Héctor L. Delgado, Executive Officer
Michele Smith Koontz, Administrative Officer & Meeting Manager Founders Alfred McClung Lee, Elizabeth Briant Lee Similar American Sociological Association, Sociologists for Women in Society, Law and Society Association, Social Science Research, American Academy of Politica Profiles | ||
The Society for the Study of Social Problems (SSSP), founded in 1951 by Elizabeth Briant Lee and Alfred McClung Lee, is a non-profit interdisciplinary community of scholars, practitioners, advocates, and students interested in the application of critical, scientific, and humanistic perspectives to the study of vital social problems.
Contents
Purpose
The SSSP’s stated purpose is to promote and protect sociological research and teaching on significant problems of social life. This includes:
Activities
The SSSP promotes dialogue through presentations at the annual meeting and through listservs and newsletters throughout the year; publishes research in the journal Social Problems; presents awards to community groups; supports graduate students, young scholars and activists with professional support, leadership opportunities, and scholarships; passes and acts upon public resolutions; and fosters the generation of new ideas.
Membership
Most members are from the United States, but the Society enjoys the significant participation of international scholars, practitioners, students, and advocates as well. Membership is open to individuals and university and college departments who support the SSSP’s mission and goals. Since many of the Society’s members are sociologists, the SSSP holds annual meetings in the same location and time as the American Sociological Association.
Divisions
The SSSP has twenty-two divisions, each with its own newsletter, that provide members with common interests the opportunity to interact more intimately with one another. Division activity shapes the annual meeting of the Society by organizing paper sessions and panels. Divisions provide an opportunity for young scholars to present their work to a critical audience of scholar advocates interested in good research and social action to move toward solutions for social problems. Members interested in emerging areas of social problems can form new divisions.
Scholarships and Awards
The SSSP grants scholarships and awards in recognition of meritorious work by outstanding scholars, practitioners, advocates, and students who demonstrate active pursuit in the application of critical, scientific, and humanistic perspectives to the study of vital social problems. One of these awards is the prestigious C. Wright Mills Award, awarded to the previous year’s most outstanding book in the tradition of the individual for whom the award is named.
Social Problems and other Publications
The Society publishes Social Problems, one of the leading referred and most widely read social science journals in the United States, and several other miscellaneous publications.
SSSP Presidents
The following is a list of Presidents of the Society from its founding in 1951 to 2018.