The Ph.D. in Sociology and Social Research, belonging to the Department of Sociology and Economic Law SDE of the University of Bologna, has been active since 1984 (Cycle IV). Although it has changed its title, which was initially "Sociology and Social Policy," then simply "Sociology," – it is the only program with the designation of 'Sociology' with its administrative headquarters at the University of Bologna.
The Ph.D. has consistently received a rating that has placed it in the highest brackets among the University's doctoral programs. In recognition of high-quality research output and meeting all the requirements requested by the Evaluation Board in 2009 (Cycle XXIV), at the request of the University and the Doctoral School in Political and Social Sciences, led the Department of Sociology to unify two pre-existing Doctorates (those of Sociology and Social Policy and Criminology) into the single Doctorate in Sociology. With the XXX Cycle, the Ph.D. took the new title, "Sociology and Social Research."
The PhD course in Sociology and Social Research aims to train sociologists capable of analysing contemporary processes of social and cultural change on the ground of a close integration between theory and empirical research. To this end, a theoretical-analytical and technical-methodological preparation is offered, through a training project that combines in-depth study of the main theoretical paradigms of contemporary sociology and the most up-to-date quantitative and qualitative social research methodologies and techniques. A training programme aimed at providing PhD students with the tools to carry out original, theoretically oriented and empirically grounded investigations on a wide range of aspects of contemporary societies, through the comparison of different situations and social contexts, also in an international perspective, thanks to the comparison with foreign counterparts in scientific and educational contexts and to the performance of research periods abroad.
In detail, the specific lines of research of the PhD in Sociology and Social Research concern methodology of social research; social change, inequalities, inclusion and participatory processes in the public sphere; demographic and social processes such as migration, different stages of life and relations between generations; health, social determinants and consequences; old and new forms of deviance, criminology and victimology; the welfare state and its mutations, transformations of the economy and labour; territorial development; climate change and multilevel challenges of ecological transition but also possible solutions dictated for example by digitalization processes, changes and innovations in civil society; media, cultural practices and policies.
In addition to a rich and multifaceted training programme (which includes lectures and seminars, workshops, summer schools, etc.), doctoral and post-doctoral students will be able to access specific programmes on research ethics, creative methodologies useful for research and dissemination, training on the public impact of academic research, soft skills and transversal competences related to doing research and post-graduate professional integration.