The Czech Sociological Review invites original articles on the theme ‘Gender Aspects of the Life Course’ in any relevant social science discipline and both, quantitative and qualitative methodological approaches. The deadline for submissions is 31 August 2014, with a planned publication date of 2015.
While not required, the guest editors of the special issue, Hana Hašková (hana.haskova@soc.cas.cz) and Marta Vohlídalová (marta.vohlidalova@soc.cas.cz), invite authors to inform them of the intention to submit a paper as soon as they decide to do so.
Papers should be submitted to the journal’s email address: sreview@soc.cas.cz
The focus of this special issue will be new research on the gender aspects of the life course. The goal is to introduce an up-to-date collection of articles that explore and explain the extent and the ways in which changes occurring in the life course in late modern societies and the risks and needs emerging from contemporary life course changes are gendered. We welcome qualitative or quantitative single-country studies, cross-national comparative studies, mixed-methods studies and theoretical or methodological articles.
While the current changes to work and private life arrangements, social and cross-border mobility, and the organisation of social life are often explained by emphasising cultural or structural factors, this kind of research focus deflects attention away from the dynamics of the complex processes that constitute these changes and from the personal experiences of those whose practices contribute to these changes. Some of these problems may be overcome by examining social reality from the life course perspective, a perspective with the potential to provide new insight into the study of social change.
The life course can be studied from a quantitative perspective, using statistical life history data, to reveal patterns in the timing and sequencing of life course transitions, and to explore their causal links and their consequences for the subsequent course of a person’s life. The life course can also be examined from a qualitative perspective, through biographical narratives representing how people experience and attach meaning to transitions and phases in their life. In either case, the studied life course transitions and phases are examined in continuum with previous and subsequent events and phases.
We specifically invite (but do not limit the special issue to) papers that address the following questions:
- To what extent and in what ways are the changes that are occurring in the life course in late modern societies gendered?
- To what extent and in what ways are the risks and needs connected to these changes gendered?
- To what extent and in what ways do gender regimes change and influence how people’s lives are interconnected and what the expected patterns are in the life course of men and women in late modern societies?
- In the light of current debates on individualisation and loosening social norms in late modern societies, to what extent and in what ways is the life course still or no longer gendered and structured along the lines of gender, class, ethnicity and citizenship?
- Are there any gender aspects of changes to the life course that are specific to post-socialist societies?
All papers should follow the guidelines for papers submitted to the Czech Sociological Review, available on the journal website: http://sreview.soc.cas.cz/en/page/4-author-guidelines. Any specific questions about the special issue should be addressed to the guest editors at their emails above. Other text genres, such as book reviews and conference reports on the theme of gender aspects of the life course or related themes, are also welcome.