The Society for the Study of Social Problems

The Society for the Study of Social Problems (SSSP)
Founded 1951
Founder Elizabeth Briant Lee and Alfred McClung Lee
Type Professional Organization
Focus Pursuit of Social Justice through Social Research
Location
  • University of Tennessee
    901 McClung Tower
    Knoxville, TN 37996-0490
    United States
Area served
 Worldwide
Key people
 Dr. Héctor L. Delgado, Executive Officer

Michele Smith Koontz, Administrative Officer & Meeting Manager
Website www.sssp1.org

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.

Purpose

The SSSP’s stated purpose[1] 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.[2]

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.[3]

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. For a list of and information on divisions, visit http://www.sssp1.org/index.cfm/m/21.[4]

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. For a list and description of these awards and scholarships, visit http://www.sssp1.org/index.cfm/m/24.[5]

Social Problems and other publications

Social Problems

The Society publishes Social Problems, one of the leading referred and most widely read social science journals in the United States, and a number of other miscellaneous publications. For more information on the Society’s publications, visit http://www.sssp1.org/index.cfm/m/322.[6]

SSSP Presidents

The following is a list of Presidents of the Society from its founding in 1951 to 2016.[7]

# Name Term
1 Ernest W. Burgess, University of Chicago 1952–53
2 Alfred McClung Lee, Brooklyn College 1953–54
3 Herbert Blumer, University of California, Berkeley 1954–55
4 Arnold M. Rose, University of Minnesota 1955–56
5 Mabel Elliott, Chatham College 1956–57
6 Byron Fox, Syracuse University 1957–58
7 Richard Schermerhorn, Western Reserve University 1958–59
8 Alfred R. Lindesmith, Indiana University 1959–60
9 Alvin W. Gouldner, Washington University 1960–61
10 Marshall B. Clinard, University of Wisconsin 1961–62
11 Marvin B. Sussman, Western Reserve University 1962–63
12 Jessie Bernard, Pennsylvania State University 1963–64
13 Irwin Deutscher, Syracuse University 1964–65
14 Howard S. Becker, Northwestern University 1965–66
15 Melvin Tumin, Princeton University 1966–67
16 Lewis Coser, Brandeis University 1967–68
17 Albert J. Reiss, Jr., University of Michigan 1968–69
18 Raymond W. Mack, Northwestern University 1969–70
19 Kai Erikson, Yale University 1970–71
20 Albert K. Cohen, University of Connecticut 1971–72
21 Edwin M. Lemert, University of California-Davis 1972–73
22 Rose Coser, SUNY-Stony Brook 1973–74
23 Stanton Wheeler, Yale Law School 1974–75
24 S.M. Miller, Boston University 1975–76
25 Bernard Beck, Northwestern University 1976–77
26 Jacqueline Wiseman, University of California-San Diego 1977–78
27 John I. Kitsuse, University of California-Santa Cruz 1978–79
28 Frances Fox Piven, Boston University 1979–80
29 James E. Blackwell, University of Massachusetts-Boston 1980–81
30 Egon Bittner, Brandeis University 1981–82
31 Helena Z. Lopata, Loyola University-Chicago 1982–83
32 Louis Kriesberg, Syracuse University 1983–84
33 Joan W. Moore, University of Wisconsin 1984–85
34 Rodolfo Alvarez, University of California-Los Angeles 1985–86
35 Arlene Kaplan Daniels, Northwestern University 1986–87
36 Doris Y. Wilkinson, University of Kentucky 1987–88
37 Joseph R. Gusfield, University of California-San Diego 1988–89
38 Murray Straus, University of New Hampshire 1989–90
39 James A. Geschwender, SUNY-Binghamton 1990–91
40 Stephen J. Pfohl, Boston College 1991–92
41 William Chambliss, George Washington University 1992–93
42 Barbara Katz Rothman, CUNY-Baruch College 1993–94
43 James D. Orcutt, Florida State University 1994–95
44 Peter Conrad, Brandeis University 1995–96
45 Pamela A. Roby, University of California-Santa Cruz 1996–97
46 Beth B. Hess, County College of Morris 1997–98
47 Evelyn Nakano Glenn, University of California-Berkeley 1998–99
48 Robert Perrucci, Purdue University 1999-00
49 John F. Galliher, Missouri University-Columbia 2000–01
50 Joel Best, University of Delaware 2001–02
51 Nancy C. Jurik, Arizona State University 2002–03
52 Kathleen J. Ferraro, Northern Arizona University 2003–04
53 Gary Alan Fine, Northwestern University 2004–05
54 Claire M. Renzetti, University of Dayton 2005–06
55 Valerie Jenness, University of California - Irvine 2006–07
56 Nancy A. Naples, University of Connecticut 2007–08
57 Steven E. Barkan, University of Maine 2008–09
58 JoAnn L. Miller, Purdue University 2009–10
59 A. Javier Treviño, Wheaton College 2010–11
60 Wendy Simonds, Georgia State University 2011–12
61 R.A. Dello Buono, Manhattan College 2012–13
62 Anna Maria Santiago, Case Western Reserve University 2013–14
63 Marlese Durr, Wright University 2014–15
64 David A. Smith, University of California, Irvine 2015–16

References

  1. ↑ "Who We Are". Society for the Study of Social Problems. Retrieved December 20, 2013.
  2. ↑ "Who We Are". Society for the Study of Social Problems. Retrieved December 20, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Who We Are". Society for the Study of Social Problems. Retrieved December 20, 2013.
  4. ↑ "Who We Are". Society for the Study of Social Problems. Retrieved December 20, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Who We Are". Society for the Study of Social Problems. Retrieved December 20, 2013.
  6. ↑ "Who We Are". Society for the Study of Social Problems. Retrieved December 20, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Past Presidents, Vice-Presidents, and Editors". Society for the Study of Social Problems. Retrieved September 12, 2012.
Further reading

External links