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Research Committees

Statutes

These Statutes were discussed by RC18 members at the International Sociological Association XIII World Congress in Bielefeld, Germany (July 18-23, 1994) and at the International Political Science Association XVI World Congress in Berlin, Germany (August 21-25, 1994). The Statutes were presented in the fall 1994 CPS Newsletter for comments and subsequently approved by the CPS membership. The Statutes were revised and approved at the I ISA Forum in Barcelona (5-8 September 2008), at the XXI IPSA World Congress in Santiago (12-16 July 2009) and at the XXV IPSA World Congress in Brisbane (21-25 July 2018). The Statutes were further updated by the CPS Executive Board elected for the period 2018-2022, and approved by RC18 members by email in May 2020.

Article 1: Name

The name of this Research Committee is Research Committee on Political Sociology, referred to below as the Committee on Political Sociology (CPS). It is both affiliated to the International Sociological Association as RC18 and the International Political Science Association as RC06.

Article 2: Affiliation

The CPS has a dual professional affiliation. It is recognized by and operates as Research Committee 18 by the ISA and as Research Committee 6 by the IPSA. The CPS membership is comprised of “sociologists” and “political scientists” and its elected Board officers represent both disciplines and the interests of the two parent international organizations. This interdisciplinary exchange of scholars and ideas lies at the core of the CPS and determines its policies.

Article 3: Goals

  1. To establish a community of scholars in universities and elsewhere who have scientific interests in examining the relationship between political and sociological phenomena;a;
  2. To facilitate communication of scientific research, theory and practice across disciplinary and national boundaries among members of the ISA, IPSA and elsewhere;
  3. To increase the theoretical and practical significance of political sociology both inside and outside the discipline;
  4. To provide mutual support and freedom among members to generate and disseminate their research findings and ideas..

Article 4: Activities

  1. To organize panels, paper sessions, research symposia and workshops at the ISA and IPSA World Congress meetings and at least one business meeting of the available regular members in good standing for every World Congress;
  2. To organize Work Groups in order to communicate and exchange specialized knowledge and topics throughout the membership of the CPS;
  3. To organize at least one mid-term conference between World Congresses;
  4. To publish and distribute the CPS Newsletter at least twice annually to CPS members and to the parent organizations.

Article 5: Work Groups

  1. In order to foster activity in specific subfields of political sociology, work groups may be created.
  2. Work Groups are organized according to the same principles as the CPS and operate within the organizational framework of the CPS.

Article 6: Membership

  1. The membership of the CPS may be individual or collective (an organization), as specified in the statutes and by-laws of the ISA and IPSA;
  2. Any ISA/IPSA member in good standing who has an interest in the field of political sociology can become a member of the CPS;
  3. The CPS recognizes two types of members:
    1. Regular members are good-standing members of either ISA or IPSA and have paid their membership fee determined for a four-year period by the CPS Executive Board. Junior scholars (up to PhD according to ISA rules) can join CPS with a discount fee.
    2. Affiliated members who are not members of ISA or IPSA but have paid their CPS affiliation fee determined for a four-year period by the CPS Executive Board;
  4. The membership fee is determined at the ISA or IPSA Congress for a four-year period by the CPS Executive Board;
  5. All CPS members are entitled to participate in the scientific activity of the CPS and to receive the newsletter free of charge;

Article 7: Officers and Elections

  1. The officers of the CPS shall consist of an Executive Board that is made up of a President, a Secretary, a Treasurer and a minimum of 4 and maximum of 9 additional officers, according to the IPSA and ISA rules. The office of Secretary might be cumulated with that of President or Treasurer. There might also be a co-President;
  2. Temporary vacancies in the Board that occur between consecutive World Congresses may be filled by appointment by the President. In the case of the death, incapacitation, resignation, or other inability of the President to carry out his/her responsibilities, the co-President if any, the Secretary if different from the President, or the Treasurer, will organize a vote of the Board to elect a new President at the absolute majority of its members;
  3. Each member of the CPS Board shall be a regular member of the ISA and/or IPSA and should remain in good standing for the entire period. At least 50% of the Board must consist of regular ISA members, and 50% of the Board of regular IPSA members;
  4. Election of Board officers shall take place every four years in the months before the ISA/IPSA World Congress meetings. An effort shall be made to ensure a fair disciplinary, regional and gender representation;
  5. Election procedures for CPS Board members:
    1. The election of the CPS Board members occurs every four years by open election and democratic ballot procedures;
    2. Any regular CPS or affiliated member in good standing can nominate a candidate for office. Only regular CPS members in good-standing can run for elected office if nominated;
    3. The candidates nominated for each office will be presented for the election in the CPS Newsletter at least 20 weeks before the election;
    4. All regular or affiliated CPS members are eligible to vote for their candidates of choice;
    5. The vote will take place by email;
    6. The election and voting procedures will be administered by the CPS Secretary in cooperation with the CPS President;
    7. The results of the election will be published in the CPS Newsletter immediately following the election.
  6. The Board shall elect from among its members the President and eventually co-President. The President shall designate the Secretary and the Treasurer;
  7. The Board shall identify (i) the Research Committee’s delegate to the ISA Research Council and other organizations and (ii) the alternate delegate to the Research Council.

Article 8: Funds

  1. The CPS is free to organize itself and to administer its own funds, to cooperate with academic and non-academic bodies, as well as to engage in any activities the CPS membership may consider appropriate to its stated goals and objectives;
  2. The administration of all CPS funds is made accountable to the CPS membership on a regular basis by the Treasurer through the CPS Newsletter.

Article 9: Compliance

All CPS statutes listed above are compatible with the principles, rules and regulations of its parent organizations - ISA and IPSA.

Article 10: Amendments

  1. Any proposal of amendments to the Statute may be made by any member of the Board or by 5 CPS members in good standing;
  2. Such a proposal must be received by the Board at least one year before the IPSA/ISA World Congress;
  3. The proposals will be circulated among the CPS members at least six months before the IPSA/ISA World Congress;
  4. The proposed amendments will be discussed in the Business meeting at the IPSA/ISA World Congresses and adopted if approved by a two-thirds majority.