Social theory in natural resources management

This PhD course seeks to provide participants with an understanding of social theories relevant to natural resources management with an aim to better equip them to tackle the conceptual, theoretical and methodological challenges involved in studying and understanding social aspects of natural resources management.

Date: 23 - 27 May 2011. 6 ECTS.

Specifically, the course will focus on the issue of power and centre on the following questions:

 

1) How is power conceptualized and theorized?
a) What broad conceptualizations and theories of power can be identified in the social theory literature?
b) What causal explanations of change in the social order do these conceptualizations and theories of power imply?
c) What are the implications of differences in the way power is conceptualized and theorized to its application in empirical research?

2) How can we empirically study power? How can different conceptualizations and theories of power be applied in and developed on the basis of empirical research?
a) How to choose a social theory that is relevant to one’s empirical case?
b) How to translate theories and theoretical constructs into empirical research designs, methods, and tools?

 

3) What are the policy consequences of different theoretical perspectives on power?
a) Do researchers with different theoretical perspectives on power produce different policy recommendations?
b) Do different theoretical perspectives on power translate into different policies?

 

Download full programme (pdf).