CHANGE². THE DISRUPTIONS OF SOCIAL STRUCTURES

Contemporary societies are dynamic. Their structures are constantly evolving, and social change continuously happens within them. This suggests that the long sought-after ideal of social stability cannot adequately describe social reality. The consequences for the theoretical consideration and normative assessment of change in societies are decisive if societies are understood as fundamentally dynamic. Questions about the concepts used to capture changes in social structures come into focus: Can social change be meaningfully distinguished from the dynamic reproduction of a society? A dynamic understanding of social entities also affects their normative assessment. How can current processes of change in societies be understood as progress, regression, or homeostasis? And last but not least, the concept of social change has to include the subjectivity of those who want to create, maintain, question, and change society through their actions, and who intensify and exacerbate the crises. How can they become historically effective actors? How can we describe the balance between the self-transformation of actors and the transformation of society that must go hand in hand in far-reaching transformation processes? Under the heading Change² the aim is to discuss all these dimensions of a theory of fundamental social change with Frederick Neuhouser, Karen Ng, Arvi Särkela, Kolja Möller, Steffen Mau, Hanna Meißner, Thomas Seibert, Sabine Hark, Daniel Loick, Antoine Louette,  Eva von Redecker, Christian Volk, Rahel Jaeggi, Robin Celikates and in a special online appearance Sally Haslanger, Michele Moody-Adams, and Theodore Schatzki.