International Sociological Association (ISA)

The Statutes were originally adopted at the Constituent Congress held in Oslo, September 5th-11th, 1949, where the Association was formally established. They were subsequently amended in 1970 at the meeting of the ISA Council at Varna, 1974 at Toront eeting of the ISA Council at Varna, 1974 at Toronto, 1978 at Uppsala, 1982 at Mexico City and 1986 at New Delhi. This text, incorporating previous amendments and the principles upon which the Association has been grounded since 1949, was adopted by the ISA Council in Gävle (Sweden), August 1993. This version of the ISA Statutes has been in force since January 1994 with further amendments approved in July 1994 at the meeting of the Council of National Associations in Bielefeld (Germany), in July 2002 at the meeting of the Assembly of Councils in Brisbane (Australia), in July 2010 at the meeting of the Assembly of Councils in Gothenburg (Sweden), in September 2013 by electronic ballot by Delegates of the Assembly of Councils, and in July 2014 at the meeting of the Assembly of Councils in Yokohama (Japan). The International Sociological Association (ISA) is a non-profit association for scientific purposes. Its function is to represent sociologists everywhere, regardless of their school of thought, scientific approaches or ideological opinion. The goal of the Association is to advance sociological knowledge throughout the world. In its structure, the Association recognizes the aspirations of sociologists in all parts of the world and endeavours to support and strengthen the free development of sociology in cooperation with similar associations of social scientists. To achieve these ends, the Association shall support activities to: secure and develop institutional and personal contacts between sociologists and other social scientists throughout the world; encourage the international dissemination and exchange of information on developments in sociological knowledge; facilitate and promote international research and training; convene meetings and regularly scheduled world congresses; promote publications which support its other activities. There shall be both collective and individual members of the Association, who may be either regular or affiliated. Collective Members: Regular collective members shall be countrywide sociological associations duly established for scientific purposes and open to all active sociologists. They shall be admitted to membership by a decision of the Executive Committee (EC), subject to ratification by the Council of National Associations. Affiliated collective members shall be research institutions and universities or their departments, as well as other associations of sociologists active as scholars or practitioners in the field of sociology. They shall be admitted by a decision of the EC, subject to ratification by the Council of National Associations. An affiliated collective member from a country or groups of countries not represented under Article 3.2. may be granted temporary regular collective member status by the Executive Committee, subject to ratification by the Council of National Associations. Individual Membership: Regular individual membership is open to scholars or professionals active in sociological teaching, in research and/or in practice. To become a member and to maintain membership individual members must join and maintain membership in both the ISA and at least one of its Research Committees, Working Groups or Thematic Groups. All those who participate regularly in activities of the ISA are expected to be individual members. Affiliated individual members of the ISA shall be applicants other than those specified in 3.4 a, who may be admitted by a decision of the Executive Committee. All members shall respect the principles upon which the Association is founded, and contribute to its purposes. To remain members in good standing individual members must have paid their membership dues for the current year, and collective members must have paid their membership dues through the previous year. ...view more