4th Summer School on
Social Representations and Communication

"The Theory towards the Applications"

San Sebastian, Basque Country - Spain
20th-29th June 1998

 

Date and Location:

The fourth Summer School on "Social Representations and Communication" will be held in San Sebastian, Basque Country - Spain (20th-29th June 1998). 
Located along the Cantabrian coastline, in front of the Ocean, San Sebastian is one the most attractive town in Europe. Three beautiful beaches (La Concha, Ondarreta and La Zurriola) and all around aristocratic villas and gardens together with three mountains (Igeldo, Urgull and Ulia) make this town unique. The climate is mild throughout the twelve months of the year, the average summer temperature being 22°C.

Organisers:

As the previous one, the fourth Summer School on S.R. is promoted by Annamaria Silvana de Rosa, co-ordinator of the European PhD on Social Representations and Communication, activated within the ICP-3074/14 ERASMUS network of 13 University-partnerships. The local organisers are Sabino Ayestaran and José Valencia of the University of Basque Country in San Sebastian.

Aims:

In accordance with the main purposes of both the T.M.R. and SOCRATES programmes co-ordinated by University of Rome 'La Sapienza' - respectively approved by the DGXII (contract n ° ERBFMMACT 960165) and by DGXXII (IC 29415-IC-1-96-IT-ERASMUS-1) - the Fourth Summer School is aimed at promoting the European dimension of higher education, by offering a possibility of training for academic research in an international setting, characterised by intensive formal and informal exchanges between teachers, coming from different European academic laboratories, and a small number of Ph.D students and young researchers from different countries also outside Europe. The international Summer School represents each year the most intensive didactic stage for the participants into the EU PhD on S.R. & C. , a new advanced curriculum approved by DGXXII SOCRATES and formally acknowledged by "La Sapienza" University of Rome, Helsinki University and I.S.C.T.E. in Lisbon, supported not only by Erasmus-Socrates, but also by Maison des Sciences de l'Homme of Paris and EuroPACE network, concerning telematic applications for open distance learning. 
The general aim of the series of related Summer Schools on 'Social Representations and Communication' over a three year period is to create the opportunity of an intensive international stage in order to:

1. offer the participants the possibility of working with people from other Universities and countries and deepening, in a multi-national setting, their study of Social Representation's paradigm seen from the point of view of theory, methodology and application, availing themselves of the noteworthy diverse experiences and the international team of experts in their particular field of study. Taking advantage of the special competencies of various teachers, the participants may indeed enter into contact in a wider and deeper manner the many facets of the Social Representation's paradigm;
2. start up and involve the participants in different sessions of learning, so that they may not be simply "onlookers", but be drawn into the method of learning, sharing what they have learned from their academic training in their native land;
3. monitor the advanced training of the EU PhD students - basically realised by means of training through research and trans-national mobility and co-operation - and develop joint criteria of evaluation, which step by step can set "European standards" "to" and "beyond " research;
4. finally, take advantage of the opportunity of a co-operation among the various invited experts with the ultimate goal of enriching their methods of teaching in the international arena. Dealing with a new academic reality and acting as teachers of a sort of an Òextended European FacultyÓ, the teaching team, even though has a great experience of several scientific meetings among experts (international conferences), will be challenged to come together for a Òjoint didactic exchangeÓ with a new generation of researchers from various nations.

The Topic within a Long Term Scientific Planning:

The fourth Summer School on S.R. & C. will continue the history of the successful intensive programmes started off with the first Summer School, organised on 1995 in Finland, and developed by the second Summer School on "Multiple strategies in the investigation of S.R.", organised on 1996 in France (Aix-en Provence), and by the third Summer School on "Social Representation Theory: historical roots, articulation and development", organised on 1997 in Portugal (Lisbon). 
According to the long-term planning of these scientific related events, aimed at articulating theoretical, methodological and applied aspects of the theory on S.R. and its related paradigms, the Summer School to be held in San Sebastian (June 1998) will be focussed on "The theory towards applications". 
It will be dedicated to the multi-faceted fields of applications (organisations, institutions, economy, politics, environment, tourism, education, professional socialisation, juridical contexts, health, advertising and mass-communication) investigated by some exemplary research programmes, which have been inspired by the paradigm of Social Representation. Particular attention will be given to the illustration of relevant projects across national borders, with the goal of reaching the full European dimension in developing the research training in social psychology.

Invited Teachers:

The participation of twenty teachers coming from several Universities and research-centres spread over eight European countries (Austria, Finland, France, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, U.K.), all of them very famous experts in the area, including the founder of the theory of Social Representation, Serge Moscovici, will represent an exclusive teaching staff and an exceptional didactic resource. 
Both the researchers regularly enrolled into the EU Ph.D on S.R. & C. and the other admitted participants who share research interest in the area will benefit by the presence of the programme director of the EU Ph.D (Serge Moscovici, E.E.H.S.S. Paris) and of most of the tutors representing all the partner Universities, as listed below:

 

Austria:W. Wagner (University of Linz);

E. Kirchler (University of Vienna)

Finland:K. Helkama and A.M. Pirttila Backman (University of Helsinki)France:S. Moscovici, D. Jodelet, E. Lage and S. Lalhou (E.H.E.S.S., Paris);

P. Vergès (University of Marseille, Aix);

M.L. Rouquette (University "Paul Valery", Montpellier)

Italy:A.S. de Rosa (University "La Sapienza", Rome)Portugal:J. Jesuino (I.S.C.T.E., Lisbon)Spain:S. Ayestaran, A. Echebarria , D. Paez and J. Valencia (University of Basque Country);

F. Elejabarrieta (Univ. Aut. Barcelona, Spain)

Switzerland:W. Doise (University of Geneva)U.K.:R. Farr (London School of Economics, U.K.)

Furthermore a well-known social psychologist, not belonging to the Socrates EU Ph.D network, is also invited (A. Palmonari, Bologna, Italy), together with four experts outside the discipline with high expertise in various applied fields, like organisation, education, health, and economy. 
* In the definitive programme, the lecturers' list might slightly change, without altering the scientific and thematic articulation of the preliminary programme.

Structure of the Courses:

The structure of the courses will be envisaged in the following manner:

• Introductory plenary morning sessions focused on crucial theoretical topics of general interest and aimed at introducing an overview of the multi-faceted fields of applications for the research on S.R.;
• Parallel workshops over five days related to various fields of investigation , like: organisation and institutional context; education and professional socialisation; health and the particular cases of AIDS and handicaps; politics and intergroup relations; environment and economy. The workshops, co-ordinated by teachers with research experience in each specific field, will be attended by a limited number of participants on the basis the rank order of their choice. Each workshop will be followed by critical discussion within each working groups;
• Afternoon plenary sessions on the research projects presented by the EU PhD students, in order to achieve a critical exchange between all the participants and the tutors, with great attention to the theoretical knots of the topics treated during the morning sessions. Presentation of the current research activities by the other participants according to a schedule planned in advance on the basis of their availability. Both these sessions will be followed by critical discussion and comments provided by all the participants (tutor, teachers , experts and young researchers) within afternoon plenary session;
• A special training session dedicated to the didactic use of the internet site of the EU Ph.D on S.R. & C., by exploring in particular the section dedicated to the meta-analysis of the literature on S.R.;
• Evening sessions reserved to extra lectures provided in an interdisciplinary scenario (anthropology, mass communication, sociology) by the invited experts on the multi-faceted fields of applications;
• Dedicated meetings reserved to the European PhD researchers with their national and foreign tutors and with the representative members of the European PhD Executive Committee, including the programme director and the co-ordinator;
• Informal meetings to allow the mutual knowledge between participants as well as between participants and the training staff.

Level of the courses:

It will not be basic, but rather "specialised"; the contents will not deal with elements already noted in theory, but will give greater emphasis on meta-theoretical, methodological and applied aspects necessary for the formation of the "how" and "wherefore" of the research.

Target Participants:

The Fourth Summer School on Social Representations and Communication, similarly the second and the third one, will be principally set apart for those who regularly attend the European PhD since 1996-1997 or 1997-98 and to those who will be selected for 1998-1999, , both on condition that they will be regularly enrolled for the a.y. 1998-99. (See conditions for entrance application to the European PhD in the appropriate sheet). 
Besides the European PhD students, that, once regularly enrolled, will be allowed to take part free of charge to the Summer School with a financial support of the T.M.R. contract, two (or three, in case of availability) postgraduates (preferably enrolled in national PhD courses or at least involved in team research programmes), will be selected to attend the Summer School, as long as they are presented by their respective partners belonging to the European Universities of the ERASMUS network (IC 29415-IC-1-96-IT-ERASMUS-1). 
Graduates belonging to a University which is not a partner of the network, also out of Europe, will be considered in case of availability. 
The event will be also open to the participants in the previous Summer Schools, selected on the basis of the new list of applicants .

Number of Participants:

No more than 40.

Selection of the Applicants:

The selection of the applicants will be made by the EU Ph.D executive committee, comprised of the programme director, the co-ordinator and the two other representative partners of the Universities (Helsinki and I.S.C.T.E.) who have formally acknowledged the title of the EU PhD besides the co-ordinating University of Rome "La Sapienza". The local organisers of the events will be invited to attend the specific meeting of the EU Ph.D executive committee aimed at selecting the applicants.

Conditions for Application:

Whoever is interested in participating, is requested to send an application both by Internet and by mail in one signed copy, using the enclosed form or an empty application form available 
The application form should be returned by Internet and by mail in one signed copy by 15 March 1998 to :

 

prof. Annamaria Silvana de ROSA
Facoltà di Psicologia - Universit à degli studi di Roma "La Sapienza"
via dei Marsi, 78 - 00185 Roma ITALIA
fax: +39 - 6 - 4991.7652; E-mail: derosa@axrma.uniroma1.it

 

Deadline for the application: 15th March 1998

Financial supports:

• EU DG XXII : SOCRATES (contract IC 29415-IC-1-96-IT-ERASMUS-1)
• EU DGXII: T.M.R. (contract n.ERB406PL9600005), principally reserved to those who will be enrolled for the third or second year of the EU PhD and to those who will be accepted to the EU PhD for the a.y. 1998-99). 
  In case nobody else among the new candidates will be accepted as participants in the EU PhD in the a.y. 1998-99, some other applicants for the Summer School (in the above mentioned conditions to apply for T.M.R. funding) will be considered for certain financial support.
• EU PhD funds, for the not allowable expenses according to the above mentioned contracts (like social events, gadgets, etc.).

Registration fee:

• 700 ECU for the scientific fee for all the participants (including those living in San Sebastian). 
  The scientific fee for the students regularly enrolled into the EU PhD (a.y. 1998-99) will be funded by T.M.R., only for those who are eligible on the basis of the contract (see conditions to apply for T.M.R. support).
• NO accommodation fee is requested: Lunches, accommodation and social events during the ten days of Summer School will be supported by the financial supports provided by the organisers.

Method of payment:

Accepted Credit Cards: Visa, American Express, Eurocard-Mastercard. 
By sending the application, the candidates are requested to provide information about the account to which they authorise to charge the scientific fee (the equivalent in Italian Lire of 700 ECU for the participation into the fourth Summer School or the equivalent in Italian Lire of 1000 ECU for the enrolment in the 1998/99 a. y. EU PhD programme), in case they will be selected. 
No application will be considered without the requested information. 
Exceptionally, for those candidates who do not have any credit card, the alternative method of payment is:

 

swift of 700 ECU (for the participation into the fourth Summer School)

or

swift of 1000 ECU (for the enrolment in the a.y. 1998/99 of the EU Ph.D on S.R. & C.) to: 
"European PhD on Social Representations and Communication" 
BANCA POPOLARE dell'ETRURIA e del LAZIO 
Viale Manzoni, 26/B (Agenzia 14) - 00185 ROMA (Italia) 
by swift ARBAIT 33 AREZZO 5390 ABI; 03125 CAB

 

Deadline for registration: 15th of April 1998

Conditions to apply for T.M.R. support:

The T.M.R support . (contract n. ERB4064PL9600005) is limited to the EU PhD students who are:

1. citizens of the EU and associated countries (Norway, Liechtenstein , Iceland and Israel). Researchers who are not nationals of a Member States of the Community may be selected by the committee as participants in the Summer School, but they cannot apply for T.M.R. support;
2. researchers aged under 35 or under (researchers whose place of work is in a less-favoured region of the EU, women researchers and researchers who work in industry are specific target group for T.M.R.).

Researchers aged more than 35 may be selected by the committee as participants in the Summer School, but they cannot apply for T.M.R. support. 
The allowable expenses related to the participation in the Summer School of the young researchers aged 35 years or under and citizens of the EU shall comprise only certain costs of travel (the cheapest economy class air fare or second class train fare or bus from the researcher's place of work), accommodation (including food and lodging, but excluding telephone calls and other extras) and participation fee (fee no higher than fees charged to other participants). 
Speakers' fees, meeting for selecting the applicants and social events are not to be considered as allowable costs under T.M.R. For maintaining low the registration fees, the teachers will be not be paid for their scientific contribution. 
T.M.R. can provide up to 50% of the cost of travel and accommodation related to the participation of the invited speakers (category B) and financial support to some of the selected young researchers and post-graduate students (category A). With respect to Young Researchers, the T.M.R. contract states : 
"The T.M.R. activity is for benefit of young Researchers (YR). A fraction of the budget has to go towards the support of YR. Contractants do not have to cover 100% of the expenses of all or any of them. It may in fact be undesirable to pay 100% of young researchers' costs. It has been found useful that the YR do pay a non-returnable part of the registration fee before an event. This selects only serious candidates and ensures that most of them do in fact attend". 
The selected researchers may not benefit, for any given expense in connection with participation, from T.M.R. funding at the same time as from any other source. It is however allowable for different expenses to be funded from different sources (e.g. registration fees from one source and travel from T.M.R.). 
Applications must be addressed to the scientist responsible for the T.M.R. contract and for the organisation of the Summer School (Prof.. A.S. de Rosa). The Commission of the European Union is not to be contacted for support for individual participation in this or other Summer Schools.