Goals
In order to do justice to the topic of the “Transformation of Contemporary Societies”, the main research area pursues four interconnected goals. The first is the initiation and support of larger research programs which are examining the issue of Building Order in a Borderless World in different areas of societal life and from the perspective of different social sciences. With respect to this, the main research area sees one of its essential tasks as being the provision of support for the development and the application phase of appropriate research projects, particularly those which are directed towards sponsors of fundamental academic research, but also those directed towards application-oriented sponsors which set up competitive evaluation procedures. Secondly, the main research area draws together academics who research the culture, society and politics of different regions of the world and who frequently work using international comparisons. The involvement of these academics at the same time contributes towards increasing the international visibility of the University of Duisburg-Essen. Thirdly, the main research area supports junior academics with their publication and research projects. They have the opportunity to develop their own research profile within the issue of the “Transformation of Contemporary Societies”. Finally, the main research area forms a forum for international exchange within and between the social sciences and neighbouring disciplines, such as the educational sciences, the humanities and economics at the UDE.
