TEHA upcoming events

21-23 April, 2026 at 10:00-15:00, A-206

TLU Centre of Excellence in Life Course, Wellbeing, and Open Society Studies (TEHA) is pleased to invite SOGOLAS’ researchers to a three-day masterclass led by Professor Jukka Törrönen. This intensive course offers a deep dive into key qualitative approaches, combining conceptual overviews with rich, practice-oriented examples. Throughout the sessions, participants will explore vignette methodology, narrative analysis, and discourse analysis, gaining analytical tools that can be directly applied to their own research projects. The masterclass is designed for researchers at various career stages who wish to strengthen their methodological repertoire and engage in thoughtful discussions around qualitative inquiry.

Prof. Jukka Törrönen is Professor of Sociology at Stockholm University, known for his extensive work with qualitative methodologies, particularly content, narrative, and discourse analysis. His research advances both the theoretical and methodological development of these approaches.

Please register for the masterclass by 8 April here.

Programme:

21 April:

10:00–12:00: Using vignettes in qualitative research

12:00–13:00: Lunch break

13:00–15:00: Various examples of vignette studies

22 April:

10:00–12:00: Thematic narrative analysis and structural narrative analysis; examples

12:00–13:00: Lunch break

13:00–15:00: Analysis of narrative identities and analysis of pending narratives; examples

23 April:

10:00–12:00: Discourse analysis and critical discourse analysis 1; examples

12:00–13:00: Lunch break

13:00–15:00: Critical discourse analysis 2; examples

Masterclass by Professor Patrick Thaddeus Jackson in early December on relational methods and analytical pragmatism will introduce the philosophical foundations of relational inquiry and provide participants with concrete analytical tools for developing relational, case-specific explanations of complex social phenomena. 

On 2 December, all interested participants are also welcome to attend Professor Jackson’s public lecture, “Balance in the Force: Star Wars as a Cultural Critique of U.S. Manifest Destiny.”

Further details will follow. 

11.-12.06.2026, Tallinn University, A-206.

Deadline for presentation proposals 10.05.2026.

The social sciences are in the business of explaining puzzling social phenomena. However, explanatory practices vary widely across disciplines and research traditions—from causal inference and formal modeling to interpretive, historically grounded, and case-based approaches. This diversity raises fundamental questions about the aims, limits, and standards of social scientific explanation. At the same time, philosophers of science have developed rich accounts of explanation that often remain only loosely connected to empirical practice. 

This two-day workshop aims to bring together practicing social scientists and philosophers of social science to create a space for mutual engagement on the nature and practice of explanation across the social sciences. 

We welcome contributions that engage with social scientific explanation from a variety of methodological and philosophical angles. Please see the full call here and submit your proposal by 10 May.

The programme will be announced and registration for listeners will be opened on 20 May.