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Power and politics: supervised theses

PhD theses

2015-2023 ::::

Terezie Lokšová: Participation as an instrument of change: historical trajectories and contemporary arrangements of professional roles

PhD programme in sociology, Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk University in Brno

It appears that the organized involvement of residents in the revitalization of public spaces and other urban projects is already a standard part of the idea of good governance and development of Czech cities. This dissertation aims to contribute to the understanding of the current forms of this top-down participation in architecture and planning by exploring two underexplored, interconnected issues. First, through a policy mobility approach, the research retrospectively traces how invited participation has been established in Czech cities. Especially the early means of dissemination were constructed as instruments of democratization in post-socialist cities. The influence of this conception persists; therefore, the dissertation engages with the debates in Central and Eastern Europe's urban studies and responds to their implicit hierarchies, comparisons, and absences. Second, this work explores the contemporary forms of organized participation by focusing on the arrangements of participation by architects. This role has tended to be neglected despite its impact. The research also traces how the newly emerging consultancy role of participation experts, the historical orientation towards democratization, the monopoly of architects on contributory expertise, and the public deficiency model contribute to the preservation of boundaries, roles, and competencies within the participatory process.

2009-2011 ::::

Martina Hynková: Gendered (re)construction of the Czech political dissent during so called normalisation in 1970s and 80s (unfinished)

PhD programme in sociology, Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk University in Brno

2008 ::::

Kristýna Ciprová: Activism of gays and lesbians in the Czech context (unfinished)

PhD programme in sociology, Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk University in Brno

1998-2006 ::::

Marie Černá (Šedová): So distant, so close: Power practices of real socialism

PhD programme in sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences at the Charles University in Prague

2002-2004 ::::

Tereza Vajdová: Accountability under pressure: The discourse of democratic accountability during accession of the Czech Republic to the European Union

PhD programme in sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences at the Charles University in Prague

2002-2004 ::::

David Kocman: The power of helping: An ethnographical study of mental health care (unfinished)

PhD programme in sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences at the Charles University in Prague

MA theses

2013- ::::

Zuzana Lenhartová: (On the controversy over expertise on birthgiving)

MA programme in sociology, Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk University in Brno

2008-2009 ::::

Pavla Špondrová: Seggregation of Roma children in Czech elementary schools

MA programme in sociology, Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk University in Brno

This thesis deals with the issue of the separation of (ethnic) minorities and the dominant majority in the Czech Republic in a particular area – in education. Some theories describing relations between majority and minorities, above all to the situation in the Czech territory applicable ones, are summarized in the first part of the work. The author chose to use a qualitative research –empirical enquiry to focus in the main part of the thesis on searching for reasons of persisting segregation of Roma children within elementary education, whether in special schools, which were renamed by the new Education Act to practical primary schools, in special classes for mentally disabled within standard primary schools or in Roma-only ordinary primary schools. The aim of the thesis was to look for an answer on the question: Why are not the key players (majority parents, Roma parents, Roma and majority children, teachers and school principals, school psychologists and a civil servants – politicians) interested in a change in the status quo? The author, after the qualitative analysis of deep, semi-structured interviews with the key players and study of the relevant documents and literature, assumes: None of the main players in the field understand the potential change as suitable. Although one would expect at least some of them to be interested in the change. Motivation of key players are blended and complementary to each other, with a great “support” of the system components is relatively simple to recognize in their behavior rationality and legitimacy.

1999-2002 ::::

Petr Kohútek: The potential of participatory procedures in civil societies: The case of EIA

MA programme in sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences at the Charles University in Prague

This work poses the question of the real possibilities of the citizens to participate in the decision-making. On the example of several ecological cases, the functioning of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) procedure is presented and discussed the possibilities of accessing it. EIA procedure is not only a tool for evaluating of finished proposals, but in the ideal case a specific planning tool, for identifying potential risks and problematic spots of the planned projects. The procedure should be therefore applied in the very early stage of the project formulation. EIA procedure is discussed as a potential pilot technology of civil society, which could become an exemplar for analogous procedures, facilitating the participative decision making in many other spheres of public life.

Full text (in Czech) in PDF

1999-2001 ::::

Barbora Justianová: "Please, sit down, Mr. Micka": An analysis of institutional interactions at the labour office

MA programme in sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences at the Charles University in Prague

The first part of the thesis brings an overview of theoretical sociological and economic approaches to the bureaucracy phenomenon (Weber, Etzioni, Crozier, and Niskanen). Since Weber's ideal concept we can classify them as functionalistic. But less attention is paid to the area of everyday interactions of the lowest clerks and clients. My aim is to understand imbalance in the relation of a client and a clerk during communication at an office. I studied the institutional interactions at the employment exchange office of one Prague's district. I employed the conversation analysis, developed by H. Sacks and others for studding hidden meanings of human utterance and participatory observation method to reveal asymmetries in the roles of actors. First I introduce the office, its actors and original goals, which are broadly defined and describe the context of interactions e.g. actors (job procuresses and unemployed clients) and room conditions influencing context of interaction. I also reflect my position as insider in the organisation. The analysis shows existence of different types of asymmetries between a client and a job procuress. First is leading in shaping of dialogue, giving stimulus to new topics. The next asymmetry comes from the difference between amount and quality of knowledge and information. I conclude that the original goal of employment exchange to help people to succeed on a labour market is overridden by very routine keeping of evidence.

Full text (in Czech)

1997-1999 ::::

Olga Starostová: In their thirties: normalization from the childhood perspective

MA programme in sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences at the Charles University in Prague

1996-1998 ::::

Tereza Vajdová: ZOO: mirroring the Michel Foucault's concept of episteme

MA programme in sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences at the Charles University in Prague

BA theses

1998-1999 ::::

Petr Kohútek: Power as structuration of space

BA programme in sociology and social policy, Faculty of Social Sciences at the Charles University in Prague

1997-1999 ::::

Tomáš Bitrich: Authority and opinion leaders in Litomerice - the trajectory of a view

BA programme in sociology and social policy, Faculty of Social Sciences at the Charles University in Prague

1996-1998 ::::

Lukáš Havlín: Diary as a space for survival: Reflections on Egon Redlich's diary from Terezin

BA programme in sociology and social policy, Faculty of Social Sciences at the Charles University in Prague

1995-1996 ::::

Robert Basch: Constructing provisional arrangements - strategies of social survival in the Terzin ghetto

BA programme in sociology and social policy, Faculty of Social Sciences at the Charles University in Prague

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Closest events/performances

10. 9. 2025 -

Jan Maršálek & Zdeněk Konopásek: Suspended or Sacrificed? Has the SSK’s Critical Ambition Undermined its Research Programme?

Presentation at the STS-CH Conference “Holding Things Together? Change, Continuity, Critique?” on 10–12th September, 2025

10. 9. 2025 -

Zdeněk Konopásek & Jan Maršálek: Collins and Latour: Untangling the disappearance of SSK

Presentation at the STS-CH Conference “Holding Things Together? Change, Continuity, Critique?” on 10–12th September, 2025

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Latest publications/recordings

KONOPÁSEK, Z. (2024 - in press): Sbohem příteli, naše cesty se rozešly: O interpretativní analýze, počítačích a programu ATLAS.ti [Farewell, my friend, our paths have parted: On interpretive analysis, computers, and the ATLAS.ti software]. Biograf, (78), Available at http://www.biograf.org/

Discussion paper

KONOPÁSEK, Z. (2024): Ať spolu vědci dál nesouhlasí [Let us not ask the scientists to speak in a single voice]. In: Š. Kučera, ed: Jen další konec světa: 33 rozhovorů o antropocénu, "věku člověka", vedl Štěpán Kučera [Just another end of the world: 33 inteviews about anthropocene, lead by Štěpán Kučera]. Brno: Druhé město. Str. 116-122

book chapter

KONOPÁSEK, Z. & ŘÍHA, C. (2024): Letáčky [Leaflets]. In: E. Fulínová & A. Kvíčalová, ed: Antropocennosti: Malý průvodce světem antropocénu [Matters of Anthropocene: A small guide to the world of Anthropocene]. Praha: Academia. Pp. 73-83

book chapter

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