Visit by Trawos staff to the Spring School on Sociological Discourse Analysis in Augsburg

The Elite Monitor project employs a discourse-analytical research approach. The aim is to examine the effects of the media debate on the underrepresentation of East Germans in elite positions and to identify the patterns of interpretation that emerge at the discursive level. Participation in the Spring School therefore provided an excellent opportunity to further deepen the theoretical and methodological foundations of this approach.
In addition to an introduction to the WDA, key concepts of interpretive analysis were discussed. Beyond the theoretical transfer of knowledge, the newly acquired insights were directly applied in practice through the analysis of the participants’ empirical data.
A particular focus was placed on the sociological understanding of discourse according to Reiner Keller, who played a key role in shaping the Spring School. Discourses are understood not merely as linguistic phenomena, but as social practices of meaning and knowledge production. They encompass statements and texts as well as actions, routines, and institutional structures through which social reality is produced and stabilized. Discourses thus shape what can be said in a society, how topics are negotiated, and what knowledge is understood as valid.
In addition, the concept of the dispositif was introduced, which broadens the perspective beyond linguistic dimensions. It incorporates material, institutional, and practical aspects, thereby enabling a more comprehensive analysis of the interactions between knowledge, power, and social practices.
As part of an in-depth exploration of subjectivation research, there was also an opportunity to examine the interactions between discourse and the subject more closely and to explore both how discourse produces subjects and how subjects influence and help shape discourse. Here, potential points of connection for the project can be identified, for example with regard to new forms of subjectivation through new social media.
Overall, the Spring School offered a concise yet in-depth insight into the practical applications and analytical potential of WDA. It created a space for professional exchange and in-depth discussions about the significance of these approaches for the analysis of social constructions of reality.