On the 21-23rd April 2022, the AJEI organised its 22nd International Workshop in a hybrid format between India and France. Master and PhD Students discussed categories and categorisation through empirical observations and case studies, elaborating on methodological and theoretical reflections.
Please find the report here :
AJEI 22nd International Workshop – Report 

Theme
As researchers in social sciences, we are constantly confronting categories. While categorisation is an inevitable process, the division and classification of the social world is not neutral. It entails choices and has implications. Some of these choices may be determined by institutions, others informally emerge within society, and still others are made by researchers for analytical purposes. In any cases, categorisation can leave a lasting imprint on social and political structures, as in the South Asian context.

This conference invites social scientists who are engaging with categories in their research to reflect on the manners in which they use them. In their research, they may trace the origin and evolution of categories. They may also use existing categories and develop a critical stand, or develop new ones as analytical tools. Therefore, different sets of questions arise from the encounter of researchers with categories or categorisation in their field:

➡ How do categories emerge? How are they institutionalised, mobilised, appropriated, and by whom? What are the implications or effects of categories in terms of resources, boundaries, representations or power relationships?

➡ When we researchers use categories as analytical or methodological tools: what are the benefits and/or limits of using categories in our analysis? What are the normative implications of using categories as researchers in social sciences? What theoretical frameworks inform the process of categorisation?

The Association des Jeunes Etudes Indiennes would like to thank again the Organising Committee for making this 22nd International Workshop possible.