Conference: European Sociological Association, Research Network 16 – Sociology of Health & Medicine

Date: 11 to 12 June 2025

Location: the Universidade de Évora, Évora, Portugal

Conference: European Sociological Association, Research Network 16 – Sociology of Health & Medicine Mid-term Conference

Among the sessions:

Session 1: Epidemics and Pandemics in the Digital Age: ‘Contested knowledge’, Health and Vaccine Acceptance

Session convener: Eve Dubé

Abstract

Climate change, biodiversity loss, and ecosystem instability increase the risk of zoonotic pandemics. Currently, there is growing concern amongst public health agencies worldwide about the potential for an influenza A(H5N1) pandemic. New mRNA A(H5N1) influenza vaccines are under development, but achieving high vaccination acceptance to control outbreaks does not only rely on availability of safe and effective vaccines. Lack of vaccine acceptance is often attributed to online misinformation, but while substantial investments were made to combat online misinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic, very few strategies were shown effective and its volume continued to grow. This is in part due to limited evidence about how people obtain, assess, and use online information about vaccines and how this information influences their health decisions in real-life contexts. This session aims to explore the complex role of ‘contested knowledge’ in shaping health and vaccination decisions, in the context of (re)emerging epidemics and global pandemics. We will aim to move beyond “true/false” dichotomies to examine the complex interplay of information, trust, and agency in vaccine acceptance. We invite empirical and theoretical contributions that focus on the following themes:

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The narratives, fears, and motivations shaping individual and collective behaviors in response to vaccination campaigns during outbreaks and pandemics;

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How social media and online information are used by people to communicate, learn, and make decisions about vaccination;

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Methodological approaches to unpack online discourses (e.g., memes analysis, online ethnographies);

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The influence of mis- and disinformation on health more generally.

Keywords: vaccine hesitancy, misinformation, pandemics, online ethnographies.

We encourage colleagues to submit an abstract for the next ESA 16 Mid-term conference. Abstracts should be submitted in English and consist of:

a) Title
b) Keywords (maximum four)
b) Abstract (max. 300 words)
c) Author (s) name, affiliation, and email address
d) Session number and name (please see the document attached with the full list of sessions)

Abstract submission deadline: 30th January 2025

The abstracts should be sent to rn16midtermconf@gmail.com and conference organizers Ana Patrícia Hilário (patriciahilario@gmail.com) and Catarina Delaunay (catarinadelaunay@fcsh.unl.pt).

We look forward to receiving your abstracts and having your participation in the ESA RN16 Mid-term conference. Please feel free to share this call with other colleagues.