Call for papers: Social Classes in Contemporary Poland

The editorial team of Przegląd Socjologiczny invites authors to submit articles for the thematic issue:

Social Classes in Contemporary Poland

Guest editors of the thematic issue:

Justyna Kajta (Institute of Social Sciences, SWPS University)
Kamil Łuczaj (University of Łódź)
Katarzyna M. Wyrzykowska (Institute of Philosophy and Sociology, Polish Academy of Sciences)

In recent years, there has been a noticeable revival of interest in social class analysis within Polish sociology. This development is reflected in the growing number of empirical and theoretical studies that place class at the center of inquiry, as well as in the institutional consolidation of this research area, including the establishment of the Section for Class Analysis within the Polish Sociological Association. The thematic group (G44) devoted to class analysis at the most recent Sociological Congress further demonstrated the breadth and vitality of current scholarship in this field.

The proposed special issue, Social Classes in Contemporary Poland, seeks to document and advance this renewed engagement with class analysis. The topic aligns closely with the longstanding profile of Przegląd Socjologiczny, a journal dedicated to tracking developments in social research in Poland and internationally. The issue also aims to provide a platform for scholars working in subdisciplines such as biographical research, gender studies, cultural sociology, and the sociology of sport, where class remains an important – though sometimes implicit - analytical dimension.

Compared to countries such as the United Kingdom and France, class discourse and class-based self-identifications are less firmly embedded in Polish public narratives about social divisions. This is shaped by Poland’s distinct historical experiences, as well as by the post-transformation discourse that has tended to normalize social inequalities and promote meritocratic explanations of stratification. When class appears in public debate, it most often concerns the middle class. At the same time, increasing social inequalities and the gradual exhaustion of modernization narratives have contributed to a renewed scholarly focus on class. The “popular turn” and the cultural turn in class analysis – particularly those inspired by Pierre Bourdieu - have further stimulated this development.

We invite submissions that address social classes in contemporary Poland from diverse theoretical and methodological perspectives. We welcome contributions focusing on:

• class experiences, including upward mobility and the reproduction of class positions;
• social perceptions of class and the construction of class boundaries;
• measurement of class differentiation and social inequalities;
• class determinants of educational and occupational trajectories;
• opportunities and barriers to social mobility;
• intersectional approaches to class analysis;
• social mobility in the context of systemic transformation and post-transformation processes;
• mechanisms of class reproduction and strategies of resistance;
• media representations and discourses on social classes;
• class cultures in the context of migration;
• stratification of cultural practices and cultural hierarchies;
• relationships between class, political choices, and civic agency.

Guidelines for Authors: https://journals.ltn.lodz.pl/Przeglad-Socjologiczny/information/authors

Please submit your manuscripts until 30th September 2026 via our journal’s website:

https://journals.ltn.lodz.pl/Przeglad-Socjologiczny/user/register

If you have any further inquiries, please contact the editorial office: przegladsocjologiczny@gmail.com or Katarzyna Wyrzykowska: katarzyna.wyrzykowska@ifispan.edu.pl