How does sociology help to explain modern life? In A Sociology of Awkwardness: On Social Interactions Going Wrong (Routledge, 2025)Pauwke Berkers, a full professor Sociology of Popular Music at the Erasmus University Rotterdam, and Yosha Wijngaarden, an assistant professor of Media and Creative Industries at the Erasmus University Rotterdam, examine how people interact in settings as diverse as work, everyday life, self-help and even contemporary dating. Alongside this rich empirical research, the book outlines a uniquely sociological approach to awkwardness, displacing the idea that it is a personal characteristic and showing how both the idea of awkwardness and people’s experiences around it are closely associated with social contexts and constructions. The book will be of interest to anyone who has ever felt awkward! It is available open access here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/sociology

Ask this episode

“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.

Transcript

Related