CFP: Theory and Practice after the Practice Turn – Where Social Theory and Empirical Philosophy meet

Sociology and philosophy have always shared a close relationship. Critical Theory famously tied the two disciplines together to unravel societal phenomena, and feminist philosophers regularly borrow
sociological concepts to understand domination and power asymmetries. Similarly, sociologists often draw on philosophical concepts to sharpen their analyses. In recent years, this dialogue has gained new momentum through the so-called "practice turn" in epistemology and philosophy of science. Contemporary philosophy of science and applied epistemology increasingly incorporate empirical methods originally developed within the social sciences such as interviews and ethnographic studies. But while empirical approaches from sociology are frequently adopted, social-theoretical concepts remain  rarely integrated within epistemology and philosophy of science.

It is the goal of this workshop to explore the potential of social theory for empirical approaches in philosophy of science and epistemology. What are instances of fruitful applications of social theory to philosophy of science and epistemological scholarship? How does social theory transform when it is resituated in a different disciplinary setting? What are caveats and best practices when using social theory as a philosopher of science/epistemologist?

We are looking for workshop contributions that are focused on but not limited to:
- Examples of using social theory along with empirical methods in philosophy of science and epistemology
- Reflections on methodological and conceptual challenges when transferring social-theoretical concepts into philosophical work.

Proposals should outline the topic of the presentation and how it connects to the workshop's themes and goals.

Workshop contributions will also be considered for publication in a 
special issue (target journal: Synthese) on social theory in empirical 
philosophy of science & epistemology.

Send submissions to: [email protected]; 
[email protected]

Timeline:
Submission Deadline: 14 February 2026
Notification of Acceptance: 1 March 2026
Workshop: 17 April 2026
Workshop for SI contributors: 1 October 2026
Deadline for SI submissions: 1 December 2026