Section By-Laws

Drafted 1987; Revised 1990, 1992, 1999, 2009, 2012, 2020, 2021

The purpose of the Section on the Sociology of Emotions is to promote the general development of this field through the organized interchange of ideas, research results, and materials for teaching. To these ends the Section will sponsor meetings, conferences, newsletters, and other means of communication deemed appropriate by the Council of the Section. The term emotion shall be interpreted in its broadest sense from episodic bodily expressions and effective postures to enduring sentiments, as they relate to social behavior and social organizations.

Officers and Council of the Section

The officers of the Section shall be a Chair, a past Chair, a Chair-Elect, and a Secretary-Treasurer. The Council shall consist of five to six members: four elected Council members and one or two newsletter editors appointed by Council. Three of the elected Council members shall be elected from the section's regular membership, and one shall be elected from among the section's student members. All officers and Council members shall have voting rights except the newsletter editor(s). The section Chair shall serve one year. The past Chair shall serve one year after serving as Chair. The Chair-Elect shall serve for one year prior to assuming the position of Chair. The Secretary-Treasurer and the three elected regular members of the Council shall serve for three years. The elected student Council member shall serve for one year. Officers shall not succeed themselves in the same office. If an elected office is vacated before the term is completed, it shall be filled through appointment by the Chair for the unexpired term, subject to confirmation by the Council at its next meeting. Officers must be voting members of the American Sociological Association and members of the Section on the Sociology of Emotions.

Powers of the Officers and Council

The officers and Council (herein referred to as “the Council”) is vested in principle with the power to carry out all necessary operations for the Section, acting as the representative of the membership of the Section. Any action of the Section, including proposed changes of the By-Laws, may be brought to vote of the Section by the Council, or by a petition of 10 percent of the members of the Section, or by 25 members of the Section, whichever is less. The functions of the Council include cooperating with the Program Committee of the American Sociological Association in planning the presentation of its field of interest in the Annual Meeting of the Association. Questions of major program and policy concerns shall be brought before the membership.

Elections and Voting

The elections of the Section shall be carried out in cooperation with the American Sociological Association and coordinated with its schedule. A simple majority of the members voting on candidates for Chair, Chair-Elect, or Secretary-Treasurer shall determine the outcome. In the election of Council members (normally two candidates for each of the three positions for Council Members-at-Large) the candidates having the largest number of votes shall be the elected Council members. Newly elected officers shall assume office on the day following the annual business meeting of the Section at the Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association. Newly elected officers may attend meetings of the Council as non-voting participants prior to assuming office.

Committees

Nominating Committee. The purpose of this committee shall be to nominate and coordinate the election of Section officers for the following year. At least two candidates will be presented for each office by the Committee on Nominations. Members of the committee shall not nominate themselves. The committee will be appointed by the Council for a one-year term, renewable for a second year and will consist of at least five members. One member of the committee will be designated by the Council as Chair of that committee.

Publications and Social Media Committee. The purpose of this committee is to prepare a Section newsletter to be distributed to all Section members twice a year, send out Section news on the Section’s social media accounts, and keep the Section website up-to-date. The Committee, comprised of the newsletter editor(s) and the website manager, shall be appointed by Council.

Program Committee. There shall be a 3-member Program Committee for the purpose of organizing the Section Day program for the following year's meeting of the American Sociological Association. Membership shall be for one year (with the term of at least one member expiring each year), renewable for an additional year. The Council of the Section shall appoint the membership. Council shall appoint the Chair of the Program Committee.

Award Committees

Lifetime Achievement Award Committee: The purpose of the Committee is to solicit nominations for and select recipients of the Section’s Lifetime Achievement Award. Nominations for the award will be solicited every two years but the committee has the discretion not to name a recipient in any given year. Any nominations in years in which the award is not given shall be automatically considered for the following year. Recipients must be members of the Section and have a record of several years of scholarly work (books and/or articles) of exceptional merit that has developed and extended the sociology of emotions empirically, theoretically, or methodologically. The award shall not include a monetary prize. The Committee shall consist of a Chair and two additional members appointed by Council.

Outstanding Recent Contribution Award Committee: The purpose of the Committee is to solicit nominations for and select the recipient of the Section’s Annual Outstanding Recent Contribution Award. The award will be given in alternate years to the author of the most outstanding book and most outstanding article published in the preceding three years that advances the sociology of emotions empirically, theoretically, or methodologically. The recipient must be a member of the Section. The award shall be given for the outstanding recent book in the first year after adoption of this amendment and for the outstanding recent article the following year. The award shall not include a monetary prize. The Committee shall consist of a Chair and two additional members appointed by Council.

Graduate Student Paper Award Committee: The purpose of the Committee is to solicit nominations for and select the recipient of the Section’s annual Graduate Student Paper Award. The award shall be given to the author of the most outstanding, article length graduate student paper that contributes to the sociology of emotions empirically, theoretically, or methodologically. Authors of eligible papers must be graduate students at the time of the paper's submission. Multiple authored papers are eligible for the award if all authors are graduate students. Papers submitted for presentation or publication and those already presented or published are eligible as are unpublished and yet to be presented papers. The award may include a monetary prize as determined by Council. The Committee shall consist of a Chair and two additional members appointed by Council. Other committees shall be appointed by the Chair of the Section with the approval of the Council on an ad hoc basis.

Membership

The membership of the Section shall be drawn from members of the American Sociological Association, without regard to the classification of their memberships, who have expressed an interest in the study of emotion. Members who do not pay their Section dues shall be suspended and dropped from the rolls.

Dues

Dues will be set by the Council to cover the operation of the Section in accord with the requirements of the American Sociological Association. In addition, members of the Section shall be assessed as necessary (within the limits established by the American Sociological Association) to carry out any program undertaken by the Section.