The ESA RN21 2022 mid-term conference

“Quantitative methods and the COVID19-pandemic”

will be held at University of Salamanca, Spain from 5th to 7th October 2022

Conference website (https://rn21.usal.es)

Twitter: @RN21_Salamanca

Email: rn21@usal.es

Chair: Jochen Mayerl | Vice-Chair: Kathrin Komp.

Local Organizer: Modesto Escobar, University of Salamanca (rn21@usal.es).

Quantitative methods help to predict and explain social phenomena. They are used across the social sciences, and they contribute to studying a wide range of sociologically and socio-politically relevant topics, amongst others associated with climate change, mass migration, social inequalities, xenophobia, COVID-19 pandemic, misinformation and ‘fake news’. In line with the conference theme “Quantitative methods and the COVID-19 pandemic«, we encourage presentations to reflect methodological challenges, problems, technical as well as statistical advances, and the use of new methods of the big data era in predicting and explaining societal conditions, events, and processes in Europe. In addition, we welcome papers on various topics in the fields of quantitative methods.

The main aim of our mid-term conference is to learn and to exchange ideas on how quantitative methods can contribute to improving our understanding of social changes, particularly in the sphere of effects of this pandemic. The need for an empirical foundation of the analysis of social change relates to several methodological challenges when it comes to quantitative approaches to describe and explain societal change. Consequently, this mid-term conference aims to raise the methodological potentials and challenges of quantitative research of social change.

Mª Ángeles Durán de las Heras. Spanish sociologist known for her pioneering research on unpaid work, the social situation of women, their social and work environment, health economics and inequality in the use of time. National Prize in Political Science and Sociology, she was the first woman to achieve a chair in sociology in Spain in 1982. She will talk about the challenge of data sources in times of pandemic.

Rory Fitzgerald. Director of the European Social Survey (ESS) in 2013 having been a Senior Research Fellow at City, University of London since 2004, Director of ESS ERIC and oversees the ESS Core Scientific Team (CST) and the ESS National Coordinators Forum. In addition to these committees he works closely with the General Assembly as well as the Scientific and Methods advisory boards, and is an Associate Editor of the Survey Research Methods Journal.

Conference format

The conference will be off-line unless otherwise stipulated by the health authorities. However, for those unwilling or unable to travel to Salamanca, online sessions can be arranged. So, if you are presenting a paper or interested in the conference, and unable to come to Salamanca on the specific dates, you should contact the local organizers. Further information on this hybrid format will be announced in the due time if necessary.

Conference venue

The ESA RN21 2022 mid-term conference “Quantitative methods and the COVID19-pandemic” will be held at University of Salamanca, Spain from 5^th to 7^th October 2022. The meetings and conferences will be at the Hospedería Fonseca (Calle Fonseca 2, 37007-Salamanca, Spain). Some meetings will be also held at the Colegio Fonseca (next to the Hospedería).

Getting to Salamanca

Salamanca is in Western Spain, in the autonomous region of Castilla y León. It’s 214 km far from Madrid. If you are coming from outside Spain, the easiest way is to fly to Madrid (Madrid-Barajas Airport), and then take a bus or train, both of which have services regularly. The trip from Madrid to Salamanca takes approximately two hours. If you are coming from Portugal or France, you can also get here by bus or train.

How to get to Salamanca

By car:Salamanca is well connected to Madrid and the rest of Spain through the public road network, which includes numerous free highways. If travelling by car, the highways A-62 and A-66 take you straight to the city. If you are travelling from Madrid, you need to take the A-50. It takes around two hours to get to Salamanca. The only traffic restrictions in the city are in the historic area. In summer it’s not difficult to park outdoors, but both on Campus and in a great part of the city center temporary parking is subject to payment (“Blue Zone”). However, a few minutes from the Congress venue there are large free parking areas.

By bus: To get to Salamanca from Madrid, this is one of the best options. There are several buses a day in both directions, both directly from Madrid-Barajas Airport (Terminal 1 and 4) and Madrid South Station. There are also connections from Santiago de Compostela, Seville, Porto and Lisbon, among other cities. The bus station of Salamanca is less than a ten-minute walk away from the Congress venue. You can buy the tickets and check the timetables at: www.avanzabus.com. You can also contact by phone on +34 902 02 09 99.

By train: If you prefer to travel by train, RENFE (Spanish National Railways) has daily services from Madrid, Lisbon, Oporto, Paris, and other connections. There is a direct train from the train station located at the Terminal 4 in the Madrid Airport to get to Madrid Chamartín Railway Station, and it takes 15 minutes. Otherwise, you should take underground line 8 to Nuevos Ministerios underground station, and then transfer to line 10 which takes you to “Chamartín”. The duration of the trips varies between an hour and a half and three hours. Salamanca Train Station is within the city, but around 3 km away from the Congress venue. Train tickets and timetables are available on its webpage: http://www.renfe.es or call +34 902 24 02 02.

By plane: Apart from the connection through the airport Madrid-Barajas, Salamanca also has its own small airport, located in the nearby town of Matacán, 22 km away from the city center, which operates flights from airports such as Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca, or Tenerife, but mainly in summer. Current offer is very reduced due to the pandemic. Furthermore, you can travel to Valladolid by plane from some Spanish and European cities, and then travel by bus or train to Salamanca, in a short distance of 120 km (less than an hour and a half). For more information visit www.aena.es.

To move within the city:

The most recommended means of getting around Salamanca is by foot. There is also a wide network of adapted public buses at a very reasonable price with several lines that pass through where the Congress will be held. There are numerous taxi ranks at the stations and throughout the city, and the service of adapted vehicles can be requested in advance.

We wish you a pleasant and safe trip to Salamanca!