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What are the Institute's Activities?
With a view to the optimum utilisation of its human and financial resources, the Institute’s activities are focused on the following areas:
Gastprofessur
In 2004, the Sir Peter Ustinov Institute in collaboration with the University of Vienna established the "Sir Peter Ustinov Professorship of the City of Vienna", a guest professor being appointed every year.
The idea is to secure top calibre academics from all parts of the world for lectures designed to add to the knowledge about how prejudices function and to spread such knowledge more widely. The lectures are open to the public and linked with a seminar for students. The guest professorship has been established at the Institute for Contemporary History of the University of Vienna to underline the link to current issues. The Ustinov Institute’s Academic Advisory Council deliberates as to the selection of the professor.
Previous guest professors:
- DDr. Horst-Eberhard Richter (Universität Gießen)
- Dr. Aleida Assmann (Universität Konstanz)
- Dr. Peter Loewenberg (UCLA)
- Dr. Wolfgang Benz (Zentrum für Antisemitismusforschung, TU Berlin)
- Dr. Verena Kast (Universität Zürich)
- Dr. András Kovács (Central European University, Budapest)
Research conferences
Every year, the Institute organises an international research conference, which is open to the public. The idea is to critically evaluate current developments of political or socio-political importance in which prejudices and hostile perceptions act as driving forces. The results are published in books and/or on the Institute's homepage.
Previous research conferences:
- "Europa - USA: Values and Prejudices"
Diplomatische Akademie Wien, 29 May 2005 - Der Westen und die Islamische Welt: Fakten und Vorurteile (The West and the Islamic world: facts and prejudices)
Kreisky Forum Wien, 4 and 5 May 2006 - Vorurteile in der Kindheit: Wie entstehen sie? Wie kann man gegensteuern? (Prejudices in childhood: What is their origin? How can they be counteracted?)
Jugendstiltheater des Otto Wagner Spitals Wien, 8 March 2007 - Feindbilder in Europa - was kann dagegen getan werden? (Threat perceptions in Europe - how to counteract them?)
Österreichisches Parlament, Palais Epstein, 2 and 3 April 2008 - Zuwanderer als Feindbild (Immigrants as perceived threats)
Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, 18 and 19 May 2009
All events have been documented in publications of Verlag Braumüller, Vienna.
Handbook of Prejudice
The institute promoted the publication of a "Handbook of Prejudice" - a specialised book of academic standing, which serves as a source of information and a decision-making aid for academics, teachers, social workers, personnel managers and other people interested in the subject. It contains texts by internationally renowned authors who describe and analyse the principal groups of prejudices.
The Handbook was put together by the Institute of Conflict Research Vienna, more particularly by Professor Anton Pelinka, Dr. Karin Stögner and Mag. Karin Bischof. It was funded by voestalpine AG acting as sponsor. (For more information see separate section)
Cambria Press, NY, will publish the English version in 2009; a German version will follow in 2010.
Support for teachers
The Institute produced materials for teachers and school administrations under the title Kompetenz im Umgang mit Vorurteilen (How to deal with prejudices), with a view to assisting them in designing teaching methods that take account of prejudices. The need for such guidance documents had become apparent at the research conference Vorurteile in der Kindheit (Prejudices in Childhood).
The edition for primary schools appeared in the autumn of 2009. An edition for the secondary level will follow in 2010. (For more information see separate section)
Specialist literature
The Institute assists in or fosters the publication of specialist literature. A work on Vorurteile und Genozide (Prejudices and Genocides), edited by Prof. Wolfgang Benz, is under preparation. It will point out -as it were as a warning - the pronounced share prejudices and hostile perceptions had in genocides in the past century. The Institute is currently looking for ways of expanding its involvement in the publication of specialist literature.
Vorurteile und Genozide will appear in 2010. (For more information see separate section)
Homepage
Since 2004, the Institute has maintained its own homepage with information on its activities as well as an information database on specialist literature and research work in the field of prejudice.
The Institute is currently looking for ways of upgrading this function.