Social ontologyWhat are social groups? What are corporations and institutions? What is money, language, and the law? Social ontology is the branch of philosophy that studies the nature of the social world and how it works. ISOS is the international organization of philosophers, social theorists, cognitive scientists, economists, and other scholars in the field. We welcome academics and students from across the disciplines to join us. More... |
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Become a member
Join the society and connect with other researchers in social ontology, disseminate your work, participate in conferences, and contribute to the Journal of Social Ontology.
ConferencesISOS supports one large international conference each year. The 2025 conference is being held in person, August 5-8 at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. Read more about the conferenceJournal of Social Ontology
The Journal of Social Ontology was founded by ISOS to feature work in social ontology and collective intentionality. The topics
that JSO covers range from small-scale everyday interactions to
encompassing societal institutions, from expert teams to hierarchical
organizations, and from unintended consequences to institutional design. Membership in ISOS supports open access to the journal.
In MemoriamISOS remembers our long-time colleague and friend, Raimo Tuomela (1940-2020). | WorkshopsOne of the key aims of ISOS is to foster innovative approaches and collaborations in social ontology, as well as to support research in social ontology regionally and globally. In service of this, we have started a program to help fund workshops in social ontology. In 2025, we are financially supporting 9 workshops on a variety of topics in social ontology -- all organized by ISOS members. These workshops were selected from an open call for applications. Essay Competition
In collaboration with the Journal of Social Ontology, ISOS runs a biennial essay competition for junior scholars. The winner receives an invitation as a keynote speaker at the next social ontology conference and a cash grant.
Information about the junior scholar essay prize is available under News. Winner 2025 "Let’s talk about the metaphysics of intersectionality—but let’s take it slow“ by Ying Huang - Ying Huang obtained her PhD from Brown University in May 2024, co-supervised by Elizabeth Miller and Joshua Schechter. She is currently an independent scholar. Email: yinghuang.phil@gmail.com. Runner-up 2025 "Normative Social Ontology“ by Dee Payton - Dee Payton received her PhD from Rutgers University in 2021, committee: Theodore Sider (Chair), Karen Bennett, Elisabeth Camp, Jonathan Schaffer, Katherine Ritchie (external). She is currently an assistant professor in the department of philosophy at University of Virginia. Email: dpayton@virginia.edu |