Magnus Wennerhag

Magnus Wennerhag

Professor

My research and teaching mainly concerns social movements, political participation, social stratification, climate protests, political violence, and sociological theory.

+46 8 608 48 45 +4686084845

Social Sciences

ME225

Short background

Magnus Wennerhag defended his Ph.D.-thesis at Lund University in 2008. Since 2008, he is connected to Södertörn University, and is since 2019 Professor in sociology at Södertörn University.

Wennerhag’s primary research interests are social movements, political protests, political sociology, political participation, social stratification, political violence and general social theory.

Wennerhag is also editor of Sociologisk Forskning External link, opens in new window., the peer-reviewed journal of the Swedish Sociological Association, and one of the editors of the Swedish social theory journal Fronesis External link..


Current research

Wennerhag work in the research project ”The necessary and the possible: How social movements articulate, convey and negotiate visions of a fossil-free and just future External link, opens in new window.” (funded by the research council Formas, 2019–2022), about contemporary climate protests.


Earlier research projects

Wennerhag was project leader for the research project ”Anarchists in Eastern and Western Europe - a Comparative Study External link, opens in new window.” (funded by The Foundation for Baltic and East European Studies, 2012–2014). This project compared anarchist and autonomist movements in five countries in the Baltic region – Denmark, Germany, Poland, Russia, and Sweden – focusing on their role in contemporary politics. Wennerhag was also project leader for the research project ”Radicalization and Deradicalization” (funded by the The Swedish Civil Contingency Agency, 2016–2018), that investigated local crime prevention programmes against radical left movement activism in Sweden; and for the project ”Anti-racist contentions in the Baltic Sea region – a study of anti-racist activists interplay with politicians and civil servants External link, opens in new window.” (funded by The Foundation for Baltic and East European Studies, 2017–2019).

Wennerhag worked in the research project "Celebration and Protest: A Comparative Study of Pride Parades in Six European Countries External link, opens in new window." (funded by Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, 2014–2017); was part of the Swedish team of the international research project "Caught in the act of protest: Contextualizing contestation External link, opens in new window." (funded by FAS and European Science Foundation, 2009–2012), a comparative study of demonstration participation in seven European countries; and worked in the research projects "Beyond the welfare state: Europeanization of Swedish civil society organizations External link, opens in new window." (funded by Vetenskapsrådet, 2012–2014) and ”Collaboration and conflict in prevention of violent extremism in Sweden External link, opens in new window.” (funded by the research council Forte, 2017–2019).

Wennerhag’s Ph.D. thesis focused the global justice movement and the transformations of modernity. For the analysis, use was made of both a survey of activists and semi-structured interviews. For more inforrmation about the survey of activists, read here External link, opens in new window..

Books:

Peterson, A., Wahlström, M. & Wennerhag, M. (2018). Pride Parades and LGBT Movements: Political Participation in an International Comparative Perspective External link, opens in new window.. Open Access. New York: Routledge.

Wennerhag, M., Fröhlich, C. & Piotrowski, G. (eds.) (2017). Radical Left Movements in Europe External link, opens in new window.. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.

Wennerhag, M. (2008), Global rörelse: Den globala rättviserörelsen och modernitetens omvandlingar. Stockholm: Bokförlaget Atlas. (Dissertation) For a Summary in English, see here External link, opens in new window..

Wennerhag M., Hilma Holm, Johan Lindgren, Henrik Nordvall and Adrienne Sörbom (2006). Aktivister. Stockholm: Bokförlaget Atlas.


Selected journal articles and chapters in edited volumes, written in English:

Wennerhag, M. & A. Hylmö (2022). ”Social class and environmental movements External link, opens in new window.”. S. 355–373 i Maria Grasso & Marco Giugni (red.). The Routledge Handbook of Environmental Movements. London: Routledge.

Jämte, J., Lundstedt, M. & Wennerhag, M. (2020). ”From Radical Counterculture to Pragmatic Radicalism? The Collective Identity of Contemporary Radical Left-libertarian Activism in Sweden External link, opens in new window.”. Journal for the Study of Radicalism 14(1): 1–36.

Emilsson, K., Johansson, H. & Wennerhag, M. (2020). ”Frame Disputes or Frame Consensus? ’Environment’ or ’Welfare’ First Amongst Climate Strike Protesters External link, opens in new window.”. Sustainability 12(3): 882. Open Access.

Johansson, H., Scaramuzzino, R. & Wennerhag, M. (2019). ”Social Movements and Interest Groups Compared. How Organisational Type Matters for Explaining Swedish Organisations' Advocacy Strategies. External link, opens in new window.Partecipazione e conflitto 12(2): 353–381. Open Access.

Scaramuzzino, R. & Wennerhag, M. (2018). ”Europeanization of Swedish civil society: Motives, activities, and perceived consequences External link, opens in new window.” och ”Factors Explaining Swedish Civil Society Organizations’ Europeanization External link, opens in new window.”. I Anna Meeuwisse & Roberto Scaramuzzino (red.). Europeanization in Sweden: Opportunities and Challenges for Civil Society Organizations External link.. New York: Berghahn Books. Open Access.

Elgenius G. & Wennerhag M. (2018). ”The changing political landscape in Sweden: Political cleavages, actors and processes External link, opens in new window.”. Sociologisk Forskning 55(2–3): 139–154. Open Access.

Johansson, H., Scaramuzzino, R. & Wennerhag, M. (2018). "Multi-level strategies for political influence. How and why do domestic civil society organisations seek political influence at national and EU levels?" External link, opens in new window.. Journal of Contemporary European Research 14(2):68–86. Open Access.

Peterson, A., Wahlström, M. & Wennerhag M. (2018). ”’Conscience adherents’ revisited: Heterosexual Pride Parade participants” External link, opens in new window.. Mobilization: An International Quarterly 23(1): 83-100. Open Access.

Wennerhag, M. (2017). "Patterns of Protest Participation are Changing External link, opens in new window.". Sociologisk forskning 54(4): 347-351. Open Access.

Wennerhag, M. (2017). “Radical Left Movements in Europe: An Introduction”, in Magnus Wennerhag, Christian Fröhlich & Grzegorz Piotrowski (eds.). Radical Left Movements in Europe External link, opens in new window.. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.

Peterson, A., Wahlström, M. & Wennerhag, M. (2017). ”‘Normalized’ Pride? Pride Parade Participants in Six European Countries”. Sexualities. Open Access.

Wennerhag, M. (2016). ”Who takes part in May Day marches?”, in Abby Peterson & Herbert Reiter (eds.), The Ritual of May Day in Western Europe – Past, Present and Future External link, opens in new window.. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.

Piotrowski, G. & Wennerhag, M. (2015). ”Always against the state?: An analysis of Polish and Swedish radical left-libertarian activists’ interaction with institutionalized politics External link, opens in new window.”. Partecipazione e conflitto8(3). Open Access.

Hylmö, A. & Wennerhag, M. (2015). ”Does class matter in anti-austerity protests? Social class, attitudes towards inequality, and political trust in European demonstrations in a time of economic crisis”. Marco Giugni & Maria T. Grasso (eds.). Austerity and Protest: Popular Contention in Times of Economic Crisis External link, opens in new window.. Farnham: Ashgate.

Peterson, A., Wahlström, M. & Wennerhag, M. (2015). ”European Anti-Austerity Protests – Beyond ‘old’ and ‘new’ social movements?”. Acta Sociologica 58(4).

Scaramuzzino, R. & Wennerhag, M. (2015). ”Civil society organizations going European? The Europeanization of Swedish CSOs”. SAGE Open. Open Access.

Wahlström M. & Wennerhag M. (2014). "Alone in the crowd: Lone protesters in Western European demonstrations". International Sociology 29(6).

Wahlström M., Wennerhag M. & Rootes C. (2013). "Framing the climate issue: Patterns of participation and prognostic frames among climate summit protestors External link, opens in new window.". Global Environmental Politics 13(4)

Hellström A. & Wennerhag M. (2103), "National Myth-Making and Populist Mobilization in Scandinavia". Partecipazione e conflitto External link, opens in new window. 6(3)

Sörbom A. & Wennerhag M. (2013). "Individualization, Life Politics, and the Reformulation of Social Critique: An Analysis of the Global Justice Movement". Critical Sociology 39(3)

Peterson A., Wahlström M., Wennerhag M., Christancho C. & Sabucedo J.-M. (2012) "May Day demonstration in five European countries". Mobilization: The International Quarterly 17(3).

Peterson A., Wahlström M. & Wennerhag M. (2012) "Swedish trade unionism: A renewed social movement?" Economic and Industrial Democracy 33(4)

Wennerhag M. (2010). "Another modernity is possible? The global justice movement and the transformations of politics", Distinktion: Scandinavian Journal of Social Theory 11(2).

Wennerhag, M. (2008), "The Spatial Transformations of Grassroots Activism", in Ana Betancour (ed.), Global Cities. Stockholm : Arkitekturmuseet.

Wennerhag M. (2002). "Globalization Movement Comes to Town External link, opens in new window.", Studies in Political Economy, no. 67.


Selected other writings, in English and other languages:

"The politics of the global movement External link, opens in new window.", in Arena issue 2 2008.

"Denationalized States and Global Assemblages External link, opens in new window." [Interview with Saskia Sassen], in Fronesis issue 22–23 (2006).

"Der Kapitalismus ist senil geworden" [interview with Michael Hardt and Samir Amin, co-written with Camilla Lundberg, German translation], in Mittelweg 36, issue 4 2002. German version External link, opens in new window.. English version External link, opens in new window..


Link to my twitter External link, opens in new window.

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