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The article points out the lack of attention given by the Brazilian sociology to the involvement of women in crime and violent action, exploring possible reasons for that. A great part of studies analyse the participation of women in criminality and violent action come to the conclusion that this involvement occurs under the subordination to a male partner or assuming secondary roles determined by men. Based on findings of on-going researches, it comes to other results than those available in the sociological literature. Based on the biographical narrative approach, it comes to a variety of roles played by women in crime and violent actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the different ways in which biographical oral histories have been used in the Brazilian sociological literature. A brief review of the wide variety of approaches are presented, since 1950 to the present days, emphasizing some important studies and prominent institutions for the use and development of the biographical method in empirical investigations in the national context. Furthermore, we highlight the dialogue between Brazilian studies and some of the ramifications of biographical studies in the international scenario, especially in the German sociology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reconstructive biographical research is a diverse and differentiated sociological field. In this introduction, we trace its interdisciplinary and transnational historical development, consider the most important theoretical influences, and characterize central research areas. In this way, we show that reconstructive biographical research is a distinct sociological approach to social analysis. It offers a reflexive access to understanding, classifying, and explaining social processes and social challenges through the analysis of experienced and/or narrated life stories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes some aspects of the contribution of the Alfred Schutz' phenomenological sociology to approach everyday life, discussing especially the constitution of lifeworld. These contributions are connected to the analysis of narratives on biography and on everyday life, which are turning to be relevant considering the increasing challenges with which individuals are confronted to in contemporary societies, also in "peripheral" societies, like the Brazilian. Schutz's phenomenological approach conceives to individuals a reasonable interpretative possibility. The permanent reconfiguration of similarities and differences to others operated by individuals is done on the lifeworld, in which works the systems of relevance and typification as the key to understand individual's action in everyday life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses various topics published within the issue including one about the role of mass media realities in Ukraine and Romania, one about the analysis of narratives on biography and on everyday life and one about the aspects of popular music.