Academy of Social Sciences in Australia

K. J. Hancock/Keith Hancock Lecture

The Keith Hancock lecture honours Professor Keith J. Hancock, an eminent labour economist and valuable contributor to the social sciences in Australia. Keith J. Hancock has been a Fellow of the Academy since 1968 and served as President for the period 1981 - 1984.

A graduate of Melbourne University and the London School of Economics, Professor Hancock was the Foundation Professor of Economics at Flinders University, which opened for teaching in 1966. In 1980, he became the third Vice-Chancellor of Flinders University. Upon leaving the University, he was made an Emeritus Professor. In 1987 he became a Deputy President of the Australian Conciliation and Arbitration Commission. In 1989, he transferred to the newly-created Australian Industrial Relations Commission, and became a Senior Deputy President in 1992. He retired in 1997.

Since retirement, Keith has held honorary appointments as a Professorial Fellow in the National Institute of Labour Studies at Flinders University and an Honorary Visiting Fellow in the School of Economics at Adelaide University. He is one of two Australians who are Honorary Fellows of the London School of Economics. In 1987 he was made an Officer in the Order of Australia.

Commencing in 2010, the Keith Hancock lectures will be held on a biennial basis. The next Keith Hancock lecture will be held the second half of 2012. Nominations will be invited in early 2012.

Nominations are to be submitted and signed by two Fellows of the Academy, and should include:

  • a citation of 100 - 150 words setting out the case for the nominated scholar
  • a full CV for the nominee.

Eligibility criteria

  • For a scholar who has achieved excellence in scholarship in a field of the social sciences.
  • The nominated candidate does not need to be a Fellow of the Academy.
  • The nominated candidate does not need to be an Australian citizen or permanent resident.

The Academy's budget for the Keith Hancock Lecture allows for economy class travel within Australia and no international travel.

 

Call for Nominations for 2012 Hancock Lecture

The call for Nominations for the 2012 Keith Hancock Lecture has now closed.

 

2010 lecture

The Poor Relation: A history of the social sciences in Australia

Speaker: Professor Stuart Macintyre

What are the social sciences? What do they do? How are they practised in Australia? This lecture considers the place of the social sciences in the teaching and research conducted by Australian universities.

2009 lecture

Wage Inequality: A Comparative Perspective

Speaker: Professor Thomas Lemieux

Wage inequality has been increasing is most industrialized countries over the last three decades. There are, nonetheless, major differences across countries in terms of the timing and magnitude of the growth in inequality. A large number of explanations have been suggested for these observed changes…