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BSA President, John Brewer, presents Dr Monica Sassatelli with the Philip Abrams Memorial Prize

A University of Sussex researcher has won a prize for her first sociology book.

Dr Monica Sassatelli, a Research Fellow in the School of Law, Politics and Sociology, has been awarded the Philip Abrams Memorial Prize by the British Sociological Association (BSA).

Monica was presented with her award during the Easter vacation by the BSA President, John Brewer, at its annual conference.

Her book, Becoming Europeans: Cultural identity and cultural policies, is a study of two European cultural policies - the Capital of Culture programme and the European Landscape Convention.

She uses these to debate the more general question of European identity and the cultural, sociological, political and policy processes involved in the development of Europe, considering not only the position of institutions such as the European Union and Council of Europe, but also of the people involved with the local implementation of cultural policies.

The BSA judges said: "Addressing these two cultural policies is a fascinatingly unusual way to approach the issue of how we might construct a European identity and imagine the boundaries of Europe as a place.

"The case studies are explored with skill and in rich detail. The study addresses the process of Europeanisation - how we are becoming Europeans - and the discipline of sociology's wider issues of identity, globalisation and culture are woven into this process with great deftness."

The BSA prize is for the best first and sole-authored book within sociology and was established in memory of Professor Philip Abrams, who is remembered for the encouragement and assistance he provided to many young sociologists at the start of their careers.

Monica has been at Sussex since January 2008, working with Professor Gerard Delanty on the project 'Art festivals and European public culture', including the Brighton Festival as a case study.