Special Interest Organized Paper Sessions - Descriptions
When submitting to the MSS Annual Meeting, you will have an option to select from an open list of topics or from these open call paper sessions. When submitting your paper, please identify all categories and open sessions you feel your paper fits. Papers that are not accepted into these Special Interest Organized Paper Sessions will be placed in the general submission pool to be collected into new sessions.
Click Here to Submit your Special Interest Organized Paper Session
The deadline for proposals is Friday, July 18.
About Special Interest Organized Paper Sessions
Building on the success of member-organized sessions in the 2025 Annual Meeting, MSS members are invited to propose formal paper sessions around themes and content of interest to themselves as individuals or groups of organizers. Participants in the 2026 Annual Meeting will be able to browse these topics on the submission portal and indicate their interest in presenting as part of a special topics session when uploading paper abstracts.
These “special interest organized paper sessions” are for formal papers only. If you wish to organize a professional development workshop or a panel discussion of teaching techniques, you should submit a proposal for a closed workshop or panel session when the submission portal opens on or around August 1. Similarly, organizers who do not wish to receive paper submissions from the membership at large should submit a proposal for a closed paper session. Standard session type descriptions can be found here. Read our current submission topics list here.
Proposing/Submitting a Special Interest Organized Paper Session
To organize a “special interest organized paper session”, please submit your proposed session title (using the button link above), with a brief description (40–85-word count) for submitters to reference in deciding where their paper might best fit. You may consult the example below for guidance. The window for submitting special topics sessions will be open from June 16 until July 18, 2025. You must have an active MSS profile* and submit your special topics session by July 18 for guaranteed consideration.
You may submit up to 2 proposed special topics sessions. Please note that organizers of special topics sessions are responsible for reviewing submissions and selecting papers for the session, following the process and timeline below. Organizers can include their own paper (sole or co-authored) in their organized special topics session (limit one paper of their own authorship per session).
Example session proposal from 2025:
Title: Authoritarian Nightmares: From Conspiracy Theories to Far-Right Fables, and Other Irrational Beliefs
Description: In today's political landscape and unregulated online information ecosystem, conspiracy theories, far-right narratives, and various irrational beliefs have become pervasive in our daily discourse. Despite some dismissing beliefs like QAnon, notions of Lizard People, or The Great Replacement theory as fringe, their impact has proven substantial in the real world. This session delves into the origins and proliferation of these authoritarian nightmares, employing critical analysis to dissect their appeal and profound impact on contemporary societies.
General Submission Timeline and Review Process
- Our target submission portal open date is August 1, 2025. Advertise your session and tell friends/colleagues to submit their work!
- Our target closing date for the submission portal is Wednesday, October 15, 2025. Please note this may be reconsidered and remain open for another week or a few days, which could trigger date extensions for the remainder of the timeline, accordingly, but any new deadlines/expectations will be communicated.
- Within two weeks of the portal closing, organizers will receive an Excel file with those submitters who identified their session as a first, second, or third choice (providing the submitter did not list a different open-call session in an earlier priority). The Excel file will include the names of submitters and co-authors and the title and abstract of each submission. Should the Excel file be delayed, you will receive communication from a member of the Program Leadership Team.
- Those organizers who have enough submissions are welcome to make multiple sessions (and retitle, as appropriate).
- Organizers with 3+ submissions will be asked to approve (or select) from submissions and may decide to add a paper of their own (or a colleague who has agreed to participate) to the session. Those with 3+ submissions may also be asked by the meeting systems coordinator to consider other closely aligned papers on a case-by-case basis for inclusion in their sessions.
- Organizers with 0-2 submissions will be notified of their low submissions by the meeting systems coordinator and work toward a reasonable solution, which may include combining sessions/topics, considering additionally related papers, or dissolving the session entirely.
- You are asked to return your decisions and/or work with the meeting systems coordinator to plan your session(s) accordingly within two weeks from receipt of the Excel file (estimated date: November 12, 2025). An expected return date will be included in your received communications. Organizers who excessively delay return or do not communicate delays may relinquish their submissions back to the general pool to be put into sessions by MSS Voluntary Session Organizers.
- We expect to provide a draft unscheduled program by the estimated date of December 19, 2025, and a scheduled program draft by the estimated date of January 9, 2025.
**An "active MSS profile" means either a currently active membership or a "SUBMISSION PROFILE" member type. If you cannot access the portal and don't have a currently active membership, you will need to, at minimum, renew your membership at a "Submission Profile" level. This is a temporary membership type and will not bill you until January, when you'll need to purchase a membership to remain active. If you have any questions or trouble, reach out to us at [email protected].