Sociology (SOCI)

Provides students with an understanding of the structure and processes of modern societies and their historical antecedents. Explores the universality of the social experience by addressing such topics as culture, socialization, social interaction, bureaucracy, norms and diversity, social inequality, social institutions, modernization, technology and social change, world views, values and behavior.

The purpose of this course is to think sociologically about commercial hangouts. We will focus our attention on sites of public food and beverage consumption, including diners, drive-ins and dives, as well as coffee shops, ice cream parlors, food trucks, breweries, wine bars, fine-dining, food courts, dining halls and fast-food restaurants. Students will be assigned diverse readings on public life and undertake a series of field studies of commercial hangouts in their area. A major theme running through the readings and participatory assignments will be social process, collective action and symbolic interaction. The one-week, asynchronous online course culminates in a final paper synthesizing the readings and students' first-hand observations.

This course introduces the discipline of sociology from a macrosociological perspective, emphasizing large-scale changes in social organization and institutions. We examine the global forces that shape societies, and the historical, political, social, cultural and economic origins of contemporary social problems. We consider competing theoretical models used in the study of social change as well as the conceptual and methodological challenges in analyzing societies different from one's own. May be used for general education credit.

This course introduces the discipline of sociology and the subfield of microsociology. We examine the mutually constitutive relationship between the individual and society. Questions addressed include: How does society influence how we think, feel, believe, act, and interact with others? What influences the self, social identity, shared social meanings, social roles, and one's position in society? How do we, as individuals and as members of social groups, recreate, contest, and change society? May be used for general education credit.

This course is a foundation course for sociology majors. Topics will include the historical development of the discipline with an emphasis on the social and philosophical forces that influenced the development of sociology. Main sociological traditions will be introduced including the critical, naturalistic, and interpretive paradigms and sociological analysis from these perspectives.

Introduction to the techniques for collecting, describing, analyzing and presenting sociological data.

An interdisciplinary introduction to the study of aging. The course provides an overview of issues surrounding aging in contemporary society: personal, familial, communal and societal.

This course provides a systematic introduction to various modes of sociological investigation, including positivism, interpretivism and critical analysis. Students learn to evaluate, critique and design original sociological inquiries with special attention to how sociological inquiry is guided by different philosophical and theoretical commitments.

This course explores the concepts of identity, ethnicity and nationality from a cross-cultural perspective. Drawing upon theories from multiple social scientific disciplines, this course examines how identity is defined and how societies use such constructions for, among other things, nation-building. Students learn to apply the sociological imagination for understanding in-group and out-group interactions cross-culturally. Theoretical readings are supplemented with case studies from developed and developing countries across different time periods.

Investigation of current American orientations toward death and dying with emphasis also given to the social organization of death and dying.

Course offers students a wide range of explanations of deviance. Topics considered are the functions, social definitions, societal reactions and political aspects of deviance as characteristic of all societies. Deviant attributes as well as acts are considered.

This introductory course takes a critical and interdisciplinary approach to exploring Japan. We will apply sociological, anthropological, and demographic perspectives to comparatively understand, analyze, and discuss Japanese society and culture. Students will read and discuss issues related to history, socio-demographic change, gender, work, social class, race/ethnicity, family, health care and aging in Japanese society.

This course introduces students to theories, methods and research based on the life course paradigm. A life course perspective focuses on intersections of individual lives, historical context, social change and social structures including diverse family systems. Based on this framework students will look at how life trajectories are influenced by those systems in the broader social structure and historical context. Students will also look at how prior life stages can positively or negatively influence later life outcomes of individuals. Students will have an opportunity to apply the life course perspective to discuss research and to examine how life changes (marriage, divorce, job, childbirth, death, etc.) are influenced by social factors and contexts.

This course examines the structure and dynamics of capitalism as a social system and considers the affordances and limitations of this mode of organizing production, consumption and the satisfaction of human needs. Building on this analysis, the course then critically examines a wide array of alternative or non-capitalist organizations and enterprises emerging from the "new," "solidarity" or "social" economy movements, with particular attention paid to the role of commerce and markets in these arrangements.

This course will introduce students to the central debates that currently preoccupy environmental sociology and political ecology. Emphasis is placed on the importance of sociological, historical and cultural modes of inquiry for understanding: socio-ecological change/crisis, environmental justice/injustice, eco-technological change and the politics of "nature".

This course gives students the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of everyday life in public spaces by learning to observe how these spaces are designed, used and enjoyed. Regardless of whether a student has prior experience with qualitative research or simply loves to "people watch," all will gain a deeper understanding of public life studies as a type of research. Opportunities to practice direct observation and documentation skills in a public setting are embedded in the course.

Through an analysis of various issues, problems and case studies, this course will explore the interactions between science, technology and society. The course will examine connections of specific technologies to science, cultural values, social and economic interests, and questions regarding progress.

This course explores the complex relationship between the body and society and challenges the premise that our bodies are strictly physiological entities. Instead, the course explores how the body serves as a canvas upon which sociocultural norms, values and habits are inscribed. These embodied experiences shape how we perceive and experience the continuity of ourselves and the world. Drawing from multiple theories, methodologies and case studies, the course explores themes such as embodiment and identity, the culture of sensation, technology and the body, body politics, and more.

This course explores the patterns and processes defining immigration around the world: the reasons for migration, the types of migration, and the way it affects the sending and receiving societies. The course investigates the social forces that affect immigrants and the traits that impact their relocation experience; and how immigration creates new identities for those successful in their quest, contributing to greater cultural diversity of receiving societies.

The relationship between society and politics, the nature and distribution of social power, political participation, political thought and politics as a vehicle of social change are explored.

This course is a sociological analysis of the nature, function, and structure of religion. Survey of the relationship between religion and society: the social nature of religious phenomena, the interaction between religious beliefs and practices and other arenas of secular societies, the social functions of religion, and the way religion changes and is changed by secular society.

This course examines how social inequality shapes and is reproduced and challenged through digital information and communication technologies. Students will explore how the use of these technologies by consumers, corporations and governments plays an increasingly prominent role in how inequality is structured and experienced in contemporary society.

This course examines sport as a social institution. It explores the origins and evolution of modern sporting practices and their connections to other social institutions and dimensions of social change. In surveying multiple issues connected to sport and society, particular emphasis will be placed on the production and reproduction of social inequalities through sporting practice and consumption.

This course examines the dialectical relationship between self and society. Two primary questions guide the course: How am I, as a social being, created by society? And, in turn, how is society created and sustained by me? In contrast to biological or psychological explanations, this course provides a distinctly sociological analysis of the self. Drawing from multiple perspectives in sociology, the course focuses on the social character of the self, the process of its acquisition and the social influences that continually shape it. Related topics include the social construction of reality, identity construction, emotions, power and inequality, symbolic interaction, ethnomethodology, and impression management.

This class focuses on the social and cultural aspects of disability in the US and around the world. It explores the meaning of the concept 'disability'; its relation to other social markers such as race, gender, and sexual orientation; how it is experienced by those occupying the category; and major policy approaches to dealing with disability.

This course examines the social construction of race and ethnicity around the world and how they influence social processes, institutions, change and ideology. The course will include discussions concerning the intersection of race and ethnicity with other aspects of social inequality such as class, gender, sexuality and nationality in contemporary society.

This course covers foundational sociological theory, research and examination of the lived realities of sex and gender in society. Using a sociological lens, the course explores the interactions, identities and institutions that are implicated in the social construction of gender and gender inequality. A core emphasis is on how individuals learn and "do" gender, how various institutions (e.g., school, work, media and family) produce and perpetuate gender inequality, how gender inequality intersects with other systems of inequality in social life, and movements for gender liberation and justice.

Examination of sociological theories and research on education, emphasizing stratification, socialization, organization, and relationship between schooling, family, community, and work. Focus on cross-cultural approaches to education.

This course examines the nature and meaning of work under various social and historical conditions. This includes such things as the relationship of work organization to life chances and personal experience, the place of work in social theory, the organization of occupations, occupational socialization and commitment, and how the nature of work changes in relation to local and global contexts.

This course looks at contemporary approaches to the culture and social structure of gender and gender binaries, as they intersect with power, knowledge, science/biology and inequality. Method involves examining and challenging the cultural classification systems that inform knowledge, human action and social institutions. Requires college level reading, writing and intellectual engagement.

This course examines fertility (birth) and mortality (death) and their biological and social determinants in cross-cultural and evolutionary/historical frameworks. It focuses on the exploration of the dynamic between the material constraints on and symbolic significance of reproduction, sexuality and death within a cultural context, and the critical examination of population growth as a global "problem," as well as basic demographic methods.

This course focuses on the role of energy in the maintenance of human organization, and explores continuity and change in how energy is produced and consumed from the individual to societal levels. It explores issues around resource extraction and depletion, renewable and alternative energy, climate change, and the environmental and social effects of traditional and emerging forms of energy production and use.

Course covers the systems of stratification and inequality in the United States including race, class, gender, religion, sexuality, ethnicity, and nationality. Discussion will center on their role in providing rationales for oppression and discrimination in society and their relationship to the distribution of power and ideological control.

This course aims to familiarize students with the sociological study of the causes and consequences of disasters. The course takes a broad view of the social science literature on disasters, but largely employs a case study approach. In keeping with sociology's focus on the causes and consequences of social stratification, the relationship between disasters and patterns of inequality will be a central theme throughout the course.

Consumption encompasses themes that range from identity construction to the macro processes of cultural globalization. As consumption becomes more integral to society, it is becoming more central to various disciplines. This course situates scholarly work from this nascent interdisciplinary field of consumption studies within the context of contemporary social, cultural, and economic issues.

This course explores the social scientific research on what has been a highly effective campaign to inject doubt and uncertainty into the American public's understanding of human-caused climate change and the extent of scientific consensus on this issue. The course examines the key institutional actors involved in this effort and the diverse set of interests they represent. Students will also explore other denial campaigns with the goal of generating insights useful for challenging climate denial and denialism more generally.

Introduction to the study and analysis of social movements in the United States as agents of social and ideological change. Emphasis is given to movements which have goals of extending and/or protecting rights of individuals and groups in the face of increasing industrialization, urbanization and centralization of power.

Study of formal organizations primarily in contemporary society. Emphasis is given to the social-historical context that has given rise to and perpetuates the bureaucracy as a form of social organization, and to the study of the structure and dynamics of contemporary formal organizations such as businesses, universities, governments, etc.

This course examines sociological perspectives about values, norms, symbols, rituals and expressions. Course content includes classic perspectives on the relation between culture and institutions as well as the work of contemporary analysts who have developed, revised, and/or challenged these classic positions. Students will learn to apply these perspectives to their own analyses of culture.

This course examines sociological theory and research on sexual behaviors, identities, cultures and social movements, investigating how sexuality is shaped by society and its social institutions. In addition, the course examines how sociological research on sexuality is conducted, how society shapes the sociological study of sexuality, the unique ethical concerns and methodological challenges in researching sexuality and the place of sociology in shaping discourse and social policy on relevant social issues.

This course examines the community as a social form. Considered are its function, social definitions, formative processes, development and systems of change. This survey may include, but not be limited to, examination of community studies research and community advocacy for social justice.

Covers the basic concepts and theories in marriage and the family; looks at basic issues in modern family life; examines changes in family functions and in the various stages of the family life cycle and discusses the future of the family in contemporary society.

An introduction to the field of medical sociology that examines the salient issues in the field and related theoretical perspectives. These two focuses are important in understanding the ability of humans to live to capacity. Attention is given to health-care programs in developing countries as well as modern industrial societies.

This course introduces students to qualitative research methods, including participant observation, interviewing, and content analysis. Students will read examples of qualitative sociology and learn how to design and conduct a qualitative research study. In addition to reviewing methodological, theoretical, and ethical issues, students will produce an independent qualitative research project.

This course will explore the role that social and cultural factors play in the occurrence, diagnosis, experience, and treatment of mental illness. It will compare sociological perspectives to those of biology and psychology. The course will examine the intersection of mental health systems with other systems, such as the broader health care and the criminal justice systems. Finally, it will critically analyze psychiatry, policy, and popular culture depictions of the mentally ill.

Focusing primarily on the United States, this course examines the historical and theoretical frameworks that have shaped today's nonprofit organizations. Students will gain a practical understanding of the various types of nonprofit organizations (NPOs) in order to fully grasp their significance as drivers of social change. Special focus will be given to the meaning of civil society, philanthropy as a social construct, stakeholders, professionalization, and the opportunities and challenges facing NPOs in an increasingly interconnected world.

This course explores contemporary culture through a "cultural studies" lens, an interdisciplinary perspective interested in using empirical knowledge to encourage more just human relations. Specific topics of investigation will vary by semester, but each course will cover cultural studies' intellectual history and its application to cultural expressions found in everyday life, film, music and text.

Designed to encourage students to enhance their academic programs through studying abroad. Arrangements must be made with a faculty member who will direct the study with preparatory instructions and final requirements. May be repeated up to 12 credits.

Examination of selected topics which are of current importance in sociology. May be repeated for credit when course content changes.

The course teaches students how to identify and solve anthropological problems with spatial dimensions. Hands-on experience is stressed in the acquisition, analysis and display of spatial data using Geographic Information Systems software. Topics include the mapping of race and ethnicity, the spatial distribution of cultural variables and human modification and use of the landscape.

The integration of previous class experience the student has had during the undergraduate years. Fulfills the College of Arts and Letters writing-intensive requirement for the major. Can be repeated as course content changes.

Assistantships provide students with a sense of what it is like to teach a sociology course by allowing them to work closely with faculty members through different phases of course preparation, presentation and evaluation. Assistantships also allow for a deeper understanding of course material by providing opportunities for student assistants to lead discussion and to help their peers review the material outside of the classroom. Prerequisites: Students must have junior /senior standing, must have earned a grade of B or better in the course for which he/she will serve as assistant, and may register by faculty invitation only. May be repeated up to six credits; only three credits can count toward the major. A student may only serve as a course assistant to the same course twice.

Designed to give capable students in sociology an opportunity to complete independent study under supervision. More than one repeat requires department head approval.

Provides the student with practical experience in employing and refining sociological skills in a public or private agency under faculty supervision. May be repeated up to six credits.

An independent research topic initiated and completed by qualified senior majors who want to graduate with distinction.

An independent research topic initiated and completed by qualified senior majors who want to graduate with distinction.

An independent research topic initiated and completed by qualified senior majors who want to graduate with distinction.