Department Course Structure Department Course Structure
The department offers a variety of courses for 2, 3, or 4 credits. The four required courses for the major carry 4 credits. All 2-credit courses are half-semester classes and meet for 7 weeks.
Four-credit courses:
Offering SOC 1001 (Introduction to Sociology) as a 4-credit course allows students to have significant “hand-on” field experience at the introductory level. The course includes a wide variety of small-scale weekly research projects that involve students directly in practical field research. Feedback from students has been very positive.
SOC 2091 (Social Science Research) is a core course for our majors, and offering it as a 4-credit model allows for additional in-library instruction by library staff, ideally strengthening the research proposals for the 4-credit senior thesis project (SOC 3091). SOC 3003 (Classical Social Theory) includes substantial weekly writing assignments attached to an ample primary-source required reading list.
Three-credit courses:
Most of the approximately 40 courses offered by the department carry 3 credits. These include a variety of twice-a-week lecture / discussion classes and once-a-week seminars. Most 3-credit courses, including all seminars, have a substantial independent research component.
Two-credit courses:
The department recently has introduced a number of half-semester 2-credit courses, including "The Changing World of Work and Career," "Caste, Class and Inequalities" and "Science, Technology and Social Change." The half-semester model allows for either in-depth concentration on a single issue or relatively brief introduction to an area of potential interest. Student response to the 2-credit courses has been enthusiastic, and additional 2-credit courses will be offered in the future.
Course Descriptions
Undergraduate Courses
SOC 1001: Introduction to Sociology (4 cr.) This course provides an overview of the broad scope of the discipline of sociology. Basic concepts and theories will be discussed, as students are introduced to the major fields of study within sociology. The sociological perspective, as a useful view of the human condition, will serve as the central theme of the course. The course includes a substantial "hands-on" learning component. Throughout the semester you will be required to participate in both Web-based research and field work projects and to submit the results of your research by the scheduled due dates. Your final grade will be based on the quality of your online and field work projects, your class participation, and your performance on scheduled exams. (Fall /Spring)
SOC 1004: Introduction to Social Work (3 cr.) An introduction to the profession and practice of social work. The course is taught by a professional social worker. (Spring)
SOC 2006: Human Nature and Marxism (3 cr.) Marxist psychological theory, its philosophical foundations, and scientific principles. Recent European and American advances in Marxist psychology serve as a base for discussion. (Spring)
SOC 2011: Wealth and Power in America (3 cr.) An examination of institutionalized social inequality in America. Topics include: theories of social inequality; the contemporary class structure and the distribution of opportunity; the role of elites; the rise of the middle class; the alienation of white-collar and blue-collar workers; social science and the analysis of power; class consciousness and political organization; strategies for change.
SOC 2014: Cross Cultural Health (3 cr.) This course will look at health and illness beliefs and practices in different cultures. It will examine what individuals in different socio-cultural groups believe about health and illness and what they do when they get sick to return to health. Topics include: healing beliefs and rituals, cultural syndromes, patient/healer/physician interactions, modernization and development, cross cultural psychology and culture, and epidemiology, particularly as it relates to AIDS. Emphasis will be on understanding the relationship between what individuals believe about health, explanatory models of illness and illness behaviors. (Fall)
SOC 2015: Women and Work (3 cr.) This course will examine the assumptions which historically have explained women's work roles, both in the unpaid domestic sphere and in the paid work force. We will draw from classical literature and film to identify and discuss contemporary issues. (Fall / Spring)
SOC 2017: Sport and Society (3 cr.) This course examines the historical and social roots of American sports as well as contemporary issues of violence, big business, and racism and sexism in both amateur and professional athletics. Special consideration is given to the development of sport and its relationship to larger society. (Fall)
SOC 2021: Race and Ethnicity (3 cr.) Racial and ethnic conflict and change in an historical context. Emphasis on the United States, but a comparative, global perspective will be developed. Specific topics include: racial and ethnic ideologies and public policy; race and class relations; ethnic mobility and the assimilation process; social scientific controversies in racial and ethnic studies; and strategies for change. (Summer)
SOC 2025: Urban Sociology (3 cr.) This course examines the historical development of cities, the socio-economic significance of the metropolis, and patterns of urban growth and decay. In addition, problems such as gentrification, homelessness, racial and ethnic conflict, fiscal crises and trends in urban social policy will be explored.
Soc. 2028: Sociology of New York City (3 cr.) Examines current trends in New York City as part of a worldwide social process: the wave of third world immigration; the city as the location of choice for businesses that promote globalization; local and global dynamics underlying the attack on the world trade center. Traditional themes of urban sociology--ethnic competition, inequality, policing, public space, racial segregation, homelessness, and education--will be examined in the new context. (Also offered as a seminar: SOC 3028)
SOC 2031: Sociology of the Family and Sex Roles (3 cr.) The family has become a central concern of recent politics as people debate whether it is disintegrating or simply changing, whether it oppresses women or provides them with their natural role. This course will examine what forms the family has taken and the interactions between the family and the large society. It also will explore various political and policy issues regarding the family, such as child care, the labor force role of women, and the problem of domestic violence. (Fall)
SOC 2034: Sexuality and Society (3 cr.) An exploration of major issues around sexuality in society. Modern American concepts of sexuality will be examined in historical, political, social, and economic contexts. Areas to be covered include: historical construction of sexuality, sexual orientation, trans-genderism, eroticism, sex and violence, pornography, and politics of the body.
SOC 2049: Crime, Law and Society (3 cr.) What behavior should be considered criminal, who really commits criminal acts and for what reasons, how does society control criminality, and what ways are available to make crime-control more just and efficient? The course examines the political origins of criminal law, the causes of crime, the operation of the police, courts, and prisons, and the effect of race, class and gender on the judicial process.
SOC 2061: Cultural Anthropology (3 cr.) An introduction to the myriad of human cultural systems. Students examine kinship, political organization, economic processes, myth, religion and social change, with specific reference to two non-Western cultures. (Spring)
SOC 2062: Physical Anthropology and Archeology (3 cr.) Biological and cultural evolution and human variation. The emergence of humans from primate origins to modern homo sapiens and the development of culture from stone tools to civilization.
SOC 2064: Culture and Personality (3 cr.) An introduction to the study of the relationship between personality characteristics and socio-cultural and political processes. The effects of the media, in their capacity as dominant cultural institutions, will be emphasized. (Spring)
SOC 2067: Native North American Peoples (3 cr.) A broad introduction to the aboriginal peoples of North America across their dynamic histories and richly varied tribal groupings, outlining the prehistory and arrival of humans in the New World and the various “culture areas” of North America. Topics include Native American economies, kinship and family systems, leadership and political systems, ideologies, languages, and arts. (Fall)
SOC 2069: Medical Anthropology (3 cr.) Health and illness beliefs and practices in different societies around the globe. How people make sense of illness and misfortune. Of particular interest is the social construction of health and illness. Topics include doctor-patient interactions, ritual and healing, cross-cultural psychiatry, medical pluralism, and global health issues, including AIDS. (Spring)
SOC 2070: Marxist Political Economy (3 cr.) The basic categories and controversies in the field of political economy. The structure and contradiction of capitalist development will be emphasized. (Spring)
SOC 2075: Models of Social and Economic Justice (3 cr.) An examination of the range of questions about what justice requires and permits. What alternative and incompatible answers are offered by contending philosophical, theological, and sociological theories of justice? Does justice permit gross inequality of income and ownership? Does justice require compensatory action to remedy inequalities which are a result of past injustice? Does justice permit or require programs such as Affirmative Action and acts of civil disobedience to correct past and present injustice? Lectures, readings, research and case studies are used to help students differentiate between and decide among the claims of rival accounts of social justice. (Spring)
SOC 2076: History of Social Action (3 cr.) An examination of the history and legacy of social movements in the United States, starting with the revolutionary movement for independence. The abolitionist, suffrage, anti-imperialist, labor, anti-racist, civil liberties, anti-war, feminist, environmental, gay/lesbian, human rights/global justice, anti death penalty struggles are among the movements to be studied. Howard Zinn’s People’s History of the United States provides the historical contexts for examining these movements. A required weekly evening lecture series with include leading activists talking about their experiences in many of the movements studied in class.
SOC 2077: Social Problems (3 cr.) An examination of major social issues from a sociological perspective. Topics will include: corporate power, inequalities of race, gender and class; the changing structure of work; crime and punishment; homelessness; poverty and social welfare; the media, ideology and public policy; and the role of government in addressing social problems.
SOC 2079: Social Dissolution (3 cr.) The unraveling of societal institutions and of mental frameworks used to make sense of the social world. Topics include: the breakdown of states, regional wars, cities of violence, cities of violence, emergent global protest movements, modern genocide, global terrorism. The course asks how the social sciences, and sociology in particular, have responded to these issues and concludes with a search for solutions at the global level. (Also offered as a seminar: SOC 3079)
SOC 2091: Social Science Research (4 cr.) This course offers an overview of social science research methods that help students prepare a proposal for senior social research. This proposal serves as a basis for the thesis written in the Advanced Research Seminar. The following are included in the proposal: overall description of the project, a thesis statement, a review of the literature, a preliminary statement of the general research question and research methods that will be used, and a tentative bibliography. (Spring)
SOC 2092: Quantitative Social Measurement (3 cr.) An introduction to the production, use and interpretation of quantitative data in sociology and in popular media. The course is composed of three parts. First, techniques: statistical techniques; chart and graph construction; visual modes of presentation. Second the central role of marketing firms and government agencies in the production of data. Third, issues in the philosophy of social science: quantitative/qualitative distinction and the influence of the physical sciences in the making of sociology.
SOC 3003: Classical Social Theory (4 cr.) A critical exploration of the theories of Karl Marx, Max Weber and Emile Durkheim, early sociological masters who profoundly influenced contemporary social theorists and researchers. Each developed a perspective (class, bureaucracy and the division of labor) for analyzing the new industrial order that was forming around them in 19th Century Europe. Major writings of each, their contemporaries, and their continuing relevance in social science research are examined. Primary sources form the core of the course, supplemented with researched secondary sources. (Spring)
SOC 3006: Sociology of Knowledge (3 cr.) Ideas, meanings, values, and consciousness within the context of the social structures and conditions in which they originate. Emphasis is placed on how ideas, once created, are maintained or changed. Enrollment requires department approval. (Spring)
Soc. 3007: Globalization and Social Change (3 cr.) The aim is to develop a sociological perspective that will help make sense of social changes that are worldwide in nature. Themes include: different meanings of globalization; Americanization and global cultures; wealth and poverty in world-historical perspective; globalization of violence; and efforts to change the world from below that reach across national boundaries. Emphasis will be placed on the historical context in which social change unfolds. (Spring)
SOC 3008: World Cities (3 cr.) Current and historical survey of world cities in the making of global culture. The course is centered on a series of urban places: Venice, Amsterdam, London, New York, Calcutta, Sao Paulo, Mexico City, Istanbul, Lagos, and Jakarta. Special attention will be given to the social. Political, and economic life of cities in the context of North/South inequality. New directions in urban thought and social theory will be explored (Fall)
SOC 3023: Racial Oppression (3 cr.) An examination of the following aspects of U.S. racism: 1) the role of racism in advancing reactionary domestic and foreign policies; 2) the impact of social and economic policies on the Black, Hispanic, and Native American communities; 3) the racist features of U.S. policies for Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and the Far East; and 4) the forms of domestic and international opposition to racism.
SOC 3050: Mass Media and Society (3 cr.) An examination of the social, political, and economic contexts in which American mass media have developed and operate today. Topics include: concentration of media ownership and control; the effects of political economy, ideology, and organizational structure on news management; the media's role in movements for social change in the U.S. and Third World; personal and political consequences of media practice; alternatives to current structure of the media. (Fall)
SOC 3073: Women and the Law (3 cr.) The legal treatment of women from a sociological perspective. Topics include: the exclusion of women from critical public roles like owning property, voting and jury duty; workplace discrimination including sexual harassment; the role of women in the military; abuse and violence; and family issues. (Fall)
SOC 3077: Social Problems (3 cr.) An examination of major social issues from a sociological perspective. Topics will include: corporate power, inequalities of race, gender and class; the changing structure of work; crime and punishment; homelessness; poverty and social welfare; the media, ideology and public policy; and the role of government in addressing social problems. (Summer)
SOC 3079: Social Dissolution (3 cr.) The unraveling of societal institutions and of mental frameworks used to make sense of the social world. Topics include: the breakdown of states, regional wars, cities of violence, cities of violence, emergent global protest movements, modern genocide, global terrorism. The course asks how the social sciences, and sociology in particular, have responded to these issues and concludes with a search for solutions at the global level.
SOC 3081: Education and Society (3 cr.) Many view education as the major vehicle for upward mobility. Others understand that education is a means of creating and perpetuating social inequality. This course address this debate in light of the history of education in the U.S. and in light of the relationship of education to other social institutions, with special consideration given to the correlation between the educational system and adult achievement, taking into consideration class, race, and gender. (Spring)
SOC 3085: Science, Technology and Society (3 cr.) The social construction of science and technology. Topics include: entrepreneurial science; the demise of the independent inventor and the rise of corporate sponsorship; the role of new information technologies in the transformation of communications; the impact of technology on work and career; technology and culture; science, technology, and social control.
SOC 3088: Images of Women in American Popular Culture (3 cr.) An exploration of how images of women in popular culture both perpetuate stereotypes and, at the same time, create new images which maintain deceptive distinctions. This course will look at women in the workplace, in the media and in the arts, using both traditional and non-traditional approaches. (Spring)
SOC 3091: Advanced Research Seminar (4 cr.) Students write a senior thesis, in consultation with department faculty, in an area of student interest. A research proposal, written in SOC 2991, must be approved before the student may enroll in SOC 3091. Students may choose to work in conjunction with ongoing faculty research or in off-campus projects, depending on available opportunities. (Fall)
SOC 3092: Women, Religion and Social Change (3 cr.) An examination of the role of women of African descent in various efforts to eradicate discrimination based on race in the western hemisphere. In particular the course will focus on the socio-cultural effects of religion, slavery and discriminatory laws and customs as they impact upon the role women of African descent in the western hemisphere.
SOC 3112: Caste, Class, and Inequalities (2 cr.) A sociological analysis of patterns of structured social inequalities. The course will focus primarily on class, caste, and racial systems and will investigate how these systems have contributed to social breakdown, both internationally and domestically. (Spring)
SOC 3185: Science, Technology, and Social Change (2 cr.) An examination of the social construction of science and technology. Among the topics to be studied are the following: entrepreneurial science; the demise of the independent inventor and the rise of corporate sponsorship; the role of the new information technologies in the transformation of communications; the impact of technology on white-collar and blue collar work and the shape of the class system; technology and culture; science, technology and social control. (Spring)
Graduate Seminars
SOC 5003: Classical Social Theory (3 cr.) (Spring)
SOC 5006: Sociology of Knowledge (3 cr.) (Spring)
SOC 5007: Globalization and Social Change (3 cr.) (Spring ’04)
SOC 5008: World Cities (3 cr.) (Fall)
SOC 5023: Racial Oppression (3 cr.)
SOC 5050: Mass Media and Society (3 cr.) (Fall)
SOC 5077: Social Problems (3 cr.) (Summer)
SOC 5079: Social Dissolution (3 cr.)
SOC 5081: Education and Society (3 cr.) (Spring)
SOC 5085: Science, Technology and Society (3 cr.)
SOC 5088: Images of Women in American Popular Culture (3 cr.) (Spring)
SOC 5092: Women, Religion and Social Change (3 cr.)
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