Sociology (SOCI)

Head of Department: Professor Davita Silfen Glasberg
Department Office: Room 115, Manchester Hall

For major requirements, see the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences section of this Catalog .

1001. Introduction to Sociology

(107) Either semester. Three credits.

Modern society and its social organization, institutions, communities, groups, and social roles: the socialization of individuals, family, gender, race and ethnicity, religion, social class, crime and deviance, population, cities, political economy, and social change. CA 2.

1001W. Introduction to Sociology

(107W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800.  CA 2.

1251. Social Problems

(115) Either semester. Three credits.

Major social problems, their sources in the organization of society, public policies for their alleviation, and questions of ethics and social justice: alcohol and drug abuse, physical and mental illness, sexual variances, poverty and inequality, ethnic and racial prejudice and discrimination, women and gender, the changing family, violence, crime and delinquency, the environment, urban problems, and population planning and growth. CA 2.

1251W. Social Problems

(115W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800. CA 2.

1501. Race, Class, and Gender

(125) Either semester. Three credits.

Race, class, and gender, as they structure identities, opportunities, and social outcomes. CA 2. CA 4.

1501W. Race, Class, and Gender

(125W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800. CA 2. CA 4.

1701. Society in Global Perspective

(133) Either semester. Three credits.

Economic, political, social and cultural processes in globalization. The world economy, the autonomy of nation-states, the role of the media, and the social and environmental problems of societies in a world context.

2210. Interaction and the Conduct of Social Research

(210) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher. Recommended preparation: six credits of introductory social science courses. Instructor consent.

Sociological analysis of methodological, socio-relational, and structural factors affecting social research and clinical or community work with individuals and groups.

2301. Criminology

(216) Either semester. Three credits.

Theories and research on crime, criminal law, and the criminal justice system.

2301W. Criminology

(216W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800. 

2827. Revolutionary Social Movements Around the World

(227) Either semester. Three credits. One 3-hour class per week.

Lectures and documentary films on the Russian, Chinese, Vietnamese, Cuban and Nicaraguan revolutions and movements in South Africa and the Middle East.

2827W. Revolutionary Social Movements Around the World

(227W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800. 

3201. Methods of Social Research

(205) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: SOCI 1001, 1251, or 1501; open to juniors or higher.

Quantitative and qualitative methods used in sociological research: designs for gathering data, problems of measurement, and techniques of data analysis. Lectures and laboratory work. Majors in sociology should take this required course in their junior year.

3203. Applying Sociology to Social Issues

(209) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: SOCI 1001 and 3201 or instructor consent; open to juniors or higher.

Applying sociology and its methods to ask research questions, gather information, and evaluate social programs.

3211QC. Quantitative Methods in Social Research

(207QC) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: SOCI 3201 and either STAT 1000 or 1110; or instructor consent; open to juniors or higher.

Practical work in the design and execution of research, hypothesis testing, data analysis, and interpretation.

3213C. Computing in the Social Sciences

(208C) Either semester. Three credits. One 2-hour lecture and one 2-hour laboratory per week. Prerequisite: Q course and SOCI 3201 or equivalent; open to juniors or higher.

Introduction to applied computing skills using a statistical package.

3221. Sociological Perspectives on Asian American Women

(221) (Also offered as AASI 3221 and HRTS 3571.) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

An overview of social structures, inter-group relations, and women's rights, focusing on the experience of Asian American women. CA 4.

3222. Asian Indian Women: Activism and Social Change in India and the United States

(222) (Also offered as AASI 3222 and HRTS 3573.) First semester.  Three credits.  Prerequisite: SOCI 1001, 1251, or 1501; open to juniors or higher.

How gender, class, and ethnicity/race structure everyday lives of Asian Indian women in both India and the United States.

3251. Social Theory

(270) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: SOCI 1001, 1251, or 1501; open to juniors or higher.

Sociological theory for advanced undergraduates.

3251W. Social Theory

(270W) Prerequisite: SOCI 1001, 1251, or 1501; ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3271. Topics in the Sociology of Culture

(266) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher. May be repeated for credit with a change in topic. 

A variable topics course focusing on issues in the sociology of culture.  Specific topics may include: production of culture and the culture industry, popular culture, the sociology of the arts, cultural representation of deviance and social problems, women and culture, film and the developing world, material culture, and cultural constructions of social inequality.

3307. Drugs and Society

(219) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Drug taking as a social problem, the "war on drugs," drug education, treatment and prevention approaches, the illegal drug market.

3307W. Drugs and Society

(219W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3311. Deviant Behavior

(217) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Behaviors labeled by society as deviant, such as crime, prostitution, suicide, alcoholism, drug abuse, and mental illness.

3311W. Deviant Behavior

(217W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3315. Juvenile Delinquency

(218) Second semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

An overview of sociological theory and research on juvenile delinquency.

3315W. Juvenile Delinquency

(218W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3351. Society and the Individual

(230) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Modern social systems and the behavior, psychological organization, and development of individuals.

3351W. Society and the Individual

(230W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3401. Social Organization

(260) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Social structure, processes, and social change in institutions such as the family, education, religion, economy, and polity.

3401W. Social Organization

(260W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3403. Complex Organizations

(265) Either semester.  Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Theories and research on complex organizations in society; relationship between organizations and their environments; varieties of organizational forms, structures, and processes.

3403W. Complex Organizations

(265W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3407. Energy, Environment, and Society

(259) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Sociological perspectives on energy production, distribution and consumption, environmental, and social organization.

3407W. Energy, Environment, and Society

(259W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3411. Work and Occupations

(274) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Occupations, jobs, careers, and the professions, and their effects on the division of labor, on the workplace, and on individuals in the labor force.

3421. Class, Power, and Inequality

(268) (Also offered as HRTS 3421.) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Inequality and its consequences in contemporary societies.

3421W. Class, Power, and Inequality

(268W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3425. Social Welfare and Social Work

(285) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Social welfare needs and programs; introduction to social work as a professional service.

3429. Sociological Perspectives on Poverty

(249) (Also offered as HRTS 3429.) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Poverty in the U.S. and abroad, its roots, and strategies to deal with it.

3429W. Sociological Perspectives on Poverty

(249W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.  

3451. Sociology of Health

(247) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Social factors related to health, illness, and health-care systems.

3451W. Sociology of Health

(247W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.  

3453. Women and Health

(241) (Also offered as WS 3453.) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Social factors shaping women's health, health care, and their roles as health-care providers.

3453W. Women and Health

(241W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.  

3457. Sociology of Mental Illness

(244) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Madness in human societies; its history, incipience, epidemiology, etiology, institutionalization, and other issues.

3457W. Sociology of Mental Illness

(244W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.  

3459. Aging in American Society

(248) (Also offered as HDFS 3240.) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher. May be used only once to meet the distribution requirements.

Social gerontology: the role and status of older people in a changing society.

3459W. Aging in American Society

(248W) (Also offered as HDFS 3240W.) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3471. Sociology of Education

(288) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Education and society: primary schools through universities as agencies for social selection and socialization.

3471W. Sociology of Education

(288W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3501. Ethnicity and Race

(240) (Also offered as AFAM 3501.) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Ethnic groups, their interrelations, assimilation, and pluralism. Culture, and identity that arise from differences in race, religion, nationality, region, and language.

3501W. Ethnicity and Race

(240W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3503. Prejudice and Discrimination

(243) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Sources and consequences of racial and ethnic prejudice and discrimination.

3503W. Prejudice and Discrimination

(243W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3505. White Racism

(236) (Also offered as HRTS 3505 and AFAM 3505.) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

The origin, nature, and consequences of white racism as a central and enduring social principle around which the United States and other modern societies are structured and evolve. CA 4.

3511. American Jewry

(242) (Also offered as JUDS 3511.) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Historical, demographic, organizational, and sociopsychological perspectives.

3511W. American Jewry

(242W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.  

3521. Sociology of Religion

(253) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Religion in social context: differences of church, denomination, sect, and cult; religious culture, organization, and ideology.

3521W. Sociology of Religion

(253W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3601. Sociology of Gender

(252) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Explores processes contributing to social construction of gender; examines the theories used to explain the system of inequality in the United States with particular attention to the intersection with gender, race, ethnicity, sexuality, and class; and evaluates how men and women are differently constituted in the family, in education, work, politics, and language.

3601W. Sociology of Gender

(252W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3621. Sociology of Sexualities

(245) (Also offered as WS 3621.) Either semester. Three credits. Not open for credit to students who have taken SOCI 246 or 246W.

Explores the social organization, construction, and politics of sexualities; particular focus on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer experiences and the intersection of sexualities, gender, race, and class. CA 4.

3621W. Sociology of Sexualities

(245W) (Also offered as WS 3621W.) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800.  Not open for credit to students who have taken SOCI 246 or 246W. CA 4.

3651. Sociology of the Family

(250) Either semester. Three credits.

The American family, its changing forms and values, and the social conditions influencing it: mate selection, marital adjustment, the responsibilities and opportunities of parenthood, and resolving family crises.

3651W. Sociology of the Family

(250W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800. 

3701. The Developing World

(258) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Social and economic conditions in Asia, Africa, and Latin America and attempts to improve them.

3701W. The Developing World

(258W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher. 

3703. Modern Africa

(226) (Also offered as AFAM 3703.) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Cultural patterns, social structure, and political conflict in Sub-saharan Africa.

3703W. Modern Africa

(226W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3801. Political Sociology

(269) (Also offered as HRTS 3801.) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Social analysis of power, democracy and voting, society and the state, and political economy

3801W. Political Sociology

(269W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.  

3821. Social Movements and Social Change

(290) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Revolutionary, reform, reactionary, religious, communal, and escapist movements.

3821W. Social Movements and Social Change

(290W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3825. African Americans and Social Protest

(235) (Also offered as HRTS 3825 and AFAM 3825.) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Social and economic-justice movements, from the beginning of the Civil Rights movement to the present.

3831. Human Rights in the United States

(215) (Also offered as HRTS 3831.) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Sociological analyses of human rights issues in the United States, including economic, racial, and gender justice; prisoner's rights and capital punishment; the role of the United States in international human rights agreements and treaties; and struggles on behalf of human rights.

3833. Topics in Sociology and Human Rights

(292) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisites and recommended preparation vary; open to juniors or higher. With a change in content, may be repeated for credit.

Variable topics covering theoretical and empirical examination of social, political, economic, legal, and/or cultural issues of human rights from a sociological perspective.

3841. Public Opinion and Mass Communication

(267) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Contemporary public opinion and ideology, the process and effects of mass communication, and the measurement of public opinion.

3841W. Public Opinion and Mass Communication

(267W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3901. Urban Sociology

(280) (Also offered as URBN 3275.) Either semester. Three credits.

Social and physical organization of cities and suburbs.

3901W. Urban Sociology

(280W) (Also offered as URBN 3275W.) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800.

3903. Urban Problems

(281) (Also offered as URBN 3276.) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Social problems of American cities and suburbs, with emphasis on policy issues.

3903W. Urban Problems

(281W) (Also offered as URBN 3276W.) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3905. Urbanization

(282) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

The rapid urbanization of the world's population: its causes, characteristics and consequences.

3905W. Urbanization

(282W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3907. City Life

(283) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Ways of life in large cities and suburbs and the culture of modernism.

3907W. City Life

(283W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3911. Communities

(284) Second semester.  Three credits.  Three class periods.  Prerequisite: One introductory level sociology course or instructor consent; open to juniors or higher.

Sociological analysis of processes and structures of various kinds of communities.

3971. Population

(255) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.

Size, growth, composition and distribution of population; social factors in population change.

3971W. Population

(255W) Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3990. Internship: Field Experience

Either semester. Variable (1-6) credits. Supervised field experience. Hours by arrangement, 42 hours per semester per credit. Prerequisite: Instructor consent required; open to juniors or higher. Corequisite: Must be taken with SOCI 3991/W, unless continuing an internship already initiated. Repeatable to a maximum of six credits. Students taking this course will be assigned a final grade of S (satisfactory) or U (unsatisfactory).

3991. Internship: Research Paper

Both semesters. Variable (1-2) credits. Prerequisite: Instructor consent required; open to juniors or higher.  Corequisite: Must be taken with SOCI 3990. May be repeated twice, up to 3 credits maximum.

Research paper based on Field Experience.

3991W. Internship: Research Paper

Both semesters. Variable (1-2) credits. Prerequisite: Instructor consent required; ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher. Corequisite: Must be taken with SOCI 3990. May not be repeated.

3993. Foreign Study

(293) Either or both semesters. Credits and hours by arrangement up to a maximum of six credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher. With a change in content, may be repeated for credit. Consent of Department Head required, preferably prior to the student's departure.

Special topics in a foreign-study program.

3995. Special Topics

(298) Either semester. Credits and hours by arrangement. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher. With a change in content, may be repeated for credit. A lecture course. Topics vary by semester.

3996W. Senior Thesis in Sociology

(294W) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: Fifteen credits in sociology and consent of instructor and Department Head; ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 3800; open to juniors or higher.

3998. Variable Topics

(297) Either semester. Three credits. Open to juniors or higher. With a change in topic, may be repeated for credit. Prerequisites and recommended preparation vary.

3999. Independent Study

(299) Either semester. Credits and hours by arrangement. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher. Open only with consent of instructor. With a change in content, may be repeated.