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09W: 11
This course will consider the relationship between law and society,
analyzing law as an expression of cultural values, a reflection of social and
political structure, and an instrument of social control and social change.
Complimenting this general perspective will be a more detailed examination of
selected legal institutions, such as the court system, the police, regulatory
agencies, and the legal profession. Readings will include both theoretical
works and empirical studies. Prerequisite: Sociology 1 or 2, or permission of
the instructor. Dist: SOC; WCult: W. King.
21. Introduction to Political Sociology
Not offered in the period 07F through 09S
This course examines the relationship between the social and political order
with a view towards identifying and examining how politics is shaped by other
events in societies and in turn shapes them. Readings and discussions will
focus on the close connection between the political arena and its actors and
social institutions. Attention is given to sociological aspects of the family,
communities, economic institutions, and political parties. Special emphasis is
placed on the dynamics of political power, participation, socialization,
communication, and recruitment. Dist: SOC; WCuIt: W.
09W: 11
What is money? How do people find jobs? Are markets competitive or
cooperative? This course examines these and other questions about how economic
behavior is organized, operates and changes historically. It recognizes that
economic activity is socially organized and guided by political, cultural and
normative as well as economic principles. It explores how economic activity
takes many forms, including groups of small competitive firms, large and
powerful corporations, and diffuse networks of companies tied together through
inter-firm alliances, business associations and other sorts of cooperative and
competitive relations with each other, unions, government agencies and
universities. It examines the organization and operation of different kinds of
markets, different theories of how economic activity is organized, and the
social factors that contribute to economic success or failure. It also
investigates how managers, unions, policy makers and governments are coping
with recent economic challenges, such as those posed by technological change
and the globalization of economic activity. Because this is a course in
economic sociology-not economics-no background in economics is required. Dist:
SOC; WCult: W. Campbell.
23. Power, Politics, and the State (course
syllabus)
Not offered in the period from 07F through 09S
In response to economic globalization, distrust of government, inequality,
budget deficits, inflation, unemployment and other problems, the United States
experienced a conservative shift in domestic policy during the 1980s and 1990s.
This course explores the political struggles over these problems that led to
the "right turn" in U.S. policy. To that end it explores several theoretical
perspectives and research findings. In particular, the course examines how
political and economic institutions, business, union, citizens, political
elites, think tanks and political parties affected national policy in these
problem areas. To highlight the unique features of the American case we will
occasionally examine how other advanced capitalist countries tried to cope with
similar problems. Dist: SOC; WCult: W. Campbell.
24. Education and Inequality (course
syllabus)
07F: 2A
This course is a survey of selected sociological concepts, theories,
and their applications to problems in the sociology of education. The
field of sociology of education is too broad to cover in a single quarter
course. Instead we will focus on a few topics in the field. This
focus will provide the opportunity to analyze some highly controversial issues
in a systematic and rigorous manner, and examine areas of current research
interest and activity. Major topic areas include theories of achievement
and educational attainment, tracking, inequality in school, inequality in the
classroom, school organization, public vs. private: the great voucher debate,
and race. Not open to Freshmen. Prerequisite: one introductory Social Science
course. Dist: SOC. WCult: W. Herman.
25. Democracy and Democratization in Developing Countries (course
syllabus)
08S, 09S: 10
The road to democratization in most countries in recent years has been
marked by large-scale social movements. This course will begin with an
examination of various theories of democracy and democratization . It will
specifically analyze the role of class, culture, ideology, and religion in the
democratization process. Finally, we will apply the theories to the three cases
of South Korea, Indonesia, and Iran, three countries with mixed successes. Open
to all classes. Dist: INT; WCuIt: NW. Parsa.
09W: 2
Social Science and popular press literature of the past decade suggests that
trust is the cause of many "good" things, such as the source of group
cooperations, the basis of democracy, the foundation of the market economy, the
source of national economic power, the key, even, to morality itself. Given its
relation to all things good, it is not surprising that some commentators speak
with alarm when they claim that "trust is declining" in society. Is trust
declining? What exactly is trust anyway, and why does it matter? In this course
we explore the concept of trust by reading and discussing theoretical and
empirical research from across the social sciences. Prerequisite: Sociology 1
or 2 and one other Sociology course. Dist: SOC. Anthony.
27. Organizations in Society (course
syllabus)
08F: 10
Much of modern life takes place within a wide variety of complex, formal
organizations, from multi-national corporations, to churches, from social
service agencies to volunteer organizations. In this course we will learn about
the structure, internal processes, and environments of different forms of
organization. Our focus is on sociological theories and empirical research,
from a macro-sociological perspective. Our objective will be to learn about how
organizations work, as well as to gain an understanding of the impact of
organizations on society and in our lives. Dist: SOC; WCult: W. Anthony.
28. Health Care and Health Care Policy (course
syllabus)
08W: 12
This course examines the health care system in the United States, focusing
on the roles and operations of health care institutions and providers. The
objective throughout the course is to develop a comprehensive and critical
perspective on current fields and issues in medical sociology. The course
consists of five sections, progressing from macro-level to micro-level analyses
of the delivery of health care, and returning to the macro-level to discuss
recent policy changes and debates in the health care system. Dist SOC; WCult:
W. Anthony.
30. Deviance and Social Control (course
syllabus)
09S: 12
Students of society seem always to have been fascinated with explaining why
some members deviate from commonly accepted rules. This course examines the
major sociological explanations of deviance. We will explore the identification
of certain behaviors as deviant, the process of becoming deviant, the
management of a deviant identity, and the development of deviant subcultures.
The course concludes with an examination of societal reactions to and the
treatment of deviance and deviants. Examples of deviant and social control
activities that may be considered include prostitution, religious cults, youth
gangs, witchcraft, the handicapped, and asylums. Open to all classes. Dist:
SOC; WCuIt: W. King.
31. Prisons: The American Way of Punishment (course
syllabus)
08S: 12
Prison as a place of confinement, punishment and rehabilitation is the focus
of this survey of the history, philosophies, structure and operation of
corrections in the U. S. The course critically examines the concept of prison
as a total institution and its panopticism as a model of social control that
extends to other social contexts. The course will explore the world of inmates
and their strategies of subcultural adaptations to and resistance against
incarceration; as well as the role of the prison staff. Particular attention
will be paid to how gender, race, economics and politics structure prison
policies and dynamics. Specific topics may include cultural representations of
prison life, implications of current sentencing practices, privatization and
the prison-industrial complex, incarcerated mothers, capital punishment,
juvenile justice, and alternatives to incarceration. Open to all classes. DIST:
SOC; WCult: W. King.
32. The Social Meanings of Home (course
syllabus)
08W: 11
This course is an exploration of the economic, cultural, social and
political dynamics of "home" in contemporary U. S. society. The concept, "home"
invariably invokes multiple and sometimes conflicting ideas -- a physical
dwelling, family, economic property, birthplace, nationality, environment,
haven, etc.. We speak of "home sweet home," "dream home," "home is where the
heart is," "sweet home Alabama" "homeland," "there's no place like home," and
"homies." In the course, we will consider the home as a social context that
profoundly shapes our personal and collective identities, gender roles and
interpersonal relationships, class status and divisions, racial-ethnic
memberships and conflicts, plus values and political ideals. The course will
emphasize the homestead as economic property and the implications of its
location, design, artifacts and domestic lifestyles for the cultivation of
model subjects, consumers or citizens. Theoretical, empirical and
interpretative materials in the course may touch on subjects as varied as
housing and home ownership, shopping and hyperconsumption, food & kitchen
culture, family values and the modeling of marriage and family life, the home
improvement industry, and home and self makeovers on reality television. Dist:
SOC. WCult: W. King
39. SPECIAL TOPICS IN SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS AND ORGANIZATION
07F: 12 08W: 2A 08S: 11, 2
08F: 11, 2 09W: 2A
08F: 2
Health care systems are unique to the culture and history of each nation.
However, all face similar challenges. This course examines health systems
across developed and developing nations. Comparisons will be made in terms of:
(a) population health, (b) health care organization, (c) health care financing,
(d) health professionals and their patients, and (e) health system performance
and reform strategies. Understanding how health care is delivered around the
world will lead to a better understanding of the relative merits and
limitations of various systems. The course is structured as a seminar in which
students will be expected to discuss course readings in-depth, as well as
develop and present their own research on specific countries of interest.
Anthony.
39. Poverty, the New Economy and Employment Policy (Identical to Public
Policy 81.5) (course
syllabus)
08W, 09W: 2A
The most obvious solution to the problem of poverty is to give someone a
job. More than four decades of employment programs have shown, however, that
this is not as easy as it sounds. Recent changes in the economy (downsizing,
globalization, technological change) make this situation even more challenging.
This course examines the past and future of employment policies as poverty
alleviation strategies. It brings together theories of poverty and employment,
an analysis of current trends in the economy, and an overview of past and
current employment programs. Hollister.
39. The Sociology of Culture
Not offered in the period from 07F through 09S
Sociology of culture is a broad, fast-moving, and fuzzily-bounded subfield,
with almost infinite possibilities exploring the relationship between culture
and society. In this course, we will examine sociological theories of
cultural production, reception, and dissemination, applying these theoretical
approaches to topics including class, culture, and power; art worlds; mass
media; music; film or novels; and political culture, including online political
culture such as blogs. Clawson.
08S: 2
This course considers the family as a central social institution structuring
our lives. Family life is often considered quintessentially private, but it is
also shaped by broader, seemingly impersonal forces. What is the relationship
between family life and social arrangements outside the family (e.g. in the
workplace, the economy, the government)? How is the division of labor in the
family related to gender, class, and racial or ethnic identity or inequality?
Topics will include the gendered division of household labor, child rearing,
the difficult balance between work and family obligations, single parenthood,
and divorce. Clawson.
07F: 12
This course examines the sociological dimensions of work, occupations, and
employment relations. Specific topics may include: the structure of work,
historical and contemporary changes in the organizational context of work, ways
in which work both creates and reflects social divisions, occupations and
professions, occupational socialization and choice, and the intersection of
work and family. Hollister
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