Course Descriptions
SOC 131 PRINCIPLES OF SOCIOLOGY
Introduction to the discipline with a focus on concepts and principles used in the study of group life, social institutions and social processes. This course is a prerequisite to many other courses taught in the department. It is required of all Sociology majors and minors. Credit 3
SOC 168 INTRODUCTION TO ETHNIC STUDIES
A survey of the field and problems of Ethnic Studies as an area of knowledge and investigation. The instruction is to be interdisciplinary in nature, offered by faculty members from appropriate departments. Major considerations of the entire Ethnic Studies field will be defined and analyzed. Although the course is not prerequisite to any of the others, students are strongly urged to take it before attempting other Ethnic Studies courses. Credit will be given in the department of Political Science or Sociology, depending upon its best utilization in the individual degree plan. Credit 3
SOC 264 SOCIAL PROBLEMS
Application of sociological principles to the major problems of contemporary society. Special attention is given to mental disorders, use and abuse of drugs and alcohol, sexual deviance and crime and delinquency; problems of youth and the family in contemporary society; institutionalized aspects of inequality, prejudice and discrimination; and population and environmental concerns. Credit 3
SOC 266 SOCIOLOGY OF SPORT
This course utilizes the application of the social science mode of inquiry to the study of the sociocultural characteristics of sport. These include examination of the cultural, economic, political ad structural factors (i.e., gender, race, etc.) which form salient aspects of today's sport activities at various levels. Focus is placed on the characteristics of sports and how these characteristics both reflect and have impacted upon the social climate of a given society. Credit 3
SOC 333 AGE AND INEQUALITY
This course underscores the influence of age on income and wealth, status and power. It includes an examination of institutional discrimination against the young and the old, as well as individual discrimination, such as child and elder abuse. It studies the relationship between life-cycle changes and changes in placement in the class, status and power stratification system. Prerequisite: SOC 261 or consent of instructor. Credit 3
SOC 335 GENDER AND INEQUALITY
This course studies the influence of gender on socialization and placement in class, status and power stratification systems. It includes an analysis of institutional discrimination against women in major social institutions such as religion, education, family, heath care and work, and an examination of the feminization of poverty. Prerequisite: SOC 261 or consent of instructor. Credit 3
SOC 336 SOCIAL CHANGE AND DEVELOPMENT
An analysis of world population growth and the associated problems of social development: urbanization, unemployment, secularization, hunger, and war. Prerequisite: Upper division standing. Credit 3
SOC 337 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY
The purpose of this course is to examine "environment" as a social and cultural issue. Topics discussed include an overview of the field of environmental sociology, traditional sociological perspectives on environmental issues, paradigmatic implications of environmental sociology, the development of environmental movement, the rise of environmental deterioration, public attitudes toward environmental issues, national environmental policies, and social impact assessment. Prerequisite: Upper division standing. Credit 3
SOC 343 SOCIAL STATISTICS
Examination of basic concepts, techniques and data necessary for an adequate understanding of social structure and change: observational, experimental, sample survey, and demographic. It includes an introduction to computers, computer software, and social statistics. Credit 3
SOC 364 SOCIAL INEQUALITY(formerly SOC 464, Social Stratification)
This survey course studies the distribution of three primary resources: class, status and power. Special attention is given to the way birth-ascribed statuses such as age, sex and race interact with class, status and power stratification systems. Special attention is also given to the popular and scientific explanations of inequality, especially with respect to the high and low ends of the distribution of income and wealth. Prerequisite: SOC 261 or consent of instructor. Credit 3
SOC 365 SOCIOLOGY OF HEALTH AND ILLNESS
Processes by which persons assume, act, and relinquish the sick role; interrelationships between patient and family, doctors, and hospital; quality and quantity of health services distributed by class and race. Problems posed by "mental illness": diagnosis, treatment, and involuntary commitment. Credit 3
SOC 366 RESEARCH METHODS IN SOCIOLOGY
This course is designed to introduce the student to the logic and character of scientific and alternative means of social inquiry. Examines the function of observation, concept formation, proposition arrangement and testing of theory as components of the scientific process in sociology. Prerequisite: SOC 261. Credit 3
SOC 376 RURAL AND URBAN SOCIOLOGY
Examines the human community in its ecological, cultural, and associational aspects. The folk, rural, and urban community considered from the standpoint of various sociological perspectives. Special attention is given to social change, including decision-making as it affects local life. Credit 3
SOC 378 SOCIALIZATION AND SOCIAL CONTROL
Examines structures and processes through which social systems (e.g., groups, institutions, organizations, and societies) secure and maintain order and social control. Sociological concepts, principles and theories used to explain sanctioning in various social systems whereby people are socialized to want to act the way they have to act for social order to prevail. Credit 3
SOC 381 CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY
Cultural and social organization among primitive or preliterate societies; marriage, property, religion, magic and tribal control. Significance of the study of primitive cultures for understanding of urban industrial civilizations. Credit 3
SOC 384 ECONOMY AND SOCIETY
Changing employment opportunities for college graduates; blue collar, white collar, and professional lifestyles; origins of industrial society and effects on social stratification, minorities, and the family. Issues such as workers' control of industry, relationships between industry and government. Sociology of labor relations and personnel management. Credit 3
SOC 386 SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY
The course is a historical survey of the most significant 19th and 20th century developments in sociology with emphasis placed on the relevance of classic sociological theory in the formation and development of contemporary sociological theory. The characteristics and origins of major sociological schools are explored including the study of the works and ideas of Emile Durkheim, Karl Marx and Max Weber. Additionally, illustrations of the basic assumptions of Neo-Marxism, Critical theory, Interactionism, functionalism and Postmodernism are provided. Accounts of these paradigms are presented together with their theoretical ramifications. Prerequisite: SOC 261. Credit 3
SOC 392 SOCIAL MOVEMENTS
Examines the characteristics of social movements useful to the sociological study and interpretations of major social trends involving both social and cultural change in community and society. Theoretical frameworks for understanding and the causes, types, and theories of change in contemporary society are given special attention. Prerequisite: SOC 261. Credit 3
SOC 438 SOCIOLOGY OF DISASTER
Disasters are fundamentally social events. This course will investigate how culture, inequality, social structure and processes shape how people face disasters, how they respond and the ways in which they recover or fail to do so. How disasters may lead to rapid social change will also be explored. Students will learn the foundations of sociology of disaster theory, will examine a number of case studies and will apply theory to the in-depth study of one event. Writing enhanced. Prerequisite: SOC 131. Credit 3
SOC 462 MARRIAGE AND THE FAMILY
A sociological examination of marriage and family life. Problems of courtship, mate selection, and marriage adjustment in modern American society. Credit 3
SOC 465 RACE/ETHNIC INEQUALITY
This course examines ethnic stratification, i.e., placement in the class, status and power stratification systems on the basis of birth ascribed and socially defined race/ethnicity, and of the ideologies which serve to rationalize these inequalities. The course includes study of institutional discrimination -- ethnic stratification in major social institutions such as education, health care, religion and work. Broadly defined, ethnic stratification includes inequality based on other birth ascribed statuses, such as age and gender. Prerequisite: SOC 261 or consent of instructor. Credit 3
SOC 468 SOCIOLOGY OF RELIGION
Identity and comparative understanding of religious beliefs and practices of peoples of the world. Attention is given to particular archaeological and ethnographic problems in the study of religion. Special emphasis is given to the functional perspective in examining the relation between religious beliefs and other institutions in selective social systems. Credit 3
SOC 475 READINGS IN SOCIOLOGY
Designed for advanced students in the behavioral sciences who are capable of independent study. Registration upon written approval of the chair of the department and of the instructor directing the course. Credit 3
SOC 476 SOCIOLOGY OF DEMOGRAPHY AND MIGRATION
This course introduces of the field of demography and explores theories and processes of population movement and migration. Special attention is given to effect of globalization on migration, migration streams, documented and undocumented migration, and assimilation of migrants. This course will focus on understanding the similarities and differences among immigrant groups who migrate with different social and human capital. The course also addresses immigration policies in the U. S. Credit 3
SOC 477 BUREAUCRACY AND WORK
Examines the structure and functioning of large-scale organizations and bureaucratic social systems in various institutional settings (e.g., business or industry, health, education, religion, military, prison and political). Attention is given to personal and social consequences of organizational involvement. Credit 3
SOC 485 READINGS IN CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY
Designed for advanced students in the behavioral sciences who are capable of independent study. Registration upon written approval of the chair of the department and of the instructor directing the course. Credit 3
SOC 499 SENIOR SEMINAR IN SOCIOLOGY
The content of this seminar will have alternate emphasis placed, at the discretion of the instructor, on special areas or issues of Sociology meeting the career needs of Sociology majors, minors, and/or prospective teachers of Sociology. Prerequisite: Advanced standing in Sociology. Credit 3