Undergraduate Course Atlas - Fall 2007
SOC 101, Introduction to General Sociology
Condron. MWF 9:35-10:25, Max: 60 (staggered for pre-registration purposes)
Content: The social world in which we live shapes, and often constrains, human behavior. At the same time, we construct that social world. With these guiding assumptions in mind, this course provides students with an introduction to the various concepts and theories that sociologists use in attempting to explain how society works. What makes us human? Is it more useful to think of society as harmonious or conflict-ridden? Should we generalize about people? How does our social context influence how we interact with others? Why do people commit deviant and criminal acts? What is the meaning and significance of class, race/ethnicity, and gender in the U.S.? In this course, students learn what Sociology has to say about these and many other questions.
SOC 101, Introduction to General Sociology
Gentry, TTh 1-2:15, Max: 60 (staggered for pre-registration purposes)
Content: The Introduction to General Sociology course is designed to provide students a broad overview of the individual and our larger society. Specifically, we will examine the great paradox of how we as individuals experience both social constraints and social construction of our own reality in key social institutions. We will explore how sociologists think about a variety of issues and topics, including social groups and organizations, deviance and crime, race, class, and gender, as well as family, education, the economy, and healthcare. In the process, you will locate your own sociological perspectives and make discoveries that will help you make sense of your social world. The course is divided into four parts. During part one, we will establish a foundation for studying society and social life by introducing students to: (a) the sociological perspective of studying society; (b) the research processes common in sociology; (c) major theoretical perspectives used by sociologists in analyzing and describing social issues in our society; (d) the major dimensions of culture in our society; and (e) the socialization process using Athe American teenager @ as a case study. During part two we will examine social groups and social control by introducing students to a framework for integrating key components of society Cincluding social institutions, social groups, and statuses and role sets. During part three we will examine social inequality through the lens of race, class, and gender as three central concepts that influences essentially all other aspects of people's lives. During part four we will examine select social institutions including: (a) family and intimate relationships; (b) education; (c) the economy and work; and (d) health, health care, and disability.
Particulars: There are two multiple choice exams, an on-line essay assignment, a 10-page book analysis; and a race, class, and gender film assignment. Attendance is taken randomly throughout the course.
SOC 190, Introduction to Sociology
Condron, MWF 11:45-12:35, Max: 15 (Freshmen only)
Content: The social world in which we live shapes, and often constrains, human behavior. At the same time, we construct that social world. With these guiding assumptions in mind, this course provides students with an introduction to the various concepts and theories that sociologists use in attempting to explain how society works. What makes us human? Is it more useful to think of society as harmonious or conflict-ridden? Should we generalize about people? How does our social context influence how we interact with others? Why do people commit deviant and criminal acts? What is the meaning and significance of class, race/ethnicity, and gender in the U.S.? In this seminar, first-year students learn what Sociology has to say about these and many other questions in a small and interactive setting.
SOC 190, Making Sense of Globalization
Boli, MWF 10:40-11:30, Max: 15 (Freshmen only)
Content: Global culture: big Macs in Paris, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a Mexican telenovela soap opera. Global organizations: Amnesty International, CARE, the United Nations. Global economy: Ford buys Volvo, Nike has shoes made in factories in Malaysia, the Euro becomes a major world currency. These and other aspects of globalization are the focus; making sense of global change, and understanding global processes in everyday life, is the goal. Important topics include connections between the global and the local; globalization's homogenizing and diversifying effects; the mass media and popular culture; global politics and social movements; and global problems, such as inequality, environmental degradation, ethno-nationalism, and AIDS.
Particulars: Readings include books and articles on global culture, economics, politics, organizations, and problems. Requirements include one or two exams, short-essay exercises, and a term project studying a global process or organization. Students will also be required to gather everyday evidence of global processes throughout the term.
SOC 201, Organizations and Society
Putnam Rankin. MWF 2-2:50, Max: 25
Content: Modern society is an organizational society. We are born in organizations, and we die in them. In between, our lives are shaped by organizational entities, such as schools, universities, business firms, the music and entertainment industry, government agencies, prisons, labor unions, social movement organizations, and political parties. This course provides an introduction to the central authors and themes in the sociology of organizations. Many sociologists try to answer the question: What is the role of organizations is in our society? Throughout this course we will examine this question and come up with answers of our own by reading many different texts. For example, we will investigate topics as diverse as the decisions surrounding the launching of the Challenger space craft, Mary Kay and her role as a leader of her organization, Hurricane Katrina and the aftermath, the HP and Enron scandals, Warren Buffet's donation to the Bill Gates Foundation, and rebuilding during the Iraq war. These topics will inform our understanding of the unique sociological perspective of organizations.
SOC 213, Sociology of the Family
Carry, TTh 11:30-12:45, Max: 25 (staggered for pre-registration purposes)
Content: This course is designed to highlight important contemporary changes in society & the family, and explore the choices that are available to family members as well as constraints that often limit our choices, including critical issues that confront individuals and the family of the twenty first century. We will examine family roles, responsibilities and obligations over the life span. Specifically, we will look at (1) defining the family; (2) intimate relationships; (3) gender, marriage & work issues; (4) family diversity; (5) parenting and parenthood; (6) childhood and child rearing; (7) intimate violence; (8) divorce and remarriage; (9) family transitions in adulthood; (10) changing American families
SOC 214, Class, Status and Power
Freeman, MWF 10:40-11:30, Max: 25
Content: The title of this course is derived from the notion that society is stratified into groups according to class, status, and power. We will study sociological explanations of a variety of social phenomena related to the question of who gets what and why. Topics include: Patterns of wealth and income inequality in the U.S.; theories of why inequality exists; the class structure of the U.S.; elites and power; poverty; the intersection of class, race/ethnicity, and gender; privilege and oppression; the role of education in stratification; global inequality; human agency and social change. The material covered in this course will encourage you to think critically as you continuously try to make sense of inequality in the world around you.
SOC 215, Social Problems of Modern Society
Sanli, MWF 3-3:50, Max: 30 (staggered for pre-registration purposes)
Content: The purpose of this course is to provide students with an overall appraisal of what are considered to be social problems, and to discuss different views on their solutions. We examine these problems from a social constructionist perspective -- that society deems what is problematic for itself and that the media have a tremendous influence on the perception of social problems. Eight topics will be covered: economy and politics, race relations, poverty, the changing family, sexism/heterosexism/gender inequality, health care, education, and crime. We will cover these problems from an international perspective on occasion, but mostly our analyses will be rooted in the social problems of the United States.
Particulars: Three exams, an in-class debate, and one final paper
SOC 221, Culture and Society
Scott, TTh 11:30-12:45 Max: 40
Content: This course surveys major themes and questions in the sociology of culture in three broad sections. 1. We begin by developing a vocabulary that is drawn from a variety of approaches. We will begin to ask questions such as: What is culture? How does it work? 2. We then examine the classical treatments of culture by Marx, Weber, and Durkheim as well as contemporary applications of classical theories in such areas as religion and childrearing. 3. The final section of the course will consist of a close look at two substantive areas within the sociology of culture: work and technology.
Particulars: Three in-class exams; one research paper
SOC 225/WS 231, Sociology of Sex and Gender
Friedman, MWF 12:50-1:40, Max: SOC=15; WS=10; Total=25
Content: Sociologists distinguish between biological sex and socially constructed gender. This means that we are not born knowing how men and women are supposed to behave, but instead that we learn "appropriate" gender roles through socialization. In the first section of this course, we will address perspectives and theories on gender, raising questions such as: How is sex different from gender? How do we learn what is feminine and what is masculine? What is the relationship between gender roles and gender inequality? These questions and theories will form the basis for the remainder of the course, in which we will examine the relationship between gender and a range of issues including: race, class, education, the family, work, sexuality, crime/violence, media, public policy, and social movements. While the primary focus of the course will be on contemporary U.S. society, historical and global examples will be included to understand how gender is inherently shaped by the societal context.
SOC 230, Sociological Aspects of Health and Illness
Levinson, TTh 1-2:15, Max: 90
Content: The course investigates how culture and social position place people at risk for health and illness, factors influencing utilization of health services, patterns of interaction between health professionals and patients and the organizational dynamics of health institutions such as hospitals. Students will learn how and why the health care delivery system is changing and how those changes in structure may influence the practice of medicine, nursing and other health professions, and the experiences of patients.
Particulars: Tentatively planned are three, non-cumulative short-essay/answer exams
SOC 245, Individual and Society
Hegtvedt, TTh 1-2:15, Max: 40 (staggered for pre-registration purposes)
Content: This course focuses on how social factors influence individuals' beliefs, perceptions, and behaviors. We will examine how attitudes develop and change; how people perceive others and their environment, and what brings people together. In addition, we will dissect group processes involving conflict, power, status, and influence.
Particulars: 3 exams; and a paper
SOC 247, Racial and Ethnic Relations (Same as AAS 247)
Cherribi, TTh 8:30-9:45, Max: SOC=20, AAS=20; Total=40.
Content: This course focuses on historical and contemporary examples of race and ethnic relations and ethnic conflict. We discuss the changing ethnic and racial makeup of the US, in the context of theoretical debates in the literature and attention to comparative and historical analyses, and social structure. We also consider examples of ethnic relations and ethnic conflict abroad, focusing on country case studies. Readings: Electronically available articles and selected books.
Particulars: Attend class and engage in class discussions (10%), Mid term exam (30%), final exam (30%), 8 10 page research paper (30%)
SOC 266, Global Change
Lechner, MWF 9:35-10:25 Max: 40 (staggered for pre-registration purposes)
Content: We experience globalization when we watch a reality show invented in Europe or enjoy the play of foreign stars in the NBA, when we cultivate a taste for sushi or join an NGO that wants to save the rain forest. Globalization connects more and more people in many different ways across larger distances. By describing how local lives and global trends intertwine, this course examines the pervasive, significant, and contentious effects of globalization. It shows that global change makes the world smaller and more similar, but also creates new conflicts and differences. The course covers global aspects of topics ranging from sports and religion to business and law.
SOC 311S, Political Sociology
Hicks. TTh 10-1:15, Max: 15 (advanced seminar)
Content: One goal of this course is to provide an introductory overview of principal concepts, topics and theories of political sociology. Another is to use introduce students to the political facet of American society, at home (e.g., value traditions, civil war, welfare state social movements) and in the world (war, influence on globalization, terrorism).
Texts: Selected texts and electronically available articles.
SOC 337, Social Movements
Archibald, TTh 2:30-3:45, Max: 40 (staggered for pre-registration purposes)
Content: This course will introduce upper-division sociology students to the theoretical and empirical literature on social movements. Using an historical framework to investigate various research paradigms such as rational choice, resource mobilization, political process, and identity/NSM, we examine the development of theories linked to a variety of issues related to social movements and social movement outcomes (e.g., emergence of the first national social movements, growth of the social movement sector, mobilization and participation, social movement success and failure). We focus on U.S. and European social movements which include but are not limited to: civil rights, student, anti-war, new Christian right, anti-abortion/pro-choice, feminist, latino/latina, environmental, disability, nuclear freeze, gay and lesbian, new age, self-help/mutual-aid, survivalist, temperance (new and old), anti-tax, white supremacist and men's movement. While time constraints preclude covering the field of social movements in all its varied contexts, students will develop a general understanding of its theoretical development, as well as an appreciation for this unique sociological perspective.
SOC 348, Aging in Society
Keyes. TTh, 2:30-3:45, Max: 40 (staggered for pre-registration purposes)
Content: We are "beings unto death," said the existential philosopher Martin Heidegger. Aging is a process initiated as a fetus in the womb and ends in the death. The typical college students reading this course description have already used one-third to one-quarter of their life. Although programmed at the genetic and cellular levels, aging occurs with remarkable variability. Aging is influenced greatly by historical (when it occurs) and social (where it occurs) context, influencing everything from the meaning of growing old to the rate of development and senescence. This course introduces students to the nature and study of human aging. We will entertain an array of questions ranging from why we age, how we age, what ages (e.g., mental capacity, memory, relationships, emotions, cells, etc.), how society shapes the aging process, and how societies worldwide are being shaped by the aging of their populations.
Particulars: Final grade is based on a combination of exams, reaction/reflection papers, attendance, participation, and an extra credit option.
SOC 355, Social Research I
Holland, MWF, 12:50-1:40, Max: 20
Content: This course is a practical introduction to research methods commonly used by social scientists, including experiments, surveys, focus groups, participant observation, content analysis, and analysis of comparative-historical data. The course has three main objectives. First, you will learn how to translate theoretical issues into researchable sociological questions. Second, you will learn how to choose an appropriate research design and recognize its strengths and limitations. Third, you will gain actual experience in the collection and analysis of data. The overall goal is to provide you with the critical skills necessary for being a savvy consumer and producer of social research data
SOC 355WR, Social Research I
Mullis, MWF, 11:45-12:35, Max: 20
Content: This course is a practical introduction to research methods commonly used by social scientists, including experiments, surveys, focus groups, participant observation, content analysis, and analysis of comparative-historical data. The course has three main objectives. First, you will learn how to translate theoretical issues into researchable sociological questions. Second, you will learn how to choose an appropriate research design and recognize its strengths and limitations. Third, you will gain actual experience in the collection and analysis of data. The overall goal is to provide you with the critical skills necessary for being a savvy consumer and producer of social research data.
SOC 356S, Social Research II
Mullis, MW, 5-6:30, Max: 5 (permission required from instructor)
Content: This course is an introduction to descriptive and inferential statistics for univariate, bivariate, and multivariate analyses. Topics to be covered include summarizing evidence with graphs and numbers, developing and assessing composite measurements, generalizing from a sample to a population, and determining the relationship between two or more variables. The course will prepare you to understand and evaluate research reports in social science publications and in the news media. It will also enable you to do original research of your own. You will learn how to ask meaningful questions of quantitative data and to draw sound conclusions from the evidence you produce. The overall goal of the course is to increase your statistical literacy and prepare you to take additional courses in statistics and research methods.
Particulars: Exams, computer assignments
SOC 370A, Community Building and Social Change (Same as POLS 370A, CBSC 370A)
Rich, TT 10:00-11:15, Max: 20
[Written permission from the instructor required. Prerequisite for admission to the Community Building and Social Change Fellowship.]
See Political Science 370A for details.
SOC 389, Sociology of the Inner-City Child
Gentry, TTh 4-5:15, 4-5:15 Max: 40
Content: This course will provide students with a broad overview of the socialization process of inner-city children in America . The course is divided into five parts. First, we begin with a socio-historical review of the literature on inner-city children where we will explore key characteristics and demographics of inner-city youth from the 1900s to the present using C. Wright Mill = s sociological imagination as a conceptual framework. Second, we will apply individual, cultural, and structural explanations as it relates to understanding various dimensions of inner-city children, including the social construction of reality, strain theory, opportunity theory, social control theory, as well as race, class, and gender perspectives. Third, we will study socio-economic constructs of the lives of inner-city youth, using case studies in economic survival strategies, parenting strategies, and peer group influence. Fourth, we will examine key social institutions (family/neighborhoods, education, religion, government/juvenile justice, media/marketing, and health systems) in the lives of inner-city children. Finally, we will discuss social change strategies as grounded in human agency and structural constraints.
Particulars: Students will participate in a service learning project, as well as complete a group observation exercise. Students should expect to spend some time outside of class as a group. Other assignments include submitting three page reaction papers to assigned articles, and analyzing a film in which Hollywood socially constructs a reality of inner-city youth. Students will complete a final project in ONE of the following areas: a research project proposal, a community-based program proposal, or a policy analysis addressing some issue of interest related to the lives of inner-city youth. Attendance will count for a very small portion of your total grade.
SOC 389, Eye of the Storm: Inequalities and Hurricane Katrina
Sweeney, TTh 2:30-3:45, Max: 20
Content: This course uses Hurricane Katrina as a means to learn how inequities and privilege from race, class, and gender affect life opportunities. The course is divided into three sections. (1) Who remained in New Orleans and surrounding areas during the storm and why? (2) What was the response of the government, the public, and the media? and (3) What is happening now? The third section will focus on where residents located after the storm, what they are doing, and how race, class, and gender shaped and continue to shape the changing dynamics of the area since the storm. Throughout each section we will look at how this natural disaster differentially affected people based on their status with a particular focus on race. Students will learn about inequality through a sociological lens using the tools of multiple disciplines (e.g., social science literature, poetry, history, film/television, etc.) and the example of Hurricane Katrina.
Particulars: Attendance and participation mandatory, two exams, final research paper, class presentation, and several assignments.
SOC 389S, Economic Development in Africa (Same as AFS 389)
Cherribi/Vojta, Th, 4-7 p.m., TBA, Max: SOC=10; AFS=10; Total=20) (Permission required from instructor)
Content: "The greatest challenge that we face in this modern world, particularly young people like you, is what we do about the situation in the poor parts of the world", said President Carter in our 2004 course that focused on Mali.
Very often the situation facing low income countries (LICs) is difficult to grasp because is it complex and multifaceted. This course will investigate and scrutinize development theories, policies and practices in LICs, and work on concrete situations to enlist new paths for economic development. One of the objectives of the course is to question and understand cultural, political and social behaviors that impact economic behavior. How can insights from the social sciences and humanities help us to understand economic behavior and development? We will see how new perspectives on economic development may enhance practice, policy and theory. We will study how different forms of capital -- social, economic, cultural, symbolic, etc. -- may mobilize or demobilize the human or financial capital necessary for laying the foundations for sustainable development. Key practitioners in the field of development and finance will be invited to speak to the course, alongside a series of extracurricular master classes that will be held on topics such as financial stability and development standards. The countries on which the course will concentrate include Mali, Senegal, Liberia.
The course is open to all Emory College students interested in economic development in LICs. Students from other schools in Emory University require permission of the instructor. The goals of the course:
1. to research and develop a general framework which will improve low income countries' prospects for development and their ability to attract and stimulate responsible domestic and foreign investment and
2. to further identify, define, and implement specific projects that will contribute to their development.
Brief Bios of instructors:
Mr. Vojta is a former Vice Chairman of the Board, director, and member of the Management Committee of Bankers Trust Company and its parent, Bankers Trust New York Corporation. Currently Mr. Vojta is the Founder and Chairman of eStandardsForum, Inc., a financial services information company. He is also a Director of the Financial Services Forum, an organization formed by 21 of the nation's most prominent, diversified American financial firms. This organization focuses on regulatory, legislative, and public policy issues related to the global financial system. Mr. Vojta is a director of The Private Export Funding Corporation (PEFCO), Asur Corp., Urstadt-Biddle Properties, Sumitomo Bank Capital Markets, Center for International Private Enterprise, and International Executive Service Corps; a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the New York State Banking Board; a Fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies; Chairman of the Board of the Wharton Financial Institutions Center at the University of Pennsylvania; Chairman of the Financial Standards Foundation, the Yale International Institute of Corporate Governance, the Westchester Group, and the CAUX Roundtable. Mr. Vojta is also a Distinguished Fellow of the Center for the Study of Public Scholarship at Emory.
Sam Cherribi (PhD, University of Amsterdam) is Senior Lecturer in Sociology and Assistant to the Provost at Emory University. He is contributing editor for Global Vision and for Global Vision Africa, magazines aimed at business, government and NGO readers. He has been interviewed in many European, U.S. African and Middle Eastern news media. A former member of the Dutch Parliament (1994-2002), African development was in his portfolio. He was also Member of the Assembly of the Council of Europe (CoE) and Member of the Assembly of the West European Union (WEU) as well as the North-South Institute, which aims to bring aid from Europe to Africa. He also served as an observer in the Dutch delegation to the United Nations in New York.
SOC 389S, Language and Symbols of Mass Media
Franzosi, TTh 4-5:15, Max: 15 (advanced seminar)
Content: This course provides an introduction to the mass media in modern societies. Different aspects of media will be covered, ranging from the political economy of the media (we will try to answer such questions as: Who owns the media? and Can advertisers influence media programs?), to the media as news and entertainment. We will look at the world of advertising, its language, its messages, and its pictures. We will investigate the notion of media bias or the selection and presentation of news, with particular reference to gender, race, class, and nation states. We will take up the question: Is there more to the selection of news than time, space, and cultural constraints? In attempting to answer that question we will take up broader concepts, such as hegemony and ideology, and the role of language in shaping people's consciousness.
Particulars:
SOC 389S, Miscarriages of Justice
Griffiths, TTh 4-5:15, Max: 15 (advanced seminar)
Content: The principle "better ten guilty go free than even one innocent be wrongly convicted" is repeatedly invoked by the U.S. Supreme Court as the philosophical foundation of proof beyond a reasonable doubt. Yet history shows errors of justice that have resulted in punishment of the innocent. This course examines miscarriages of criminal justice, broadly defined. Throughout the semester, we examine polices and practices of the American criminal justice system that have had the unintended consequences of wrongful apprehension, prosecution, conviction, incarceration and even execution of the innocent. Moreover, we explore the collateral consequences of punishing 'false positives,' including implications for undermining the legitimacy of the criminal justice system and allowing impunity for culpable offenders who remain at-large.Particulars: (Tentative) Two exams, two 8-10 page papers, in-class presentations, active participation in seminar discussion
SOC 457WR, The Development of Sociological Theory
Jamerson, MWF 2-2:50, Max: 40
Content: This course introduces and critically analyzes the classical sociological theories of Smith, Marx, Weber, Durkheim, Simmel, DuBois, and Mead. Major themes include the rise of modern society, dimensions of stratification, social solidarity and identity, and the social nature of the individual and the self. Students will be asked to critically reflect on each theorist and use the various classical theories to understand and interpret contemporary social life.
Particulars: During the semester, students will be expected to view three assigned films outside of the scheduled class period. Evaluation for the course will be based on participation; an in-class midterm exam; a take-home final exam; extensive reading, writing and analysis exercises; and a short oral presentation.
SOC 465S, Social Interaction Processes
Hegtvedt & Johnson, TTh 10-11:15, Max: 15 (advanced seminar)
Content: This course is an advanced seminar in social psychology. It focuses on three fundamental processes: status, power, and justice. For each process, we will address both abstract theoretical ideas as well as relevant concrete issues. Moreover, we will move from a focus on informal groups, to formal groups, to larger groups such as communities. In regard to status, we will examine how status processes affect influence among group members and, importantly, how these processes reproduce and maintain inequality in groups and organizations. In regard to power, we will investigate how power processes affect exchange and decision-making in formal groups within organizations and in conflict situations. In regard to justice, we analyze how people differentially perceive and respond to injustice in the distribution of resources, procedures underlying decisions, or the treatment of individuals within a group.
Particulars: Projects: The class will collaborate on one project for each of the three processes. Papers: Three papers (each 8-10 pages), stemming from each class project
SOC 494RWR, Internship
Griffiths. TBA, Max: 10
(Written permission required from Griffiths prior to registering)
Content: The internship involves supervised work in a social service agency or other organization. Students work from 10 hours (4 credits) to 30 hours (12 credits) a week. Students -- in consultation with Dr. Griffiths -- locate their own internship settings. In doing so, they should identifity an internship that matches their research and/or career interests. Internship opportunities for past students include counseling in a program for adult offenders on probation, working in a family planning agency, working at the Centers for Disease Control, working at Cable News Network, etc.
Particulars: 1) A 10-page paper describing the social service agency or organization and the student's work in it. 2) A research paper from 20 (4 credits) to 40 (12 credits) pages long. 3) Attendance at two seminar meetings. 4) Individual meetings with the faculty supervisor. 5. Limited to declared Sociology majors only. 6) Written permission required from Griffiths prior to registering.
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