Sociology Course Offerings

UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY
Fall 2004 COURSE OFFERINGS

Undergraduate Courses | Graduate Courses | CGS Courses

UNDERGRADUATE COURSES

SOC 001-001 INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
SYLLABUS
Communication Within the Curriculum
General Requirement I: Society

Sociology provides a unique way to look at human behavior and the world. Sociology is the systematic study of the groups and societies in which people live. In this introductory course, we examine and analyze how social structures and cultures are created, maintained, and most importantly, how they affect behavior. The course deconstructs our taken for granted world of social interactions and behaviors and examines what theory and research can tell about human social behavior.

MW 11- 12 EDIN

Note: Registration required for both the lecture and a recitation

201 - REC F 11-12 STAFF
202 - REC F 12- 1 STAFF
203 - REC W 3- 4 STAFF
204 - REC M 4- 5 STAFF

SOC 001-301 INTRODUCTION TO THE SOCIAL SCIENCES
SYLLABUS
Benjamin Franklin Seminar
Freshman Seminar
Non-Honors Students Admitted by Permission

In an investigation into “nation building”, in accord with the logics of the 17th and 18th Century Enlightenment Project, we will read three short preparatory books and then embark on a very “close reading” of Alexis deTocqueville’s classic, Democracy in America 1835. Our current adventures in Iraq and Afghanistan will afford us weekly opportunities to consider a number of recent historical and comparative dimensions of ‘nation building’ in contrast with deT’s report, early in the 19th Century, as we observe our 2004 federal election and the campaign that brings us another chapter in the story of our own development as a democratic (and economic) republic; readers of a major newspaper, especially, will enjoy this prospectively measurable experience!

W 2-5 BERG

SOC 003-001 DEVIANCE & SOCIAL CONTROL
SYLLABUS
General Requirement I: Society

The first half of this class is devoted to examining several sociological theories of deviance, including: functionalism; opportunity theory; control theory; social constructionism; and Marxist theories. Topics include crime, sexual deviance, drug use, and cheating. In the second half of this class we will examine social control in greater depth by looking at formal and informal means of social control, including policing, schooling, medicalization, and stigmatization. Contemporary issues in which deviance and social control play a central role, such as the “War on Drugs,” terrorism, and gay and lesbian marriage, are explored as cases.

MWF 11-12 NOAKES

SOC 004-401 THE FAMILY
SYLLABUS
Fulfills College Quant. Data Analysis Requirement
General Requirement I: Society

This course provides an introduction to sociological perspectives on families and public policies aimed at families. The course begins with a brief overview of theoretical perspectives on families and family patterns and change over the last century. The second part of the course focuses on the private family–the one in which we live most of our personal lives. Focusing on the contemporary United States, we will explore variation in families by gender, race and ethnicity, class, and sexual orientation. We will consider: who marries and who doesn’t; who cohabits and who doesn’t; who divorces and who doesn’t; who does the housework and who doesn’t. In the last section of the course, we will consider issues involving the public family, in which adults perform tasks that are important to society (i.e. rearing children, caring for the elderly). We will examine how society (i.e. taxpayers) provides for families that cannot provide for themselves (welfare), and how society regulates family behavior (sexuality and teen childbearing). Throughout the course, we will critically examine the data and research on families and the interpretation and presentation of research on families by the media.

TR 1:30-3 LUNDY

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SOC 005-001 AMERICAN SOCIETY
SYLLABUS
General Requirement I: Society

An introduction to basic concepts in political science, anthropology, sociology and economics applied to our public and private corporate systems of government and the allocations of distributive justice by public and private “governors”. The course is targeted on gaining understandings of the nation we have already built with half an eye (1) on our current “nation building” adventures in Iraq and Afghanistan, and (2) on running commentaries about public and private policies during a presidential election campaign. These ‘extras’ will enable us to compare what has been truly settled, in our nation’s past, by way of our institutional development (in our readings) on one side and what remains problematical in our continuing development in the first years of the still new Century, on the other side. Six quizzes and an optional paper; the instructor will conduct pre-quiz reviews.

TR 12-1:30 BERG

SOC 006-401 RACE & ETHNIC RELATIONS
SYLLABUS

This course introduces students to the sociological study of race and ethnic relations. The topics covered in this course include immigration, the experience of the second generation, entrepreneurship, slums and ghettos, the urban "underclass" debate, and the endurance of inequality. Students will be encouraged to revisit what they think they know about race, ethnicity, and inequality and to compare it with what the scientific evidence demonstrates. We conclude the course by exploring how public policies and private practices have created opportunities for some to the exclusion of others.

TR 9-10:20 WHERRY

SOC 007-401 POPULATION AND SOCIETY
SYLLABUS
General Requirement I: Society

The course covers selected aspects of population and the study of demography, including social, economic, and political issues: population explosion, baby bust, population aging, abortion, teenage pregnancy, illegal aliens, racial classification and population and development.

TR 9-10:30 KOHLER

SOC 010-001 SOCIAL STRATIFICATION
General Requirement I: Society

The American Dream highlights opportunity for individuals to achieve success based on their own ability and initiative. How well does our society live up to this ideal? Who gets ahead, and who falls behind? Topics include factors that affect life chances in contemporary society: education, social class, race, ethnicity and gender.

TR 3-4:20 JACOBS

SOC 041-401 GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT IN ASIA
SYLLABUS
Freshman Seminar

This seminar will focus on gendered experiences of socio-economic development in Asia. We will discuss prominent theories about the relationship between gender stratification and development, considering frameworks that emphasize the role of economic growth, state policies, global development agencies, globalization, and national and regional cultures. We will learn about sources of empirical data for research on gender and women in Asia. Finally, we will discuss empirical research about gender and development in Asian countries. We will consider evidence about women across the life course, including gender gaps in children’s health, nutrition, schooling and work, women’s reproductive health and rights, gender and the family, and gender, employment and income. The class will be conducted as a mix of overview lectures, demonstrations of how to access data sources, discussions of academic readings and student research, and viewing and discussion of films.

TR 12-1:20 HANNUM

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SOC 100-001 INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGICAL RESEARCH
SYLLABUS
Fulfills College Quant. Data Analysis Requirement
Distribution I: Society

This course examines a wide range of sociological research methods, including: survey development and administration, content analysis, historical-comparative, participant observation and ethnographic perspectives. It reviews research design, experimental design, evaluation methods, research ethics and the uses of research. Students explore these methods and perspectives in class assignments and exercises. A very brief introduction to SPSS (statistical package for the social sciences) is also provided.

TR 10:30-12 KOPPEL

SOC 100-401 INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGICAL RESEARCH
SYLLABUS
Fulfills College Quant. Data Analysis Requirement
Distribution I: Society

This course examines several different sociological methods, including: survey development and administration, content analysis, historical-comparative, participant observation and ethnographic perspectives. It reviews research design, experimental design, evaluation methods, research ethics and the uses of research. Students explore these methods and perspectives in class assignments and exercises. A brief introduction to SPSS (statistical package for the social sciences) is also provided.

MW 3-4:30 HARKNETT

SOC 100-402 INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGICAL RESEARCH
Fulfills College Quant. Data Analysis Requirement
Distribution I: Society

TR 4:30-6 LUNDY

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SOC 101-401 BIOETHICS
Distribution I: Society

Bioethical conundrums such as cloning, stem cells, transplantation, the use of psychopharmaceuticals, end-of-life technologies, preimplantation diagnosis of embryos, artificial reproductive technologies, and the genetic manipulation of life will challenge policy-makers and moral thinkers throughout the twenty-first century. In this course, a philosopher and a sociologist team up to frame and explore these important issues. Guest lecturers, multimedia presentations, and spirited debate will allow the student to understand the science, the social implications, and the philosophical, ethical, and religious implications of the coming biotechnological revolution.

MW 2-3 MCGEE/WOLPE
Note: Registration required for both the lecture and a recitation
402 – REC F 2-3 STAFF
403 – REC F 2-3 STAFF
404 – REC F 2-3 STAFF
405 - REC R 2-3 STAFF
406 - REC R 2-3 STAFF
407 - REC F 1-2 STAFF

SOC 103-401 ASIAN AMERICAN IN CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY
SYLLABUS
Distribution I: Society

This class is an introduction to sociological research of Asian Americans in the United States. The class will introduce you to the immigration experiences, socioeconomic attainments, identity, and political movements of Asian Americans. We will also focus on the relative heterogeneity of Asian American ethnic groups and their experiences relative to other race and ethnic groups in the United States.

TR 1:30-3 KAO

SOC 112-401 DISCRIMINATION: SEXUAL & RACIAL CONFLICT
SYLLABUS
General Requirement I: Society

This course is concerned with the structure, the causes and correlates, and the government policies to alleviate discrimination in the United States. The central focus of the course is on employment discrimination by race, ethnicity and gender. After a comprehensive overview of the structures of labor markets and of nondiscriminatory reasons for the existence of group differentials in employment and wages, various theories of the sources of discrimination are reviewed and evaluated. Actual government policies and alternatives policies are evaluated in light of both the empirical evidence on group differences and the alternative theories of discrimination.

MW 3-4:30 MADDEN

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SOC 120-401 SOCIAL STATISTICS
SYLLABUS
General Requirement IV: Formal Reasoning and Analysis

This course offers a basic introduction to the application/interpretation of statistical analysis in sociology. Upon completion, you should be familiar with a variety of basic statistical techniques that allow examination of interesting social questions. We begin by learning to describe the characteristics of groups, followed by discussion of how to examine and generalize about relationships between the characteristics of groups. Emphasis is placed on the understanding/interpretation of statistics used to describe and make generalizations about group characteristics. In addition to hand calculations, you will also become familiar with using PCs to run statistical tests.

MW 4-5 HOLTMAN

Note: Registration required for both the lecture and a recitation
403 – REC F 11-12 STAFF
404 - REC F 12-1 STAFF

SOC 122-401 SOCIOLOGY OF GENDER
SYLLABUS
General Requirement I: Society

In this course, gender is studied in a comparative perspective using examples from Germany. Current gender theory emphasizes the division of labor, power, social control, violence, and ideology as structural and interactional bases of inequalities among men and women of different social classes and racial ethnic groups instead as an individual trait or outcome of childhood socialization. Gender is an organizing principle of society and its institutions like culture, economy, politics, and the family. How gender is constructed varies across time and space. What is considered “natural” for a woman (or a man) to do in one society is conceived as inappropriate in another. But there are not only differences between societies but also within societies – race and class interact with gender resulting in different norms.

TR 10:30-12 ROTH

SOC 125-001 CLASSICAL SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY
SYLLABUS
Distribution I: Society

A survey of the 19th and early 20th century social thought including works of Marx, Durkheim, Weber, Simmel, and G. H. Mead and how they reflect the social context in which they were developed. We will analyze how social action, social order and social change are conceptualized in these works. In particular, we will study, how power and inequality are addressed in these works and how they can be used to understand race and gender relations as well as contemporary social problems.

TR 3-4:30 ROTH

SOC 135-401 LAW & SOCIETY
Distribution I: Society

After introducing students to the major theoretical concepts concerning law and society, significant controversial societal issues that deal with law and the legal systems both domestically and internationally will be examined. Class discussions will focus on issues involving civil liberties, the organization of courts, legislatures, the legal profession and administrative agencies. Although the focus will be on law in the United States, law and society in other countries of Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America will be covered in a comparative context. Readings included research reports, statutes and cases.

MW 4:30-6 FETNI

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SOC 137 SOCIOLOGY OF THE MEDIA & POPULAR CULTURE
SYLLABUS
General Requirement III: Arts and Letters

This course relies on a variety of sociological perspectives to examine the role of mass media and popular culture in contemporary society, with a particular emphasis on the organization of the media industry, the relationship between cultural consumption and social status, and the social significance of leisure activities from sports to shopping. Specific course topics will include the rise of tabloid TV talk shows; the marketing of Nike and Starbucks; the excessive media coverage of contemporary celebrities; the blurring boundaries between news and entertainment; and the commercialization of the American blues.

401 - LEC MW 1-2 GRAZIAN

402 – REC W 5-6 STAFF
403 - REC F 11-12 STAFF
404 - REC W 4-5 STAFF
405 - REC W 4-5 STAFF
406 - REC F 1-2 STAFF
407 - REC F 2-3 STAFF
408 - REC W 3-4 STAFF
409 - REC F 1-2 STAFF
410 - REC F 1-2 STAFF
411 - REC R 4-5 STAFF
412 - REC F 12-1 STAFF
413 - REC R 5-6 STAFF
NOTE: You MUST take BOTH THE LECTURE AND A RECITATION.
If you need to switch your recitation section, please make sure there is an available slot BEFORE dropping your section, as the SRS system may drop you from the course altogether if you’re not registered for both lecture and recitation. As slots become available, you may register for them through Penn In Touch.

SOC 140-301 SOCIAL CONFLICT
Benjamin Franklin Seminar
Non-Honors Students Admitted by Permission

General theory of social conflict, with an emphasis on violent conflict. Specific applications include fights, riots, combat, and gang violence; tribal and modern war; abuse of the weak; domestic conflict; sexual conflict and rape; homicide; social movements and moral crusades; conflict management and social control; state breakdowns and revolutions; ethnic conflict and genocide.

MW 3-4:30 COLLINS

SOC 222-001 FIELD METHODS OF SOCIOLOGICAL RESEARCH
SYLLABUS
Distribution I: Society

This class is intended as an introduction to the field methods of sociological research, with a focus on ethnographic observation and interviewing. It will function as a workshop, not a lecture class. The social role of the field worker, the ethics of research and qualitative methodology will be addressed. Students will conduct a piece of original research as part of the course.

M 2-5 NELSON

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SOC 233-401 CRIMINOLOGY
SYLLABUS
General Requirement I: Society

This introductory course examines the multi-disciplinary science of law-making, law-breaking, and law-enforcing. It reviews theories and data predicting where, when, by whom and against whom crimes happen. It also addresses the prevention of different offense types by different kinds of offenders against different kinds of people. Police, courts, prisons, and other institutions are critically examined as both preventing and causing crime. This course meets the general distribution requirement.

TR 3-4:30 LAUFER

SOC 280-401 SOCIAL ISSUES IN CONTEMPORARY CHINA
SYLLABUS

China's transition to a market-oriented society has effected fundamental changes in the lives of citizens. This class will consider pressing social concerns that China must struggle to address as it continues down the path of market reforms. Using topical problems to illustrate broader issues of social inequality along lines of gender, ethnicity, residence status, and poverty status, we will consider questions such as the following: How are women and men faring differently in China's new labor market and workplaces? Are rural peasants and the emerging underclass of urban laid-off workers being left behind by market transition? How are minorities faring in China's transition? How does the emerging digital divide play into the dichotomies of east-west and urban-rural in China? What is the plight of millions of "floaters" migrating into China's cities, with minimal legal rights and protections? Can China's rapidly-changing public health system handle emerging diseases such as SARS and AIDS? How has the one-child policy affected women, children, and society in China? Who are the "missing girls" of China, and what are the social implications of their disappearance? How has the welfare of children and adolescents changed with market reforms? The class will combine lectures, academic readings, case studies, films, and discussions.

TR 3-4:30 HANNUM

SOC 300-302 RELIGIOUS LIFE AT PENN
SYLLABUS
Open to Majors Only

Recent developments in the sociology of religion have pointed to the importance of "religious economies"--the array of religious choices available to particular groups--as a crucial aspect of religious commitment and participation. What religious groups, both on and off-campus, do Penn undergraduate students participate in? Which Bible studies, synagogues, discussion groups, congregations, etc. seem to attract the most student interest and involvement? How do race, ethnicity and gender play into these choices? In this course, students will first collaboratively investigate the religious economy of Penn, uncovering the varied dimensions of student religious life. As was develop a map of student involvement, teams will conduct participant observation and ethnographic interviews within a sample of these groups, determining their religious cultures and how they relate to student life and culture at Penn. Students will learn collaborative fieldwork techniques, qualitative data analysis, and the tricks of synthesizing theoretical concepts and questions with the empirical data they have collected.

TR 12-1:30 NELSON

SOC 300-303 SENIOR RESEARCH SEMINAR
Open to Majors Only

The purpose of this course is to guide senior sociology majors in writing a research proposal for a senior honors thesis. Students will learn about various research approaches, how to write a focused literature review, and kinds of data necessary to answer a wide variety of research questions, including their own. Throughout the course, students will work on designing a research question, generation researchable hypotheses, and coming up with a design for their proposed study. The final paper for this course will be a research proposal that is the basis for students’ independent research project. This course satisfies the research requirement for sociology majors and is designed primarily for seniors who are planning to write an honors thesis.

R 2-5 LEIDNER

SOC 420-401 PERSPECTIVES IN URBAN POVERTY

This course provides an interdisciplinary introduction to various perspectives and philosophies that have dominated the discourse on urban poverty throughout history. The course is primarily concerned with the ways in which historical, cultural, political, racial, social geographical, and economic forces have either shaped or been left out of contemporary debates on urban poverty. Of great importance, the course will evaluate competing knowledge systems and their respective implications in terms of the question of "what can be known" about urban poverty in the contexts of policy circles, academic literature, and the broader social imagination. We will critically analyze a wide body of literature seeking to theorize urban poverty ranging from sociological; anthropological/ethnographic; geographical; Marxist; historical; social welfare; and cultural analyses. Primacy will be granted to critical analysis of course readings, particularly with regard to the ways in which various knowledge systems -- or "regimes of truth" -- create, sustain, and constrict meaning in reference to urban poverty.

M 2-5 STAFF

SOC 430-401 COMMUNITY ACTIVISM & SCHOOL REFORM

This course will examine the work of groups external to school districts that both support education professionals and challenge schools and school systems to meet the needs of children from low-income, often racially, ethnically or linguistically minority families. These groups are challenging the predominant school reform paradigm that looks to education professionals as the sole drivers of change. The course will introduce the theories behind different models of school/parent/community relationships and discuss the importance of civic capacity to school reform. Guest speakers, in addition to field observations, will bring the different models of parent/school/community relationships to life in the Philadelphia school reform context.

T 5:30-8:30 GOLD

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GRADUATE LEVEL COURSES

SOC 514-401 MEDICINE AND THE BODY
SYLLABUS - http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~nsivin/syl414.html

Until very recently no society's physicians, seeking to understand the contents of the living human body, could do better than construct a disciplined fantasy. The raw materials of this fantasy were what experts knew about the insides of cadavers, what people felt going on inside them and, equally important, notions of order and process in the world of Nature and society. The results were remarkably diverse, as we learn not only from comparing the medicine of different cultures, but from looking at discourse about the body at different times in the same culture. In each case we can reconstruct the relations between the lay imagination, medicine, cosmology and values. We will draw on tools that many disciplines--from literary analysis to social theory to history of Chinese medicine --apply to the study of the body.

W 2-5 SIVIN

SOC 535-001 QUANTITATIVE METHODS I
The syllabus for SOCI 535 is now available, online, at "Courseweb" or"Blackboard,"

This course is an introduction to the practice of statistics in social and behavioral sciences. It is open to beginning graduate students and--with the permission of the instructor--advanced undergraduates. Topics covered include the description of social science data, in graphical and non-graphical form correlation and other form; of association, including cross-tabulation; bivariate regression; an introduction to probability theory; the logic of sampling; the logic of statistical inference and significance tests. Some data manipulation will require the use of a statistical computer “package,” STATA; but the greater emphasis of the course will be on conceptualization and the ability to manipulate these new ideas both with and without access to statistical software. There is a lecture twice weekly and a mandatory “lab.”

TR 12-1:30 SMITH H.

Note: Registration required for both the lecture and a recitation
201 - REC W 11-12 STAFF
202 - REC W 5-6 STAFF

SOC 555-301 PROSEMINAR IN SOCIOLOGICAL CONCEPTS
Open to Sociology / Demography (Graduate) Majors Only

This graduate seminar for first-year graduate students will be a two-semister course covering the major subfields of sociology -- their classical and comtemporary theories, current methods and substance.

R 2-5 BOSK / EDIN

SOC 596-401 SOCIOLOGY OF EDUCATION
SYLLABUS

This graduate seminar will introduce students to some of the key theoretical and empirical work in the sociology of education. We will focus around the question of stratification and how systems of schooling maintain or alleviate inequality. The class will examine classical approaches to schooling, schools as organizations, schools and their effects on social mobility, (class, race, and gender) stratification in achievement and attainment, tracking/ability grouping, theories and empirical work on social and cultural capital, school choice, and cross-national expansion of education.

W 2-5 KAO

SOC 600-401 PROSEMINAR IN CRIMINOLOGY

This course explores the basic scope, mission and methods of the science of criminology. it begins with the conception of "consilience" in science, then provides an overview of the multi-disciplinary doctoral program in criminology. The course proceeds to cover the current state of theory, research, and accomplishments in both knowledge and policy about criminality and criminal events. Students will read widely and report to the seminar on their readings, as well as assessing key readings and central ideas for their potential guidance of future research. The course focuses primarily on criminology of criminal events, including law-making and law-breaking. The criminology of reactions to crime is covered in the second semester pro-seminar in criminal justice, CRIM 601.

M 3-6 PAYNE

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SOC 602-401 PROSEMINAR IN CLASSICAL SOCIOLOGY

An overview of the German, French and Anglophone traditions in sociological theory. The major focus will be on the works of Marx and Engels, Weber, Simmel, Durkheim, and Mead, and on subsequent developments in these classic schools of theory and research.

T 9-12 COLLINS

SOC 603-401 PROSEMINAR IN SOCIAL RESEARCH
/SOC 707

This course is intended to hone the skills and judgment required in order to conduct independent research in sociology. We will discuss the selection of intellectually strategic research questions and practical research designs. Students will get experience with proposal writing, the process of editing successive drafts of manuscripts, and the oral presentation of work in progress as well as finished research projects. The course is designed to be the context in which master’s papers are written. This is a required course for second year graduate students in Sociology.

W 4:30-7:30 BOSK

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SOC 609-401 BASIC DEMOGRAPHIC METHODS

The course is designed to introduce students to basic concepts of demographic measurement and modeling used to study changes in population size and composition. The course covers basic measure of mortality, fertility and migration; life table construction; multiple decrement life tables; stable populations; population projections; and age patterns of vital events. Students will learn to apply demographic methods through a series of weekly problem sets.

M 2-5 ELO

SOC 612-301 CATEGORICAL DATA ANALYSIS
SYLLABUS

This course deals with techniques for analyzing multivariate data in which the dependent variable is a set of categories (a dichotomy or polytomy). Topics will include linear probability models, logit (logistic) regression models, probit models, logit analysis of contingency tables, cumulative logit and probit (for ordinal data), multinomial logit, conditional logit (discrete choice), unobserved heterogeneity, log-linear models, square tables, response-based sampling, and repeated measures. Methods will be illustrated using the SAS System. There will be several assignments using SAS to analyze data provided by the instructor.

TR 9-10:30 ALLISON

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SOC 619-301 SOCIOLOGICAL RESEARCH I

The primary goal of this course is to aid sociology graduate students in the framing, writing and revising of their dissertation proposals, as well as provide a forum for the presentation of their research progress. In the first semester, we will focus on the development of a topic of study and a central set of research questions, with emphasis given to the set of theoretical issues relevant to the selected topic. In the second semester, emphasis will shift to the selection of data and methods necessary for addressing these questions. A second goal of this course is to assist in the acquisition of professional skills necessary for success in the academic world. In both semesters, attention will be given to a number of practical issues confronting advanced graduate students, including: 1) completing field examinations; 2) submitting manuscripts for conferences, journals and book publishers; 3) preparing a curriculum vitae; 4) job search strategies; and 5) preparing for effective professional presentations. It is expected that third year graduate students in Sociology will enroll in 619 in the Fall semester, followed by 620 in the Spring.

T 2-5 GRAZIAN

SOC 629-401 SOCIOLOGY OF MASS COMMUNIATIONS

Mass communication viewed from a sociological perspective. An examination of the sociology of the communicator, audience, content, effects, flow and diffusion research, communication as a social process, linkage between personal and mass communication.

W 9-11 WRIGHT

SOC 633-401 POPULATION PROCESSES I
(DEMG633/634)

Population Processes I and II make up a two-course sequence designed to introduce students to the core areas of demography (fertility, mortality, population aging, and/or migration) and recent developments of the field. The two-course sequence is required of Ph.D. students in Demography. Others interested in enrolling in only one of the courses may do so with the permission of the Chair of the Graduate Group in Demography.

T 2-5 WATKINS

SOC 707-401 SEMINAR ON DEMOGRAPHIC RESEARCH
(SOC 603)

This course is intended to hone the skills and judgment in order to conduct independent research in sociology. We will discuss the selection of intellectually strategic research questions and practical research designs. Students will get experience with proposal writing, the process of editing successive drafts of manuscripts, and the oral presentation of work in progress as well as finished research projects. The course is designed to be the context in which master's papers are written. This is a required course for second year graduate students in Sociology.

W 4:30-7:30 BOSK

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C G S COURSES

Note on registering for CGS courses:

Courses offered through the College of General Studies are open to students in the College of Arts and Sciences, but CGS imposes some restrictions on registration. During the pre-registration period, about half of the places in CGS classes are reserved for CGS students. Once all of the non-reserved places are filled, College students will find that they cannot register without permission. Please be aware that the Sociology Department cannot grant permission and override the restrictions CGS has imposed. These registration restrictions will be lifted on the second day of classes. At that time, College students will be able to register for any CGS courses that still have openings.

SOC 001-601 INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY

There are many different perspectives from which to look at the world and ourselves in it. Sociology is one of them. This course will teach you “sociological imagination” together with basic concepts and major theories used in this discipline. In the process, you will also be introduced to examples of good sociological work.

M 6-9:10 KULKARNI

SOC 008-601 POLITICAL SOCIOLOGY
SYLLABUS

Focusing on American political culture, this course will examine how we define citizenship and our relationship with the state, drawing on historical as well as contemporary readings and studies. We will examine competing theoretical understandings about the shape of our political institutions and the current state of politics, addressing such questions as: Who participates and why? How have social movements redistributed or have failed to change who has a voice in our society? How do different types of political and cultural associations affect the quality of our democracy? Topics will range from fundamental issues like consensus decision making, our two party system, and theories of power to more topical subjects such as the presidential elections the role of the media and the effect globalization has had on local and national level policymaking.

R 6-9 LANDRISCINA

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SOC 137-601 MASS MEDIA AND POPULAR CULTURE
SYLLABUS

This class is addressed to students who aspire to the understanding of the relationship between media, culture, and society. We are focused on two main goals: first, to examine closely the salient theories and issues as they pertain to the topic and second, to foster media literacy. We will begin by taking a critical look at an eclectic blend of the contributions by the Frankfurt school, British cultural studies, post modernism and post structuralism, psychoanalysis, and the Habermasian conceptions of the civil society. We will relate these theoretical contributions to contemporary examples from popular culture and discuss how they can help us understand the world we live in.
In the second part of the class, we will approach the more salient substantive issues in media and popular culture, namely politics of representation, media ownership, regulation and production, consumption practices, identity politics, social movements, and globalization. These discussions are intended to foster an awareness of the need for media literacy. Since media and other forms of popular culture provide explanation of how the world works and tech us how we should live our lives, we will be asking ourselves the following questions: How does this knowledge come about? What do advertisements, news, shopping, music, fashion, internet chat rooms, or cartoons teach us about ourselves, others, and the world?
This class is designed for those students who have time and interest to commit to reading and reflecting on these issues. You are expected to activate your intellectual energies through creative thinking, critical analysis, and constructive discussion about new ways of looking at things we see and hear around us in our every day life. The general purpose of this class is to look at the possible political and social implications of this knowledge production and discuss the responsibilities with which our global citizenship entrusts us.

T 6-9 BAJC

SOC 230-601 ETHICAL DILEMMAS IN SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE

The purpose of the course is to provide an overview of the kinds of ethical dilemmas, complexities and bizarre situations that can arise when social and behavioral scientists experiment on human beings. Students will learn how socially sensitive issues emerge form particular kinds of research and how these issues can impact society and individuals. Some of the topics we will discuss include unethical research and the use of tainted knowledge, ethics and social research, issues in the study of illegal and/or deviant behavior, the use of deception in research, de-briefing, spying, confidentiality and privacy, creating false relationships, informed consent, research with vulnerable populations and protection the rights and welfare of human beings. We will explore the balance between societies drive to advance scientific knowledge with that of protecting the welfare and rights of humans who participate in research.

W 5:30-8:30 JAEGER

SOC 235-601 LAW AND SOCIAL CHANGE

Beginning with discussion of various perspectives on social change and law, this course then examines in detail the interdependent relationship between changes in legal and societal institutions. Emphasis will be placed on (1) how and when law can be an instrument for social change, and (2) how and when social change can cause legal change. In the assessment of this relationship, the laws of the United States and other countries as well as international law, will be studied. Throughout the course, discussions will include legal controversies relevant to social change such as civil liberties, gender and the law, and issues of nation-building. A comparative framework will be used in the analysis of this interdependent relationship between law and social change.

T 6:30-9:30 FETNI

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~~SOC 239-601 SOCIOLOGY OF RELIGION~~ -->CANCELLED<--

Religion is an important social phenomenon that contributes significantly to shaping social institutions and our ideas about the world. This course will provide students with an opportunity to think about religious experience and religious organization in relation to the larger society. Emphasis will be on readings, discussions and focused observations that enrich our understanding of the social origins of faith and expand our knowledge of faith traditions beyond our own experience.

T 5-8 KUDLER

SOC 275-601 MEDICAL SOCIOLOGY

This course is an introduction to major topics in the sociology of medicine, with an emphasis on current American medical practice. A primary aim of the course is to use a sociological perspective to investigate our shared/contested understandings of illness and health, as well as evolving medical responses to these human conditions. We will discuss the structure of the medical professions, social organization of hospitals, social and cultural influences on doctor-patient communication and decision-making, and the history and social context of bioethics. The course will trace race, gender and economic influences on healthcare as we explore issues of legitimacy, training, professional socialization, patient autonomy, and barriers to access and provision of health services.

R 6:30-9:30 JOYCE

SOC 530-640 MEDIA AND CULTURE
SYLLABUS

The course will look at the role of media in the cultivation, maintenance and promulgation of celebrity in the United States. Using critical studies and cultural studies perspectives, the course will include examination of the roots of American celebrity; the growth of its para-social aspects; the functioning of celebrity in national and personal value systems; and the uses of celebrity for a hegemonic society.

R 6-8:40 BRADLEY

SOC 591-640 RACIAL JUSTICE AND THE SOCIOLOGY OF LAW

The course examines the use of the law both to perpetuate an eradicate racial injustice in the United States from the inception and rise of slavery during the colonial period through the United States Supreme Court decision in Dred Scott v. Sanford and the Civil War. The goals of the course are to achieve and understanding of the role of law, placing it in its social context, especially with regard to the use of legal institutions and law in the creation and maintenance of systems of racial injustice; and, as a corollary, to examine the potential and limits of the use of law (especially litigation) as a tool for social change. Additionally, emphasis will be placed upon developing skills of close legal analysis and encouraging facility and eloquence in oral advocacy through class participation and presentations.

W 6:30-9:40 CHAIN

Note on registering for CGS courses:

Courses offered through the College of General Studies are open to students in the College of Arts and Sciences, but CGS imposes some restrictions on registration. During the pre-registration period, about half of the places in CGS classes are reserved for CGS students. Once all of the non-reserved places are filled, College students will find that they cannot register without permission. Please be aware that the Sociology Department cannot grant permission and override the restrictions CGS has imposed. These registration restrictions will be lifted on the second day of classes. At that time, College students will be able to register for any CGS courses that still have openings.

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Last Modified: 15-Sep-2004
For updates, comments please contact: saunderc@ssc.upenn.edu