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Sociology

General guide for students in different sociology classes.

Note about resources

In addition to the resources found on the first page of this guide, here are some e-books and journal articles specifically useful for this paper.

Also, these articles, books and journals are not the end all be all of your research for the course, please use these as a jumping off point. 

In addition to the material we covered this semester, there is a number of other chapters in your textbook, each of which deals with a subfield of sociological research that can benefit from the broader perspectives we have directly studied. These chapters are:

  • Demography
  • Aging
  • Economy
  • Family
  • Religion
  • Health and Medicine
  • Collective Behavior

Choose one of these chapters and prepare a presentation (e.g., PowerPoint) or written review. You will need to address the following:

  • What are the general perspectives and conclusions that exist in the subfield you have chosen?
  • How can major sociological theories (such as structural-functionalism, symbolic interactionism, conflict theory, and interaction theory) be applied to the subfield? Choose at least two.
  • How can general sociological concepts be applied to the subfield? Choose at least two of the following:
    • Structure
    • Culture
    • Socialization
    • Social inequality
    • Social identity
    • Power and authority (counts as one)
    • Deviance
    • Social change

In the Introduction to Sociology class especially, students are expected to complete a final project on any subfield within sociology. Most of the students are interested in contemporary research findings in the following areas:

1. Collective behavior

2. Sociology of religion (You may want to consult the Current Issues Guide, Religion Page)

3. Criminal justice/social justice issues( mainly the question of racial justice) (You may want to consult on the Criminal Justice Guide or African-American History Guide Antiracism resources) 

4. Sociology of the family (You may want to consult on the Social Work Guide and the Family and Marriage page)

(NOTE: These ideas are ONLY supposed to jog your mind.  It's not a limitations on the parameters of the assignment.  Please discuss all topic matters with your professor.)