Sociology (SOC)
SOC 101 Introduction to Sociology 3
Scientific study of social behavior including factors involved in functioning and development of human society such as culture, identity, social organization, institutions, stratification, social process, and social change.
MAC: MAC CritThink Soc and BehavSci
SOC 201 Social Problems 3
Analysis of contemporary social problems from a sociological perspective.
MAC: MAC CritThink Soc and BehavSci
SOC 202 Social Problems in Global Context 3
This course examines causes of and responses to critical social problems in different world regions with a focus on the dimensions and impacts of globalization.
MAC: MAC Global and Intercultural
SOC 205 Crime and Justice 3
Provides an overview of the basic principles, philosophy, organization, policies, ethics, and functions of the U.S. criminal justice system as well as the basic patterns and distribution of crime and victimization in the United States.
MAC: MAC CritThink Soc and BehavSci
SOC 222 Sociology of Deviant Behavior 3
Social processes in the creation and maintenance of deviant populations: classification, objectification of social meanings, functions of subcultures and social outcomes of the deviance-ascription process. Includes core sociological concepts, methods, and theories.
MAC: MAC CritThink Soc and BehavSci
SOC 225 Race, Class, and Gender: Social Inequalities 3
Study of social inequalities, with a particular focus on race, class, and gender.
MAC: MAC Diversity and Equity
SOC 290 Social Theory I 3
Introduction to the history, reading, and practice of social theory, with a focus on pre-war texts.
MAC: MAC CritThink Soc and BehavSci
SOC 301 Introduction to Methods and Research 3
Topics include the function of theory in research, concept formation, study design, data collection, and analysis strategies.
CIC: CIC College Writing
Prerequisites: One sociology course or permission of instructor.
Notes: SOC majors only.
SOC 302 Introduction to Data Analysis 3
Application of statistical concepts and procedures to sociological inquiry. Topics include elementary descriptive and inferential procedures and use of computers in data analysis.
Prerequisites: SOC 101 and SOC 301 (or PSC 301 for students double majoring in Sociology and Political Science) and one additional sociology course.
Notes: SOC majors only, except by permission of instructor.
SOC 311 Reading Culture and Society 3
Examines key sociocultural issues through classic literary and cinematic works, emphasizing notions of modernity, the contemporary world, and the relationship they entertain; provides foundational reading and critical thinking skills.
CIC: CIC College Writing
SOC 317 Criminal Justice 3
Adjudication of criminal defendants from arrest through appellate process. Special attention given to current issues in administration of justice, e.g., the death penalty, plea bargaining, alternatives to incarceration.
SOC 323 Deviance and Social Control 3
This course takes an institutional approach to analyzing the social control of deviant behaviors and stigmatized social groups, with in-depth discussions of medicine, public health, and the criminal justice system.
SOC 324 Criminology 3
Sociological consideration of crime causation, patterns of crime, and responses to crime and other socially defined forms of deviance.
Prerequisites: SOC 222.
SOC 326 The Community 3
Recent changes and current structure of communities, with special attention to urbanization, bureaucratization, industrialization, social class systems, land use, inter-organizational relationships, urban life styles, and community power.
Prerequisites: SOC 101 or SOC 201 or SOC 202, or permission of instructor.
SOC 327 Race and Ethnic Relations 3
Interaction between peoples of differing racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds, with comparison of American relationships to those in other parts of the world.
SOC 328 Social Movements 3
Systematic study of such forms of collective social behavior as social movements and revolutions with a strong international and comparative focus.
Prerequisites: SOC 101 or SOC 201 or SOC 202 or permission of instructor.
SOC 329 Sociological Perspectives on Gender 3
Inquiry into status of genders in society with emphasis on structural and institutional relationships as well as socialization and the continuities and discontinuities in gendered displays across the life cycle.
Notes: Same as WGS 329.
SOC 330 Urban Society 3
Analysis of emergence of urban society including formation and growth of urban centers and problems associated with ecological, social, and cultural differentiation within urban settlements.
SOC 332 Law and Society 3
Examines law as a social process that differs from case to case according to the social characteristics of the parties involved. Criminal and civil law are discussed.
Notes: Freshmen must have permission of instructor to register for this course.
SOC 333 Political Sociology 3
Competing perspectives on power, theories of state, political parties, ideologies and institutions. Examination of conflicting political sociological theories of what the state is, how it emerged, and how it develops in relation to class structure, economy, civil society and social movements.
Prerequisites: One course in SOC or permission of instructor.
SOC 335 Sociology of the Family 3
Sociological analysis of the family with particular attention to change, patterns of behavior, and diversity in families.
SOC 338 Sex and Society 3
Study of sexual activity and sexuality from a sociological perspective, including sociological theories and studies of sex, social patterns of sexuality, sex and social institutions, and contemporary sexual practices in society.
SOC 340 An Introduction to Cultural Sociology 3
An introduction to cultural sociology and exploration of cultural products and practices, the relationship between culture and society, and issues pertaining to meaning, interpretation, and representation.
SOC 341 Sociological Perspectives on Social Psychology 3
Conceptual frameworks of social psychology for selected topics: theories of social psychology, socialization, social perception, acquisition of self, gender, race and ethnicity, social interaction, and attitude and behavior change.
Prerequisites: SOC 101 and one additional sociology course or permission of instructor.
Notes: May not be taken for credit if student has had SOC 471.
SOC 342 Global Inequalities 3
Examination of social stratification systems and theories, economic prestige, power inequalities, social mobility, and class consciousness.
Prerequisites: SOC 101 and one additional sociology course or permission of instructor.
SOC 344 Global Society 3
Topics in global sociology, with a special focus on countries and regions beyond the U.S. Subjects covered may include politics and states, social policy, historical development of the world-system, international and transnational institutions and processes, development and globalization, and political economy. Application to contemporary social issues is stressed.
Prerequisites: SOC 101 and one additional sociology course or permission of instructor.
SOC 346 Population Problems 3
Sociological study of basic population processes of fertility, migration, and mortality, including examination of problems associated with changing population size, composition, and distribution.
Prerequisites: SOC 101 and one additional sociology course or permission of instructor .
SOC 350 Juvenile Delinquency 3
Course assesses the nature and extent of juvenile participation in unconventional behavior and identification with norms and values promoting delinquency.
Prerequisites: SOC 222 .
SOC 353 Violence, Justice and Peacemaking 3
This course explores how non-violent interventions and peacebuilding practices can reduce violence and promote justice.
SOC 362 Sociological Perspectives on Education 3
Introduction to sociological theories and research about how social forces influence schools, inequality and conflict in schools, how schools confer status on people, and how schools are organized and changed.
SOC 364 African American Social Thought 3
An introduction to perspectives advanced by black scholars concerning black power and pride, stratification, social order, culture, intraracial socialization, interaction, mate selection, and consequences of skin-tone variance.
SOC 370 Environmental Sociology 3
Introduction to major sociological theories, perspectives and research useful for understanding environmental issues and environmentalism. Primary focus on the U.S., with some attention to Europe and developing countries.
Prerequisites: SOC 101 or SOC 201 or SOC 202, or permission of instructor.
SOC 371 Race, Ethnicity, and Migration in a Global Context 3
Examination of processes of racialization and ethnic identification, especially in societies outside of the U.S. Special attention to the causes of international migration and its consequences for ethno-racial classification and identification.
SOC 373 Green Criminology 3
Study of harms and crimes against the natural environment and the related impacts on human and non-human animals. Students will assess and analyze the causes and consequences of environmental crime.
SOC 377 Disaster, Self, and Society 3
The anatomy of disasters examined from both anthropological and sociological perspectives. Case studies are presented through several conceptual lenses for clarifying individual, social, cultural, and political responses to catastrophic events.
CIC: CIC College Writing
Prerequisites: 3 s.h. of course work with a prefix of ATY or SOC or permission of instructor.
Notes: Same as ATY 377.
SOC 381 Criminal Justice Controversies 3
Examines select criminal justice policies and the empirical, theoretical, and political controversies surrounding them. The main subjects explored through an intersectional lens are capital punishment, bail, mass incarceration, rehabilitation, police-community relations, plea bargaining, prison privatization, and constitutional rights.
SOC 382 Police and Society 3
Focus on the sociology of police, policing institutions, and problems in policing in the United States. Topics include the social history and functions of the police, police decision-making, procedural law, intersectionality and policing, police corruption, the militarization of the police, police crime, and alternatives to policing.
SOC 390 African American Perspectives on Crime 3
An introduction to perspectives in criminology that focus on African American participation in crime and the significance of race for legal sanctioning.
SOC 393 Drugs and Society 3
This course focuses on drug (mis)use as a social phenomenon. We discuss the history of drug (mis)use, causes of drug use, and the development and enforcement of drug laws.
SOC 419 Gender, Crime, and Deviance 3
Examines key questions in scholarly literature on gender, crime, and deviance: how gender socialization, gender roles, and institutions affect males' and females' offending, deviant behavior, and victimization.
Prerequisites: SOCI major.
Notes: Same as WGS 419. Students cannot receive credit for both SOC 419 and WGS 311.
SOC 420 Family Violence 3
Examines the forms, causes, incidence, and prevention of violence within the family and other intimate relationships.
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing and sociology major. or permission of instructor.
SOC 421 Seminar in Population and Urban Studies 3
Advanced study of population processes and urban concepts from an interdisciplinary viewpoint. Emphasis on accessing and interpreting data from the U.S. census and other sources.
SOC 422 Crimes of the Powerful 3
Study of the types, causes, consequences, and control of white-collar crime.
Prerequisites: SOC 222 or SOC 324, or permission of the instructor.
SOC 425 Contemporary Gangs in America 3
Examines the nature and extent of gang membership in America: activities of cliques, near groups, cultural gangs, and established gangs.
SOC 426 Comparative Minority Relations 3
Comparative study of ethnic, class, and cultural conflict in developing and developed societies. Attention is given to the impact of ethnicity and class conflict upon societal development and change in the international setting.
SOC 429 Collective Violence and Nonviolence in Global Perspective 3
Study of social dynamics underlying events of collective violence and collective nonviolence globally and historically. Explores why contentious politics take a violent turn sometimes and a nonviolent turn at other times.
Prerequisites: Junior standing or permission of instructor.
SOC 434 Considering Ourselves as Offenders, Victims and Survivors 3
Using biographical history, the course will highlight connections between individual identity, ideologies and socio-political context, especially as they relate to the labels of offenders, victims and survivors.
Prerequisites: SOC 290 and SOC 324, and 3 hours of additional Sociology course credit or permission from instructor. Sociology majors and minors.
SOC 441 The Real You 3
Study of the social factors that impact contemporary culture and the individual's sense of self and identity.
Prerequisites: SOC 101, SSC 301, or permission or the instructor.
SOC 452 Sociology of Science and Technology 3
What impacts are technologies having on society? What makes science a unique social institution? Can scientific knowledge be socially constructed and still be valid? This class introduces students to major perspectives in the sociological study of science and of technology that address these and other questions.
SOC 471 Advanced Topics in Social Psychology 3
Social impact, exchange, equity, and attribution theories intensively examined as basic in understanding specific substantive problems of reciprocal influences of groups and individuals in socio-cultural context.
Prerequisites: 3 s.h. in sociology and 3 s.h. in psychology, or permission of instructor.
SOC 490 Social Theory II 3
Introduction to the history, reading, and practice of social theory, with a focus on post-war texts.
CIC: CIC College Writing
Prerequisites: SOC 290.
SOC 493 Honors Independent Study 3-6
Opportunity for Honors students to have directed instruction on problems of special interest.
Prerequisites: Permission of instructor. 3.30 GPA in the major, 12 s.h. in the major;
Notes: May be repeated for credit if the topic of study changes.
SOC 497 Independent Study 2-3
Opportunity for students to have directed instruction on problems of special interest.
Prerequisites: Permission of faculty member with whom student wishes to work.
Notes: May be repeated for up to 6 hours credit.
SOC 498 Research Experience in Sociology 2-3
Opportunity for students to have directed instruction on problems of special interest.
Prerequisites: Permission of faculty member with whom student wishes to work.
Notes: May be repeated for up to 6 hours credit.
SOC 499 Internship in Sociology 3-6
Undergraduate students will complete at least 120 internship hours (graduate students, at least 300 hours) with a local public sector agency, and through the application of sociological concepts, will examine interpersonal, organizational, and public policy issues.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing. junior or senior standing; Sociology major; minimum 2.80 GPA; 3 letters of recommendation (at least one must be from the Sociology faculty).
SOC 527 Social Conflict and Social Change 3
This course introduces salient topics about social conflict and social change. It discusses origins, characteristics, and transformation of social conflict by focusing on both group level processes and structural factors.
SOC 552 Sociology of Science and Technology 3
Nature and origins of modern science; relations of science and technology; science in democratic and authoritarian societies; images of scientists; origins and recruitment of scientists; career patterns; the organizational setting.
SOC 555 Sociology of the Family 3
Critical examination of various ways of studying family, with consideration given to methodology, statistical treatment of data, and substantive findings.
SOC 571 Advanced Topics in Social Psychology 3
Social impact, exchange, equity, and attribution theories intensively examined as basic in understanding specific substantive problems of reciprocal influences of groups and individuals in socio-cultural context.
Prerequisites: 3 credit hours in sociology and 3 credit hours in psychology or permission of instructor.
SOC 593 Thesis Proposal Seminar 3
Provides an overview of sociological theory, epistemological issues, and research design; leads to a written thesis proposal.
SOC 599 Internship in Sociology 3-6
Students will complete at least 300 internship hours with a local public sector agency, and through the application of sociological concepts, will examine interpersonal, organizational, and public policy issues.
Prerequisites: Sociology major, minimum 2.80 GPA, 3 letters of recommendation (at least one must be from the Sociology faculty).
SOC 601 Seminar in Criminological Analysis 3
Intensive work at an advanced level on a selected topic in the sociology of crime and social deviance.
SOC 614 Social Theory 3
Advanced seminar in the history, reading, and practice of social theory.
SOC 616 Advanced Research Methods 3
The function of theory in research, concept formation, study design, data collection and analysis.
SOC 617 Ethnography 3
Provides students with the tools necessary to use ethnographic methods, including practical training, epistemological and ethical issues, and the history of ethnography in sociology.
Notes: Graduate standing.
SOC 618 Advanced Data Analysis 3
Application of advanced statistical concepts and procedures in multivariate analyses of discrete and continuous data.
Prerequisites: SOC 302 or permission of instructor.
SOC 628 Social Movements 3
Systematic study of forms of collective social behavior, contentious politics, social movements and revolutions with a global and comparative-historical focus.
SOC 636 Seminar in Social Inequalities: Theory and Research 3
Basic systems of social stratification. Theoretical and methodological trends.
SOC 640 Cultural Sociology 3
Graduate seminar in cultural sociology; an exploration of cultural products and practices, the relationship between culture and society, theories of culture, and issues pertaining to meaning, interpretation, and representation.
SOC 644 Sociology of Globalization 3
Sociological perspectives on globalization and its effects. Trends in theory and research.
SOC 646 Teaching and Learning Sociological Concepts 3
Goals, methods, and evaluation in teaching and learning sociology at the college level. Students prepare course objectives and outlines, select instructional materials, and present demonstration lectures and discussions.
SOC 651 Criminology 3
Critical examination of central sociological formulations of criminal behavior and victimization, and societal responses to each; integration of theories of criminal behavior with appropriate research strategies for theory advancement.
Prerequisites: Six hours of sociology at 300-level or permission of instructor.
SOC 653 Social Control 3
Theoretical and empirical analysis of institutions of social control through an examination of societal responses to groups and behaviors labeled as deviant.
Prerequisites: Six credit hours of sociology at 300-level or permission of instructor.
SOC 695 Internship 3-6
Directed practical experience in a professional setting in the student's area of interest. Includes written paper(s) applying sociological theories and methodologies to analysis of the setting.
Prerequisites: 21 hours in sociology at 500-level or above.
SOC 697 Special Problems in Sociology 3
Independent study or research.
SOC 698 Research Experience in Sociology 3
Independent research.
Prerequisites: Permission of faculty member with whom students wish to work.
SOC 699 Thesis 1-6
Individual guidance in the development of a specific research problem.
SOC 801 Thesis Extension 1-3
Thesis Extension.
SOC 803 Research Extension 1-3