BSU Catalog Home | Sociology Program | All-University Courses and Descriptions

Sociology (SOC)

Check with department for semester when these courses are offered. Read each course description for prerequisites.

2200 SOCIAL MOVEMENTS AND CHANGE (3 credits) A social history of social movements and change. Focuses on understanding and analyzing these dynamics as generational changes and as the emergence of broader social forces driving the major movements of the past fifty years. The shift from modernity to postmodernity sets the overall theoretical framework, with an emphasis on the dynamics of race, class, gender, environment, and culture. Liberal Education Goal Area 8

2210 AMERICAN CULTURE: A SOCIOLOGICAL INTERPRETATION (3 credits) This course traces the origins of American cultural patterns and institutions and examines contemporary elements of diversity and social change. Readings explore the mores associated with the American character, focusing on individualism while investigating how public and private life is framed. Unifying themes involve theoretical discussions regarding the degree to which the "decentered" experience of individuals in the United States today raises questions about the meaning of the very term "American culture." Liberal Education Goal Areas 7 & 9

2220 SOCIOLOGY OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY (3 credits) A study of the various forms of family structure, including variations that occur by social class and ethnic status. Examination of the changing forms of American families throughout history and consideration of the issues and evidence surrounding the debate over the nature of the "family." The topics of gender roles, romantic love, courtship, nonmarital life styles, divorce, remarriage, and stepfamilies will also be examined from the sociological frame of reference. Liberal Education Goal Area 5

2230 ETHNIC AND MINORITY GROUP RELATIONS (3 credits) Study of dominant-subordinate relations with emphasis on racial, cultural, and sexual domination. Examination of a variety of dominant-group tactics, including the causes and consequences of prejudice and discrimination. Prerequisite: SOC 1104 or consent of instructor. Liberal Education Goal Areas 7 & 9

2240 MEN, WOMEN, AND SOCIETY: A SOCIOLOGICAL INTERPRETATION (3 credits) Study of the construction of gender in society and the differential consequences of particular social arrangements on the lives of men and women. Examines gender, male and female sexuality, intimate relationships, gendered patterns of work and education, the gender of violence, and sociological theories of femininity and masculinity. Emphasizes changes in gendered social patterns in U.S. society in the 21st century and compares those changes to shifting patterns in other societies. Liberal Education Goal Areas 5 & 7

3000 QUALITATIVE RESEARCH METHODS (3 credits) Principles, techniques, and practices in the conduct of field research in natural social settings, focusing on participant observation, unstructured and semi-structured interviewing, use of informants, personal and public documents, content analysis, unobtrusive research techniques, interpreting narrative data, and preparation of a field research report (ethnography). Prerequisite: SOC 1104 or ANTH 1110.

3001 SOCIAL STATISTICS (3 credits) Introduces students to descriptive and inferential statistics and bivariate measures of association. Students learn to choose, calculate, and interpret statistics, and learn to use SPSS to help them analyze and interpret data. Prerequisite: MATH 1100 or MATH 1110 or consent of instructor.

3002 QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH METHODS (3 credits) Examines the basic quantitative methods sociologists and other social scientists use to study diverse social processes and to improve our understanding of social issues. Students gain hands-on experiences developing a quantitative research project and work on various aspects of actual research projects. Prerequisite: SOC 3001 or consent of instructor.

3010 CONTEMPORARY SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY (3 credits) An overview of selected sociological theories and theorists considered against the background of the classical period of sociological theorizing in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Emphasis on comparative understanding of the major models of society - order, pluralism, conflict, etc. - that have dominated sociological thinking in the modern period. Prerequisites: SOC 1104 or consent of instructor.

3020 URBAN SOCIOLOGY (3 credits) Explores the social factors that impact the culture and politics of urban environments. Examines the history of cities and the social theories that are used to interpret urban development from modern to postmodern times. Emphasis on understanding urban enclaves, patterns of inequality, the meanings of place and space, and the impact of global economic and cultural forces on city life. Students compare and contrast current trends in U.S. development of place and community with those in other societies. Each term, students are required to travel to a U.S. metropolitan area where they engage in first-hand observations of a particular city through this sociospatial lens. Prerequisites: SOC 1104 and junior standing.

3030 FAMILY VIOLENCE (3 credits) A study of current theory and research related to the problem of family violence and responses to this problem including: premarital violence, spousal violence, and violence in parent-child relationships and sexual abuse. This course should be of particular value to human services professionals.

3040 THE UNITED STATES AND GLOBALIZATION: A SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE (3 credits) A social history of the emergence of the United States as one of the major actors in what is referred to as “globalization.” Focuses on understanding and analyzing the dynamics of political economic change and the emergence of broader social forces driving a series of globalization projects over the past fifty years. A third focus alludes to shifting sociological dynamics of globalization and the implications for race, class, gender, environment, and culture. Examines the “anti-globalization” forces through a social movement lens. Prerequisite: SOC 1104 or consent of instructor.

3050 ENVIRONMENTAL SOCIOLOGY (3 credits) Examines the relationship between society and the environment. Emphasis on political and economic institutions and the consumer lifestyle and values. Considers how the treadmill of production affects ecosystems and discusses possible solutions to environmental problems. Prerequisites: SOC 1104 or consent of instructor.

3120 ORGANIZATIONS IN SOCIETY (3 credits) An analysis of complex organizations in societies. Examines the rise of bureaucracy in business and government, following through to contemporary times, and contemporary shifts in form from modern to postmodern. Emphasizes the tensions, contradictions, and paradoxes found in these organizational arrangements. Other topics may include the differential experiences of workers in complex organizations. Prerequisite: SOC 1104 or consent of instructor.

3230 SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY (3 credits) An overview of theory and research in social psychology from a sociological viewpoint. Emphasizes the impact of social location on thought, behavior, and emotion. Explores patterns of interpersonal relationships and small group processes, and why humans establish certain “taken-for-granted” meaning systems and ways of being. Prerequisite: SOC 1104 or consent of instructor.

4700 CAREER PREPARATION (3 credits) Provides students with an opportunity to explore careers that require the substantive knowledge and skills developed through their course of study. Students identify their career interests, create resumes and cover letters, engage in mock interviews, and explore graduate school options. They are also asked to consider how they might use their sociology skills and knowledge in their future roles (as individual, employee, citizen). Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing and Sociology major.

4800 CAPSTONE IN SOCIOLOGY (3 credits) Students choose to complete either a thesis or an internship. Because guidelines differ between the options, students should meet with Sociology faculty teaching the course for proper advisement. Prerequisites: Senior standing and Sociology major.