Sociology SOC (45)
Administered by Department of Sociology, Social Work and Criminal Justice
Effective Spring 2009
45.211 Principles of Sociology (3) - Introduces the basic concepts, theories and perspectives in sociology. Sociology is the scientific study of the influence of groups, institutions and cultures upon individuals. For example, the extent to which race, gender, class, religion and education affect the behavior and opportunities of individuals is probed. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week.
45.213 Contemporary Social Problems (3) - Examines social issues such as plant closings and unemployment, the impact of multinational corporations on the economy and the environment, mobility, aging, family problems - sex roles, abuse, incest, divorce, alcohol and drug abuse, social change and disorganization, racism, sexism, employment discrimination, crime, alienation and poverty. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week.
45.215 Racial and Ethnic Minority Groups (3) - Presents a sociological examination of some of the major racial, ethnic and religious minorities and their divergent heritages in the contemporary American scene. This course is approved as a Diversity General Education Course/This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: 45.211.
45.217 Sociology of Sport (3) - An introduction to and critical examination of the role of sports in society. Focuses on the reciprocal impact of sports and various institutions of society. Students examine the sociological perspective on sports as a human activity. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week.
45.231 Marriage and Family (3) - Provides a sociological examination of the traditional and changing institutions of marriage and the family in contemporary society. Focuses on family and marital interaction, roles and interpersonal familial relations. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week.
45.255 Research Methods for Social Inquiry (3) - Surveys quantitative research techniques and includes an introduction to the use of computers in social science research. Some qualitative methods are explored. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: 45.211.
45.260 Basic Social Statistics (3) - Presents principles and techniques of statistical analysis used by sociologists and others in social sciences: descriptive tables and graphs, measures of dispersion, significance tests, correlation and regression. Students collect and analyze data using computers. Emphasis on understanding concepts underlying statistical analysis in order to permit intelligent use and interpretation of statistics. This course approved as 3 credits of Quantitative-Analytical Reasoning toward general education requirements/This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisites: 45.211 and 45.255.
45.275 Sociological Theory (3) - Examines classical forms of social theory from the 19th century and their impact on the development of theory in the 20th century. Studies the views of Max Weber, Emile Durkheim and Karl Marx on the social structure, social organization, economy and human condition as well as their influence on contemporary perspectives, namely, the conflict and functional approaches, sociology of knowledge, phenomenological sociology and symbolic interactionism. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: 45.211.
45.316 Urban Sociology (3) - Presents a sociological analysis of origin and growth of cities with an emphasis on the dynamic patterns of social interaction in the changing contemporary urban scene. Views cities mainly from a multinational perspective with a special focus on urban regions. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: 45.211.
45.318 Social Stratification (3) - Examines the role of social class in terms of structure, function and persistence in any society. Examines classical theoretical statements and evaluates current American class relations in terms of status, power, authority and social mobility. Covers notable studies of the American class system and provides a close look at power relations and styles of life among the various American classes. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: 45.211.
45.319 Religion and Society (3) - Examines religion as a means by which people, as members of communities order their lives and endow them with meaning. Topics include ritual and belief systems, the social organization of religion and the relationship between religion and other parts of the social structure. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week.
45.320 Sociology of Gender (3) - Explores the development of the traditional roles of women and men in Western society to the present time including both work and family roles. This course is approved as a Diversity General Education Course/This course approved as 3 credits of Values, Ethics and Responsible Decision Making toward general education requirements/This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: 45.211 and 45.260 or equivalent.
45.345 Medical Sociology (3) - Facilitates student's ability to understand, analyze and evaluate sociological factors in relation to illness, medical behavior and health care systems. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: 45.211 or consent of instructor.
45.360 Microsociology (3) - Examines classic and contemporary micro-sociological theories and research, which explore the details of social interaction. Included is a micro analysis of the interaction between the self, socialization, and behavior. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: 45.211 or consent of instructor.
45.376 Science and Society (3) - Explores science as the organized activities of an occupational community. Examines the development of science as an institution, its social organization in modern society and its internal and external politics. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: 45.211 or consent of instructor.
45.400 Sociology of Mass Communication (3) - An in-depth discussion of the cognitive and behavioral affects of mass media, especially television on audiences, the social structure of the communications industry, particularly its influence on media content and the political use of mass media. Students critique latest research articles in the field. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisites: 45.211 and junior status.
45.443 Sociology of Deviant Behavior (Fall) (3) - Evaluates the presence and function of deviance in society. Includes mental illness and various types of crime and stigmatized behavior. Examines how it is handled therapeutically and legally through institutionalization and treatment. Attempts to provide a broad theoretical perspective as well as concrete examples of deviance in any society. Examines current methods of rehabilitation and punishment. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: junior year standing (or 65 semester hours or more).
45.457 Sociology of Community (3) - Reviews and examines theories and research of communities. Gives special emphasis to the American community. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: 45.211.
45.461 Social Problems in Rural-Urban Communities (3) - Focuses on social problems peculiar to and characteristic of rural and small urban communities. An eclectic theoretical interpretation will be made of the major social problems. Emphasizes problems which result in the dysfunctioning of patterned social relationships. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week.
45.465 Computer Applications in the Social Sciences (3) - An introduction to computer use for the social sciences (through use of SPSS). Emphasizes translating questions into data analysis and interpretation of statistical results. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Prerequisites: 45.260 or similar statistics course. Three hours lecture per week.
45.466 Advanced Social Research (3) - Stresses design and construction of major research methods and procedures used in social research. Special emphasis on survey research. Three hours lecture per week. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Prerequisites: 45.211, 45.260 or consent of the instructor.
45.467 Population Problems (3) - Studies human population, its major theories, distributions composition, changes and future developments of population and impacts of population problems on society as influenced by vital processes. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: 45.211.
45.470 Senior Seminar (3) - Provides for individual research projects and reports with-in selected areas of interest such as the family, research methods, theory, and special populations. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisites: Senior status; 18 semester hours of sociology, social work, or criminal justice; or consent of the instructor.
45.471 Independent Study in Sociology (3) - Allows student to pursue individualized instruction in-depth with a faculty member in a specific area of the field not covered in current courses. Prerequisites: 45.211 and consent of instructor, chairperson, members of the department, and Dean of the College of Liberal Arts.
45.474 Environmental Sociology (3) - Examines some major human problems that lead to environmental deterioration, particularly water, air and noise pollution, energy and other resource depletion and increasing population density. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: 45.211.
45.478 Sociology of Work (3) - Presents a sociological examination of work and the milieu of the worker. Studies formal and informal work organizations, job satisfaction and dissatisfaction, structure and organization of industrial and post-industrial societies and relationship between work organizations within communities and society. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: 45.211.
45.490 Sociology of Aging (3) - Studies aging, its major theoretical themes, patterns of living, socio-psychological and cultural consequences of aging. Examines the contemporary issues, problems and programs of the aging. This course counts as a Group B, Social & Behavioral Sciences General Education Requirements. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: 45.211 or consent of instructor.
45.496 Sociology Internship Program (1-15) - Designed primarily for the junior or senior working in a specific institutional field and/or college-approved, off-campus activities related to student's chosen professional field. Pass/fail only. Three hours lecture per week. Prerequisites: Consent of the instructor and department chairperson.
45.500 Sociology of Mass Communication (3) - In-depth discussion of cognitive and behavioral effects of mass media, especially television, on audiences, the social structure of communications industry, particularly its influence on media content and the political use of mass media. Students critique the latest research articles in the field. Three hours lecture per week.
45.511 Social Institutions (3) - Sociological examination of major institutions in the United States cross-culturally compared with those in other societies. Specific institutions selected depending on the interest of students and faculty. Three hours lecture per week.
45.513 Adolescents in American Society (3) - Studies the role of adolescents in contemporary U.S. society with special emphasis on the adolescent's social interactions in groups and institutions. Three hours lecture per week.
45.523 The Contemporary American Community (3) - An advanced examination of the social dynamics of community life, its institutions, organizations, and people within the context of the development of post-industrial society. Three hours lecture per week.
45.525 Current Social Issues (3) - Analyzes current social issues and solutions offered to solve them. Explores issues and solutions within the broad framework of the social sciences and specific framework of sociological and anthropological data. Three hours lecture per week.
45.578 Sociology of Work (3) - Focuses on structure and organization of industrial and post-industrial societies and the relationship between work organizations within communities and society. Presents a sociological examination of work and the milieu of the worker. Course focuses on formal and informal work organizations, worker job satisfaction, and dissatisfaction. Three hours lecture per week.