Undergraduate Courses

R100 Introduction to Sociology (3 cr.) P: W131 or consent of instructor. Consideration of basic sociological concepts, including some of the substantive concerns and findings of sociology, sources of data, and the nature of the sociological perspective.

R121 Social Problems (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. Selected current "problems" of American society are analyzed through the use of basic sociological data and the application of major sociological frameworks. Policy implications are discussed in light of value choices involved in various solutions.

R220 The Family (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. The family as a major social institution and how it relates to the wider society. Formation of families through courtship, marriage, and sexual behavior; maintenance of families through childrearing and family interaction; and dissolution of families by divorce and death. Social change and the emergence of new familial patterns.

R234 Social Psychology (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. Sociological approach to human character, with emphasis on the psychology of the individual in social situations. Topics include socialization and the self, language and communication, interpersonal relations, attitude formation, conformity and social influence, and group processes.

R240 Deviance and Social Control (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. An introduction to major sociological theories of deviance and social control. Analyzes empirical work done in such areas as drug use, unconventional sexual behavior, family violence, and mental illness. Explores both "lay" and official responses to deviance.

R295 Topics in Sociology (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. Exploration of a topic in sociology not covered by the regular curriculum but of interest to faculty and students in a particular semester. Topics to be announced.

R305 Population (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. Focus on study of people in terms of relative numbers, geographic distribution, and factors influencing change. Included are considerations of population theory, values related to population questions, an overview of basic techniques of analysis, and mortality, fertility, migration, and growth trends.

R312 Sociology of Religion (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. Examination of religion from the sociological perspective. Religious institutions, the dimensions of religious behavior, the measurement of religious behavior, and relationship of religion to other institutions in society are examined.

R315 Political Sociology (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. Analysis of the nature and basis of political power on the macro level - the community, the national, and the international arenas. Study of formal and informal power structures and of the institutionalized and non-institutionalized mechanisms of access to power.

R317 Sociology of Work (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. Analysis of the meaning of work, the dynamic social processes within work organizations, and environmental constraints on organizational behavior.

R329 Urban Sociology (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. The social dynamics of urbanization, urban social structure, and urban ecology. Theories of urban development; the city as a form of social organization, macroprocesses of urbanization both in the United States and other countries.

R330 Community (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. Social, psychological, and structural features of community life. Topics include microphenomena such as the neighborhood, networks of friendship and oppositions, social participation, community power structure, and institutional frameworks.

R338 Comparative Social Systems (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. History and general theories of comparative sociology. Major focus on comparative analyses of social structure, kinship, policy and bureaucracy, economics and stratification, and institutionalized belief systems. Some attention is given to culture and personality and to cross-cultural methodology.

R344 Juvenile Delinquency and Society (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. Legal definition of delinquency, measurement and distribution of delinquency. Casual theories considered for empirical adequacy and policy implications. Procedures for processing juvenile offenders by police, courts, and prisons are examined.

R345 Crime and Society (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. Examination of the creation, selection, and disposition of persons labeled criminal. Emphasis on crime as an expression of group conflict and interest. Critique of academic and popular theories of crime and punishment.

R351 Social Science Research Methods (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor and sophomore status. A survey of methods and techniques used by sociologists and other social scientists for gathering and interpreting information about human social behavior.

R356 Foundations of Social Theory (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. Examination of the fundamental issues and perspectives in classical theories. Special focus will be on analysis of the major nineteenth-century theories that influenced later sociological thought.

R357 Contemporary Sociological Theory (3 cr.) P: R100, R356, or consent of instructor. Emphasis on theoretical developments of the twentieth century and the relationships of current theories to classical theories.

R359 Introduction to Sociological Statistics (3 cr.) P: R100, R351, or consent of instructor. Measures of central tendency, dispersion, standardizing and normalizing procedures, and simple index numbers. Simple notions of probability as related to statistical inference (means, proportions, binomial distribution, chi-square, simple regression).

R420 Sociology of Education (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. A survey of sociological approaches to the study of education, covering such major topics as education as a social institution, the school in society, the school as a social system, and (d) the sociology of learning.

R461 Race and Ethnic Relations (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. Comparative study of racial, ethnic, and religious relations. Focus on patterns of inclusion and exclusion of minority groups by majority groups. Discussion of theories of intercrop tensions - prejudice and discrimination - and of corresponding approaches to the reduction of tensions.

R463 Inequality and Society (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. Presentation of conservative and radical theories of class formation, consciousness, mobility, and class consequences. Relevance of social class to social structure and personality. Emphasis on the American class system, with some attention given to class systems in other societies.

R467 Social Change (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. Basic concepts, models, and individual theories of social change; historical and contemporary analysis of the structural and psychological ramifications of major social trends.

R478 Formal Organizations (3 cr.) P: R100 or consent of instructor. Sociological inquiry into the nature, origin, and functions of bureaucratic organizations. Emphasis on bureaucratic organizations as the predominant mode of contemporary task performance and on their social-psychological consequences. Theoretical and empirical considerations in organizational studies from Weber to contemporary findings.

R494 Internship Program in Sociology (3-6 cr.) P: R100, 9 credits of sociology with a C (2.0) or higher, junior standing with consent of instructor. This course involves students working in organizations where they apply or gain practical insight into sociological concepts, theories, and knowledge. Students analyze their experiences through work logs, a paper, and regular meetings with the internship director.

R495 Topics in Sociology (3 cr.) P: variable with topic. Exploration of a topic in sociology not covered by the regular curriculum but of interest to faculty and students in a particular semester. Topics to be announced.

R497 Individual Readings in Sociology (3 cr.) P: consent of instructor and 9 credit hours of sociology courses with at least a C grade. Investigation of a topic not covered in the regular curriculum that is of special interest to the student and that the student wishes to pursue in greater detail. Normally available only to majors through arrangement with a faculty member.

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