Department of Sociology

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SOCI 001-02: INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
Professor Sarah Stiles
MW 9:30am - 10:45am
Healy 104

Sociology is the study of social life, social change, and the social causes and consequences of human behavior. Sociologists investigate the structure of groups, organizations, and societies, and how people interact within these contexts. (American Sociological Association, 2005)

In this course students will learn the basics of sociology through a variety of readings and film clips and "do" sociology with regular data workshops where they will test theories and recognize the social construction we all experience. By the end of the semester, students will be able to understand and explain:

• Basic concepts, generalizations, theories, and methods used in the study of sociology;
• The sociological focus and the influence the study of sociology has on identifying, explaining, and solving (or causing) social policy issues; and
• How sociology is used in everyday life to explain the social behavior of people, and even predict what they will do.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI-001-03: INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
Professor Becky Hsu
MW 11:00 am - 12:15 pm
Walsh 499

This course is an introduction to the field of sociology, the study of people in groups both small and large (or very large). How does being a flight attendant require the “selling” of one’s emotions? Rather than being a timeless institution of knowledge and technical expertise, how does the form and field of American medicine reflect historical and social power struggles? What kinds of organizational forms do urban gangs use? How does our environment change how likely we are to help someone else? These are some of the questions that we will explore as we look at a range of topics that engage sociologists today: social change, social networks, urban life, health and medicine, religion, emotions, sex and gender, the economy, and social inequality.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI-001-04: INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
Professor Christine Schiwietz
TR 2:00 pm – 3:15 pm
Car Barn 201

SOCI-001-05: INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
Professor Christine Schiwietz
TR 12:30 pm - 1:45 pm
Car Barn 202

To communicate the importance and excitement of the study of the social world! This course is designed to introduce students to the field of sociology, the exploration of society and how it operates. Sociology broadens social insights, fosters critical thinking, trains students in methods of gathering and analyzing data, and helps students develop their writing skills. By thinking actively about the issues facing contemporary society, students will learn to examine life situations and the influence of society and groups on people’s lives and the basic processes that shape social life. The course will introduce sociological perspectives (how issues of everyday life and activities) relate to the way society is structured and introduce socialization, culture, social institutions, social stratification, race and ethnicity, gender, politics, education and social change.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI-131: POPULATION DYNAMICS
Professor Laurie DeRose
MW 8:00am-9:15am
Car Barn 201

Students enrolled in Population Dynamics will become familiar with prevailing levels of fertility, mortality, marriage, and migration in each of the world's major regions; they will also learn what processes of change resulted in current levels. In addition, the course introduces multiple issues in the complex relationship between population dynamics and economic development.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI-143: SPORT AND SOCIETY
Professor Shelly K. Habel
TR 9:30 am - 10:45 am
ICC 101

This course examines the role of sports in the United States, focusing on sports as social and cultural phenomena through the lens of the “sociological imagination,” with an emphasis on the social institution of education. The class revolves around one major, substantive, inquiry-based assignment focused on two questions: “What tensions exist between athletics and academics on campus? How might these tensions be managed or resolved?” This process will consist of a variety of conventional and on-line research methods and the course will actively encourage students to seek out scholarly collaborations and feedback on their research through the development of and contributions to Wikipedia entries.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: Juniors and Seniors only. Must have one Sociology (SOCI-) course as a prerequisite

SOCI-155: SOCIAL MOVEMENTS
Professor Judith Perez
MW 5:00pm- 6:15pm
Car Barn 201

Course Description: In this class, we will take a comparative, historical and sociological approach to studying modern social movements in the United States from the beginning of the 20th century to the present day. We will read classic texts and supplemental readings that lay the foundation and provide the impetus for modern day movements, such as the Occupy Wall Street movement which has recently swept the nation. An introduction to community organizing and its importance in social movements also frames the scope of this course. Since there are so many social movements one can cover, we will specifically focus on three broad and deeply interconnected themes:

• Civil Rights and Racial Justice
• Labor and Economic Justice
• The Role of Women

We will also watch films and examine social media. Since there are many movements and perspectives that we cannot cover over the course of one semester, students will have the opportunity to research and present on a modern American social movement of their choosing.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI-163: EDUCATION AND SOCIETY
Professor Leslie R. Hinkson
MW 12:30 pm - 1:45 pm
Car Barn 201

The primary goal of this course is to understand the relationship between education and society. In order to achieve this goal, students will develop the tools necessary to analyze educational processes and practices through the sociological lens, an approach that incorporates individuals, groups, and institutions within its analytical frame. Using both theoretical and empirical texts, we will investigate questions about the role of schooling, the social structure of schools, stratification processes within and between schools, and the outcomes of education.

Among the many questions we will explore to this end this semester are: 1) How do schools help to maintain and perpetuate social inequality?; 2) How do factors of race, class, and gender affect the educational experiences of students both within and across schools?; 3) And what is the ultimate purpose of education and how can we as a society best achieve this purpose?

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI-164-01: JAPANESE SOCIETY
Professor Annie Imamura
W 6:30 pm - 9:00 pm
White-Gravenor 311

This course examines major principles of social organization in Japan and contrasts them with the United States. Much of the course material will focus on Japan. However, students are both encouraged and required to make comparisons with the United States and/or other societies when applicable.

We begin with an overview of social structure, norms, values and principles of social interaction, then focus more closely on family, education, community, gender, and current social problems and social change.

Our purpose is to deepen our understanding of Japanese society and to come to a more analytic understanding of how the social organization of Japan compares to that of the United States.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI-168: CBL: SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP: LEADING SOCIAL CHANGE
Professor Sarah Stiles
TR 3:30 pm - 4:45 pm Walsh 490
W 3:30 pm - 6:15 pm Car Barn 301

In this course we will examine the rise of social entrepreneurship and the social movement it has come to represent in contemporary society as people across the globe achieve new ways to effect positive social change. The course will cover examples of social entrepreneurship and the qualities of the social entrepreneur as well as what makes a successful organization. On Tuesdays we discuss the reading -- theory and case studies, on Thursdays students meet a social entrepreneur or other expert in the field and have the opportunity for in depth conversation. Most importantly, students form small groups and partner with an organization to work on a socially entrepreneurial project that will further the organization’s mission of social improvement.

Credits: 4
Prerequisites: None

SOCI 170: SOCIAL NETWORKS
Professor Elisa Bienenstock
MF 11:00am-12:15pm
Car Barn 201

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI 180: LATINO SOCIOLOGY
Professor Howard Caro-Lopez
MF 8:00am-9:15am
Car Barn 201

This course is an interdisciplinary and comparative study of the experience of the various populations of Hispanic/Latin American descent in the United States, and their contributions through an exploration of their history, culture, institutions and social conditions. The course will focus on the experience of conquest, colonialism, immigration, racialization and social inequality among Cubans, Dominicans, Mexicans, Puerto Ricans and other groups from Central and South America that make up the Latina/o population in the United States. The course will examine the Latina/o experience through the lens of various topics, including civil rights, identity construction, media representations, gender & sexuality, economics, education, civic & political participation and technology. We will also explore the timely subject of immigration and its social, economic and political implications, which is central to the lived experience a large segment of the Latina/o population.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI 196: COMPARATIVE LAW ENFORCEMENT
Professor William Daddio
MW 3:30 pm - 4:45 pm
Car Barn 202

The purpose of this course is to present and selected law enforcement systems nation-states and international police organizations develop and use to control crime and criminals within and across national borders. The course will use a global comparative approach to the law enforcement systems countries develop to counter crime and its impact. Many nation-states have standardized their laws, a globalization to some extent. Law enforcement systems still vary greatly. Some differences are due to the system of law they enforce, but most differences are cultural. Those differences cause problems in dealing with global crime issues. Students will learn about the different law enforcement systems to better appreciate possible outcomes in countering transnational crime. The course topics will include:
• Discussion of the types of legal systems: common law, civil law, religious law, customary law
• Present law enforcement systems from select countries including U.S., France, Saudi Arabia, and the United Nations
• Compare the different law enforcement systems
• Discuss trends for the future

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI 197: TRANSNATIONAL CRIME
Professor William Daddio
MW 5:00 pm - 6:15 pm
Car Barn 202

This course focuses on transnational crime from a sociology and criminology perspective. Sociology is the study of human social interaction and structure in groups. Sociologists examine systematically the ways people behave and arrange themselves in groups. Why people behave and organize the ways they do. By systematically observing and analyzing the group interactions and the group structures, sociologists can describe, explain, and interpret the group behavior patterns, and explain the influences of the social structure on that behavior. Sociology’s structure/functional, interaction, and critical theories have been very useful in understanding social issues, and have been very influential in deciding social policy issues: sometimes beneficially, sometimes not so well.

The purpose of this course is to present current transnational crime behavior and explain national law enforcement agencies and international police organizations response to control transnational crime. The course will discuss: human trafficking, money laundering, trafficking in illegal items (drugs, weapons, antiquities, flora and fauna, body parts), and other transnational crimes. All definitions of crimes are social constructs, and are severely influenced by cultural and social forces. Some countries have similar laws, but many do not. In one country a deviant behavior is labeled a crime, and in another country the behavior is legal. One country’s criminal may be another country’s law-abiding citizen. Different crimes and different priorities compound the responds to transnational crime control. Those differences cause problems in dealing with global crime issues. The course objectives are:

• Present current transnational crime operations
• Explain the role of international organizations and crime control
• Analyze the issue in controlling transnational crime
• Present the trends in transnational crime and control

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI-201: METHODS OF SOCIAL RESEARCH
Professor William McDonald
TR 9:30 am – 10:45 am
Walsh 492

In this course students are introduced to the basic concepts and techniques that are used in social science research. The course is divided into three sections: a) social scientific inquiry and research design; b) quantitative data gathering and analysis; and c) qualitative data gathering and analysis.

As a result of taking the course, students should be able to:
1) Demonstrate their understanding of the basic principles and procedures of research methodology
2) Critically evaluate both quantitative and qualitative research studies
3) Write a research proposal to be used as a template for their senior thesis projects.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: Sociology Majors and Minors only

SOCI-202: SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY
Professor Jose Casanova
MW 11:00 am – 12:15 pm
Car Barn 202

Car Barn 202This course is an introduction to sociological theory, encompassing both the “classical” sociological works of Durkheim, Marx, Simmel, and Weber, who merged empirical and normative interests in their arguments about social change during the 19th and early 20th centuries, as well as contemporary theoretical developments.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: Sociology Majors and Minors only

SOCI-203: SOCIAL STATISTICS
Professor Leslie Hinkson
MW 9:30 am – 10:45 am
Car Barn 202

This is an introduction to statistical analysis of social data. It presumes no math knowledge beyond high school algebra and no more than basic computer literacy. It is intended for the beginning social researcher. Students who have not had Methods of Social Research or an equivalent must get the permission of the instructor for admission to this course.

The course includes the following topics: various methods of summarizing, presenting and comparing descriptive data graphically and in summary measures of central tendency and of variation; the normal distribution and probability theory; methods of examining the strength and significance of relationships among variables; hypothesis testing; chi-square; analysis of variance; multi-variate tabular analysis; and multiple regression and correlation.

Students perform statistical analyses of real data sets (including the General Social Survey, the major database for social scientists) with a user-friendly statistical package (an individual copy of which comes with each textbook). Homework problems are regularly assigned.

For the purpose of giving some substantive continuity to the course, students will read some brief excerpts on the debate about multi-culturalism, translate the terms of that debate into empirical propositions that can be tested with the data and run analyses testing their propositions.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: Sociology Majors and Minors only

SOCI-209: THE CITY/URBAN STUDIES
Professor Brian McCabe
TR 2:00 pm – 3:15 pm
Healy 104

This course provides an interdisciplinary introduction to the study of cities and urban life. Cities are socially and politically contested spaces, and researchers have sought for more than a century to understand the process of urban development and the consequence of urban life. Some argue that cities represent the crowning achievement of modernity; others suggest that cities are isolating and alienating, fostering anomie, rather than social cohesion. The course integrates work by urban planners, architects, political scientists, geographers and sociologists to provide a comprehensive set of tools to understand and analyze modern urban life. It begins with an analysis of the dynamics of capitalist urbanization in the early twentieth century and examines the widespread suburbanization that followed the Second World War. It investigates the rise of the urban ghetto in the post-War city and the subsequent efforts to reimagine the American urban landscape. Although the course focuses primarily on the United States, we will also discuss the rise of global cities, mega-cities and slums in the Global South.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI-215: AMERICAN CULTURE & SOCIAL STRUCTURES
Professor William McDonald
TR 2:00 pm – 3:15 pm
Car Barn 202

In keeping with Henry Nash Smith’s hope, this course converges on American culture and social structure starting from a social scientific (sociological) perspective but taking into account the data and methods of scholarship of history and the humanities. While its focus is American society, its larger purpose is to stake out a rich complementarity of social scientific to humanistic approaches to the common focus. Also, it will provide those students who are grounded primarily in the humanities with the opportunity to add quantitative methods and social theories to their tool kits for understanding the American experience.

Chronologically the course covers the entire American experience from pre-colonial to present times. The long time frame is intended to allow for the examination of changes in the culture over time and to trace the links between foundational events and later manifestations. It breaks through the restrictions imposed by the periodization approach.

Three recurring themes or focal concerns organize the course: inequality; change; and comparative analysis (Americans vs others). Among the main concepts addressed will be American values (individualism, materialism, radicalism); hierarchy vs. equality; life styles; social class and antinomianism.

This course will emphasize social analysis with particular emphasis on comparative analysis and some basic statistical analysis. A user-friendly statistical analysis program and major national and international data sets will be used.

The course will be taught in a seminar format with strong emphasis on student-based presentation, analysis, and discussion. The general contours of the course have been set but students are invited to shape the specific focal points and issues.
Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI-220: CBL: GLOBAL INEQUALITIES/SOCIAL JUSTICE
Professor Becky Hsu
MW 3:30 pm – 4:45 pm
Car Barn 303

Global inequalities refer to the systematic differences in the distribution of socially valued attributes such as education, income, information, health, and influence between people living in different areas of the globe. We will begin by discussing the systemic causes of global inequalities. Then, for the bulk of the course, we will read on topics centered on manifestations of inequality and approaches to addressing them: modern slavery, health disparities, sex trafficking, labor and sweatshops, poverty, human rights, and disaster relief. Our readings will be about what it feels like to experience these inequalities as well as analyses of current efforts to alleviate the inequalities. At the same time, each student will be interning at an organization seeking to address global inequalities.

Credits: 4
Prerequisites: None

SOCI-223: VISUAL SOCI: CONSUMER TECHNOLOGY
Professor Christine Schiwietz
MW 12:30 pm - 1:45 pm
Walsh 394

Visual sociology focuses on the visual representations of social life. This course will explore society, how we represent ourselves and our social world visually and furthermore investigate how innovative 21st century technology is transforming contemporary social life. We don't just use technology, “we live with it” and it greatly influences society, lifestyles, global business relationships, culture, and social progress. Our scholarly journey will explore methodologies and theories applicable to the analysis of all kinds of visual content from films, advertisements, and television to new media forms. We will examine new and emerging debates on the sociological consequences of technology, and explore how meaning is both made and transmitted in an increasingly visual world and the complex relationship embedded in the social construction of technology.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI-245: CBL: PHILANTHROPY AND SOCIAL CHANGE
Professor Kathy Kretman, Luisa M. Boyarski
T 3:30 pm – 6:00 pm
Walsh 496

In this community-based learning course, you will get the opportunity to learn about the impact of philanthropy first hand. You will work with a D.C. community-based nonprofit to identify areas of need and write a grant proposal. Later, you and your classmates will form two foundation boards dedicated to reviewing the grant proposals and will ultimately choose how to distribute $15,000. This class will give you the chance to experience philanthropy from the perspective of both the grantees and the grant makers, in an effort to build a better understanding of the role of strategic giving in our community and our nation.

Credits: 4
Prerequisites: None

SOCI-301: SOCIOLOGY TUTORIAL: READING

This is an independent research tutorial. Student must obtain permission from the department before enrolling.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI-302: SOCIOLOGY TUTORIAL: RESEARCH

Independent Study

This is an independent research tutorial. Student must obtain permission from the department before enrolling.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: None

SOCI-304: SOCIOLOGY SENIOR SEMINAR
Professor Timothy Wickham-Crowley
TR 11:00 am - 12:15 pm
Car Barn 201

The Sociology Senior Seminar is the most “signature” course within the sociology major, and is certainly a distinctive experience when compared with seniors’ typical obligations across the main campus. Every sociology major must craft a detailed research paper during the spring term, which most of us are wont to call a “thesis,” whereas in most other departments only a select subgroup of seniors in any field are called upon to have that privilege (and that duty). In this respect, then, Georgetown’s Sociology majors follow a path trod by very few of their peers (e.g., in American Studies). You should feel proud to face and overcome such a challenge as an entire group of majors, not just an elite (so-called!) few. And since each thesis topic differs from the next, the course cannot be described to you via its substantive contents. We will instead focus on the “hows” of getting to that end rather than the “whats” of your own thesis topics.

This is thus the “capstone” experience of the work of sociology majors, and into it we expect you to invest your accumulated sociological expertise and wisdom, with your energies directed for the next 3-1/2 months into producing a polished piece of original research which addresses new topics and/or looks into previously unsolved puzzles and unanswered questions. And yet the course is not just about writing a thesis. Rather, it is a review and synthesis of much of the sociological theory and methodology you have learned in earlier courses. Nor do senior-seminar students learn about a new subject area not studied previously: instead, any topic pursued, researched, and written up for this course must be an extension of a subject matter you have already formally studied.

Some benchmarks. Throughout the term you will find yourself working with an assigned partner for intellectual feedback or in smallish discussion groups. You will create a formal thesis-proposal (or statement of the research problem) no later than mid-January and immediately seek formal approval from the Institutional Review Board if said thesis involves directly working with human “subjects” (as they say). You will then develop a critical review of the appropriate literature to demonstrate that your previous studies of your topic give you a core understanding of the field in question. As term progresses you will further develop your awareness of exacting scholarly practices, and will begin to outline your thesis and then start writing in earnest by roughly the middle of the semester. As term nears its end, you will present to the instructor and your fellow students a précis-talk wherein you lay out the problem or issue with which you have engaged, how existing sociological theories have influenced that project, and the initial conclusions to which you have then arrived. Your final thesis will be submitted in the last weeks of April, but will be preceded by partial completion of at least some chapter(s) thereof.

Grading. The final thesis submission will contribute half (50 percent) of your final grade. The other half will derive from your thoughtful, diligent, and timely contributions to the rest of the term’s assignments, including your work in the abovementioned feedback groups.

Credits: 3
Prerequisites: Sociology Majors only

SOCI-438: CBL: PROJ DC II: URB RES INTERN
Professor Brian McCabe
TR 11:00 am - 12:30 pm
Healy 105

The Project D.C. course is designed as a community-based research (CBR) seminar. The central feature of the course is that each student will work in a research internship with a community-based organization (CBO) in order to undertake a collaborative research project of value to the organization. The student, site supervisor, and course faculty will collaborate in the design of the project–to which all three parties will agree–which will be carried out by the student over the course of the academic year. The research process and product are intended to help advance the social justice work of the CBO and the student’s academic and personal development.

Credits: 4
Prerequisites: Sociology Majors who have completed SOCI-437-01: CBL: Proj DC I