Sociology

Sociology is the analytical study of the development, structure, and function of human groups and societies. It is concerned with the scientific understanding of human behavior as it relates to, and as a consequence of, interaction within groups. The undergraduate program in the Department of Sociology provides a broad understanding of human society for students in every field and integrated programs for majors in sociology.

Preparation. High school students planning to major in sociology should take courses in history and social studies. Substantial work in English composition, mathematics, and second languages is also desirable. Two-year transfer students are advised to come with a year’s work in introductory sociology courses as well as courses that fulfill university group requirements.

Careers. Recent graduates with bachelor’s degrees in sociology are found in all the pursuits traditionally open to liberal-arts graduates—especially social work, personnel work, and recreation. Some graduates seek additional training in graduate professional schools of social work, business administration, and law. A bachelor’s degree alone is seldom sufficient to allow a person to enter a professional career as a sociologist. Students who seek careers as social scientists enter graduate programs in sociology or related fields.

Curriculum

Undergraduate courses in sociology are offered at three levels. Courses at the 200 level provide an introduction to the field. Basic courses are Introduction to Sociology (SOC 204) and Social Inequality (SOC 207).

Courses at the 300 level extend the student’s knowledge of subjects covered in the 200-level courses and provide an introduction to social research methods and social theory.

Courses at the 400 level are advanced and specialized. Most build on background obtained in the 200- and 300-level courses. Upper-division (300- and 400-level) classes are usually smaller in size than the lower-division classes and provide more opportunity for faculty-student interaction.

Major Requirements

1. A minimum of 44 credits in undergraduate sociology courses
2. At least 36 of the 44 credits must be upper division and 16 of the 36 must be numbered 407 or 410–491; 12 of the 16 credits in 400-level courses must be taken at the University of Oregon
3. No more than 8 credits in courses numbered 401–406 and 408–409 may be applied to the major
4. Courses used to satisfy major requirements must be taken for letter grades and passed with grades of C– or better; at least a 2.00 grade point average (GPA) must be achieved in these courses. Courses numbered 401–406 and 408–409 may be taken pass/no pass (P/N); P grades must be earned to apply them to the major
5. Completion of the following core courses:

• Development of Sociology (SOC 310)
• Introduction to Social Research (SOC 311)
• Quantitative Methods in Sociology (SOC 312)

Planning a Program

A faculty advisor is assigned to each student when the major is declared. The department maintains an active peer advising program for undergraduate students. Peer advisors keep regular office hours in the advising office, 706 Prince Lucien Campbell Hall.

With the help of peer advisors and the faculty advisor, each student should select courses that emphasize experiences most useful for the student’s educational and career objectives. Students with specific career plans may also go to the Career Center, 220 Hendricks Hall, for advice about suitable course programs.

General Sociology

Work in sociology begins with SOC 204 and 207, both of which provide an introduction to the discipline. They emphasize how sociology can be applied to contemporary social issues. Students specializing in general sociology move on to courses that provide a more in-depth study of social institutions. Courses on social stratification, social psychology, social change, and sociological theory help to tie these diverse areas together by providing perspectives that are useful in the study of any institutional area. Finally, courses in methodology and statistics provide a tool kit of analytical and research skills that are useful both in sociology courses and in whatever activities the student pursues after graduation.

Concentration Areas

Students can focus upper-division course work in one or more areas of concentration listed below. Concentrations are optional; it is each student’s responsibility to plan far enough in advance to complete concentration requirements and to complete the required form in the sociology office. A list of courses to be offered during the academic year is available in the sociology office or peer advising office each fall.

Each concentration requires completion of at least four courses from the respective category with grades of C– or better. Students who successfully complete a concentration receive formal recognition upon graduation. In addition to the courses listed below, approved internships (SOC 404) and special topics courses (SOC 407 and 410) may count toward the completion of the concentration. Information about internships is available in the sociology department office.

Crime and Delinquency. Introduction: Deviance, Control, and Crime (SOC 380), Urbanization and the City (SOC 442), Crime and Social Control (SOC 480), Issues in Deviance, Control, and Crime (SOC 484)

Culture, Education, and Religion. American Society (SOC 301), Sociology of Mass Media (SOC 317), Sociology of the Family (SOC 330), Sociology of Religion (SOC 461), Sociology of Education (SOC 491)

Environment, Population, and Society. American Society (SOC 301), World Population and Social Structure (SOC 303), Community, Environment, and Society (SOC 304), Social Demography (SOC 415), Issues in Sociology of the Environment (SOC 416), Urbanization and the City (SOC 442), Sociology of Developing Areas (SOC 450)

Family, Gender, and Sexuality. American Society (SOC 301), Sociology of the Family (SOC 330), Sociology of Women (SOC 355), Issues in Family Sociology (SOC 425), Social Stratification (SOC 451), Issues in Sociology of Gender (SOC 455), Feminist Theory (SOC 456), Sex and Society (SOC 457)

International Systems. Political Economy (SOC 420), Sociology of Developing Areas (SOC 450), Systems of War and Peace (SOC 464), Political Sociology (SOC 465)

Politics and Social Movements. American Society (SOC 301), Social Issues and Movements (SOC 313), Sociology of Mass Media (SOC 317), Political Economy (SOC 420), Urbanization and the City (SOC 442), Systems of War and Peace (SOC 464), Political Sociology (SOC 465), Marxist Sociological Theory (SOC 475)

Race, Ethnicity, and Social Change. American Society (SOC 301), America’s Peoples (SOC 305), Race, Class, and Ethnic Groups (SOC 345), Experimental Course: Asian American Experience (SOC 410), Social Demography (SOC 415), Sociology of Race Relations (SOC 445), Social Stratification (SOC 451)

Social Interaction. Introduction to Social Psychology (SOC 328), Interaction and Social Order (SOC 335), Ethnomethodology and Conversation Analysis (SOC 435)

Social Theory and Methods. Sociological Research Methods (SOC 412, 413), Feminist Theory (SOC 456), Marxist Sociological Theory (SOC 475)

Work, Labor, and Economy. American Society (SOC 301), Work and Occupations (SOC 346), Complex Organizations (SOC 347), Political Economy (SOC 420), Issues in Sociology of Work (SOC 446), Issues in Sociology of Organizations (SOC 447), Social Stratification (SOC 451), Marxist Sociological Theory (SOC 475)

Career Planning

When planning a program, students should keep in mind the ways in which concentration areas and major requirements fit with career objectives. Careers pursued by sociology graduates are discussed below.

Social Service Professions. Social service professions include social work, work in nonprofit organizations, counseling, community relations, housing, labor relations, and human resources. Sociology majors who want to enter a helping profession should take at least one course each in sociological methodology and social psychology and several courses dealing with social issues and problems. Students may want to complete one of the concentrations listed above in order to focus on a specific group of social issues and problems.

Students may supplement their programs with courses in the psychology and political science departments and in the College of Education. Many of these occupations require graduate or field training. Students can get more detailed information from the Career Center.

Business or Government Service. Business or government organizations typically require general human-relations skills, some awareness of organizations and the surrounding social environment, and an ability to analyze and understand basic social data.

Students interested in business should include in their programs courses in methodology, social psychology, and organizations and occupations. Programs may be supplemented with courses in the Lundquist College of Business and in the Department of Economics.

Students with career goals in governmental service should include courses in community, urban affairs, population, and resources; social psychology; organizations and occupations; and methodology. Related courses in the economics, political science, and planning, public policy and management departments also are useful.

Honors in Sociology

Motivated students may participate in the honors program in sociology. Qualified students work closely with faculty members and fellow honors students on a yearlong project of their own design, and write an honors thesis. The thesis may be based on existing data or data collected by the student.

Students who successfully complete the honors program are awarded honors, high honors, or highest honors based on their advisors’ evaluation of the quality of their work. The honors distinction (but not the level) is noted on the student’s official transcript and diploma.

Applicants to the honors program must demonstrate a high level of competence and motivation for advanced studies in sociology. A GPA of no less than 3.40 in sociology courses or a nomination by two faculty members is required for admittance, but does not guarantee acceptance. Students selected for the program are notified during spring term of their sophomore or junior year. Application forms are available in the sociology department office or the department’s web page.

During fall term of the senior year, honors students take part in the honors seminar (SOC 407), in which they work closely with an instructor and other students to refine research questions and design. By the end of the term, each student submits a thesis proposal for approval. During winter and spring terms, students work independently with their advisor and proceed with data collection and analysis. Students complete and submit their theses during spring term.

Minor

The minor in sociology is inactive.

Preparing for Graduate Study

Students planning graduate work in sociology should have a strong background in sociological theory and social research methods well beyond courses required for the major. Besides taking advanced courses in areas of special interest to them, students should take a substantial number of upper-division courses in other social sciences.

Applications to graduate school should be made in fall or winter the year before the student plans to enter a graduate program. Students considering graduate school should talk to their faculty advisors about programs at various schools, experiences that increase chances for admission, and requirements for students in graduate programs in sociology.

Kindergarten through Secondary Teaching Careers

Students who complete a degree with a major in sociology are eligible to apply to the College of Education’s fifth-year program for a license in middle-secondary teaching or the fifth-year program for a license in elementary teaching. Refer early to information in the College of Education section of this catalog.

The graduate program of the Department of Sociology is intended primarily to lead to the doctor of philosophy (PhD) degree.

Students who seek an advanced degree in sociology should have achieved a grade point average (GPA) of 3.00 or better in their undergraduate work in the social sciences. Admission is not restricted to students with undergraduate majors in sociology, although the chance of admission is considerably reduced for someone without any undergraduate work in sociology.

Students admitted to the graduate program with a bachelor’s degree are required to complete 93 credits of graduate-level (500 to 600) work for the doctoral degree and 60 credits for the master’s—all taken for letter grades except work in Research (SOC 601), Dissertation (SOC 603), Reading and Conference (SOC 605), Supervised Field Study (SOC 606), or Workshop (SOC 608). Students are encouraged to complete their 60 credits for the master’s degree in the first six terms of enrollment. In addition, students must satisfy the departmental master’s paper requirement. The paper must present original empirical research and be stylistically formatted for an existing peer-reviewed journal approved by the student’s advisor. Upon completion of the 60-credit requirement, students are awarded a master’s degree if they have achieved a mid-B or better average in their graded courses and if they have passed the master’s paper requirement.

Continuing in the program requires that students receive a grade of "pass at the PhD level" on their master’s papers. Students may then prepare for a comprehensive examination in a sociological subfield chosen jointly by the student and the advisor.

Upon passing the comprehensive examination, the student is advanced to PhD candidacy and begins work on the doctoral dissertation, which must embody the results of research and show evidence of originality and ability in independent investigation. Early in their graduate work, students should begin defining the general topic to be covered in the dissertation research.

Many students receive some type of financial assistance. In addition, some graduate students hold part-time teaching or research appointments outside the department.

Information for Graduate Students, an online publication available from the department website, describes the graduate program, specifies the materials needed to apply for admission, lists specific course requirements, and includes a list of faculty members and their research interests. Students applying for graduate admission should submit all necessary materials by February 1.

Because every course cannot be offered every year, students should consult the most recent class schedule or inquire at the department office. Instructors may waive prerequisites for their courses.

196 Field Studies: [Topic] (1–2R)

198 Workshop: [Topic] (1–2R)

199 Special Studies: [Topic] (1–5R)

204 Introduction to Sociology (4) The sociological perspective with emphasis on fundamental concepts, theories, and methods of research.

207 Social Inequality (4) Overview of social inequality, cross-culturally and within the United States. Examines relationship of social inequality based on social class, race, and gender to social change, social institutions, and self-identity.

301 American Society (4) Selected aspects of American culture and institutions and the ways in which they are changing. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

303 World Population and Social Structure (4) Introduction to population studies. Comparative analysis of historical, contemporary, and anticipated demographic change. Emphasis on demographic transitions between and within developed and underdeveloped countries. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

304 Community, Environment, and Society (4) Interrelationship of social and environmental factors in human communities, processes of community change, impact of environmental change on human communities. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

305 America’s Peoples (4) Examines how the size, composition, and distribution of America’s ethnic and racial subpopulations have shaped social structure, social culture, and social change in the United States. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

310 Development of Sociology (4) Analysis of the major writers and ideas that have shaped contemporary sociology. Focus on recurrent concepts and issues that continue to challenge sociological inquiry. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

311 Introduction to Social Research (4) The development of social research; the nature of scientific inquiry and basic methods and techniques; examination of representative sociological studies from the standpoint of methodology. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

312 Quantitative Methods in Sociology (4) Construction and interpretation of tables and graphs, descriptive statistics, measures of association and contingency relationships, basic ideas of probability, and elementary statistical inference applied to nonexperimental research. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207; MATH 95 or equivalent.

313 Social Issues and Movements (4) Contemporary social issues viewed in relation to the social structure of American society. Social movements and ideologies related to these issues. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

317 Sociology of the Mass Media (4) Analysis of media events: advertisements, news broadcasts, documentaries, popular music, and television. Perspectives include content analysis, semiotics, functionalist and structuralist paradigms, and power system analysis. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

328 Introduction to Social Psychology (4) How the thought, feeling, and behavior of individuals are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

330 Sociology of the Family (4) Introduction to and historical perspective of the family as a social institution and small-group association. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

335 Interaction and Social Order (4) Introduction to ethnomethodology, which is the study of methods by which humans order their activities, and conversation analysis, which focuses on methods organizing talk-in-interaction. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

345 Race, Class, and Ethnic Groups (4) Major class, racial, and ethnic groups in the United States with special attention to the culture and experience of minority groups. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

346 Work and Occupations (4) Characteristics of work and occupational careers in modern societies; relationships of those to family, the economy, bureaucracy, technology, and alienation. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

347 Complex Organizations (4) Nature of organizations in modern societies (e.g., specialization, impersonality, formalization, authority, and power); relationship of organizations to work and careers, stratification, democracy, discrimination, and deviance. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

355 Sociology of Women (4) Position of women in contemporary society; women and work, politics, families, the economy; intersection of gender, race, and class; women’s movements. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

370 Urban Sociology (4) Examines the growth of cities; urban inequalities, politics, and social movements; built environment, ecology, and sustainability of cities and identity; global cities and immigration. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

380 Introduction: Deviance, Control, and Crime (4) Origins of rules and laws, patterns of reactions to their violation, emphasis on causal theories of deviance and of crime, data sources for study of crime. Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

399 Special Studies: [Topic] (1–5R) Prereq: SOC 204 or 207.

401 Research: [Topic] (1–21R)

403 Thesis (1–12R)

404 Internship: [Topic] (1–6R)

405 Reading and Conference: [Topic] (1–21R)

406 Supervised Field Study (1–21R)

407/507 Seminar: [Topic] (1–5R) Offerings vary from year to year depending on student needs and faculty interests. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312.

408/508 Workshop: [Topic] (1–21R)

409 Practicum: [Topic] (1–21R)

410/510 Experimental Course: [Topic] (1–5R) Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312.

412/512, 413/513 Sociological Research Methods (4,4) 412/512: intermediate-level descriptive and inferential statistics. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312. 413/513: multiple regression and other advanced statistical techniques. Prereq: SOC 412/512.

415/515 Social Demography (4) Causes and consequences of demographic change in racial or ethnic groups in the United States. Techniques of demographic analysis. Prereq: SOC 303, 310, 311, 312.

416/516 Issues in Sociology of the Environment: [Topic] (4R) Analysis of selected topics in environmental sociology. Topics include environmental movement, impacts of technological change, environmental policy and the state, environmental values, attitudes, and behaviors. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312. R twice when topic changes for maximum of 12 credits.

420/520 Political Economy (4) Survey of the fundamentals of political economy. Readings from Marxian and mainstream traditions introduce contemporary debates on socioeconomic crisis. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312.

425/525 Issues in Sociology of Family: [Topic] (4R) Analysis of selected topics in the sociology of the family. Topics include the sociology of parenthood, feminist perspectives on the family, and the family in cross-cultural perspective. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312, 330. R twice for a maximum of 12 credits when topic changes.

442/542 Issues in Urban Sociology: [Topic] (4R) Determinants and consequences of urbanization under different conditions; the city as a social and ecological system. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312. R twice when topic changes for a maximum of 12 credits.

445/545 Sociology of Race Relations (4) Racial oppression as a structural and ideological feature in American life. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312, 345.

446/546 Issues in Sociology of Work: [Topic] (4R) Selected topics in sociology of work: occupational structures and careers, industrial democracy; technological change and work reform, politics of work. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312, 346. R twice when topic changes for maximum of 12 credits.

447/547 Issues in Sociology of Organizations: [Topic] (4R) Analysis of selected topics in the sociology of organizations. Topics include industrial sociology, organizational change; organizational democracy; corporate deviance; bureaucracy, power, and society. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312, 347. R twice when topic changes for maximum of 12 credits.

450/550 Sociology of Developing Areas (4) Social and economic structures and processes promoting or inhibiting change in the developing nations of Africa, Asia, Latin America. Topics include urbanization, industrialization, cultural change, world poverty, and dependence. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312.

451/551 Social Stratification (4) The interrelations among class, race, and sex. Historical origins and development of class and class systems including slavery. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312.

452/552 Issues of Migration: [Topic] (4R) Sociological analysis of migration, including dynamics of race and ethnicity, social structure, and social policy. Examines assimilation, marginalization, multiculturalism, postcolonialism, and social cohesion. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312. R when topic changes. Offered alternate years. 

455/555 Issues in Sociology of Gender: [Topic] (4R) Advanced analysis of gender and social relations of power in contemporary society. Variable topics include Women and Health; Violence against Women. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312; SOC 355 or WGS 101. R twice when topic changes for maximum of 12 credits.

457/557 Sex and Society (4) Examines alternative sociological perspectives on sexual behavior, the social construction and regulation of sexuality, contemporary social and political issues pertaining to sexuality. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312.

461/561 Sociology of Religion (4) Sociological analysis of religious belief and behavior; special attention to the relation between religious institutions and the larger societies of which they are a part. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312.

464/564 Systems of War and Peace (4) Violence and nonviolence as functions of social structures and as instruments of social change. Systems of international threat, their supporting institutions, and the ideology of nationalism. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312.

465/565 Political Sociology (4) Analysis of political theory and behavior, social bases of power and policy determination, institutional interrelationships, intellectuals and ideologies, political trends and change, political participation and membership. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312.

467/567 Economic Sociology (4) Applies the sociological perspective to basic economic phenomena such as markets, exchange, prices, money and rationality. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312.

475/575 Marxist Sociological Theory (4) Basic concepts, theory, and social analysis in the works of Marx and Engels. Topics include dialectical and historical materialism, class, historical development, political economy, and imperialism. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312.

480/580 Crime and Social Control (4) Emphasizes definitions of crime, major substantive areas of crime, and control policies in the United States. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312, 380

484/584 Issues in Deviance, Control, and Crime: [Topic] (4R) Topics vary. Examples are modern policing, juvenile delinquency, correction, emerging forms of social control. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312, 380. R twice when topic changes for maximum of 12 credits.

491/591 Sociology of Education (4) The relationship between education and other social institutions, the school and the community, the school as a social system, social change and education. Prereq: SOC 310, 311, 312.

503 Thesis (1–16R)

601 Research: [Topic] (1–16R)

602 Supervised College Teaching (1–5R)

603 Dissertation (1–16R)

604 Internship: [Topic] (1–6R)

605 Reading and Conference: [Topic] (1–16R)

606 Supervised Field Study (1–16R)

607 Seminar: [Topic] (1–5R) Proseminar required for all incoming sociology graduate students. Professional socialization and preparation for the discipline.

608 Workshop: [Topic] (1–16R)

609 Practicum: [Topic] (1–3R)

610 Experimental Course: [Topic] (1–5R)

612 Overview of Sociological Methods (5) Examines the research process—framing research questions, qualitative and quantitative design, relationships between methods and theory, deductive and inductive investigation logic, research ethics, sampling procedures, explanatory power.

613 Advanced Sociological Methods: [Topic] (5R) Major methodological topics such as comparative, demographic, experimental, field, historical, and survey methods. Other possible topics include time-series analysis. Prereq: SOC 612 or equivalent. R twice when topic changes for maximum of 15 credits.

615 Advanced Sociological Theory: [Topic] (5R) Major sociological theories such as modern functionalism, contemporary Marxism, phenomenology, postmodernism, feminist and organizational theory. R twice when topic changes for maximum of 15 credits.

616 Environment and Resource Issues: [Topic] (5R) Explores issues of environmental sociology and resource policy, including ecological crisis; environmental justice as it pertains to race, gender, class, and international inequality. R twice when topic changes for maximum of 15 credits.

617 Sociological Theory I (5) Sociological theories of the 19th century (especially Marx, Weber, and Durkheim) and 20th century (e.g., modern functionalism, feminist, neo-Marxism, neo-Weberian, poststructuralist theories).

618 Sociological Theory II (5) Major themes and historical foundation of contemporary sociological theory. Prereq: SOC 617.

644 Race and Ethnicity Issues [Topic] (5R) Explores current research and theoretical debates, such as Chicano and Latino studies, in the sociology of race and ethnicity. R twice when topic changes for maximum of 15 credits.

646 Work and Organization Issues: [Topic] (5R) Examples of issues explored include power in organizations; changing patterns of employment and work; industrial democracy; and race, class and gender. R twice when topic changes for maximum of 15 credits.

656 Issues in Sociology of Gender: [Topic] (5R) Examines sociological theories of gender, focusing on a particular substantive area such as health, work, family, or sexuality. Explores gender in relation to race, ethnicity, and class. R twice when topic changes for maximum of 15 credits.

664 Political and Economic Sociology Issues: [Topic] (5R) Examines the relationship between economic institutions and political processes. Sample topics include theories of modern capitalism, corporations and the state, development and underdevelopment, war and peace. R twice when topic changes for maximum of 15 credits.