Sociology

Course summary

WHY STUDY THIS COURSE? Sociology is the study of how society is organized, and how we experience life. It has been taught in British universities since the very beginning of the twentieth century, first the London School of Economics, and soon after at Liverpool University. These and other pioneering departments did ground breaking research in major social issues, such as poverty and crime. WHAT WILL I LEARN? Students will be familiar with sociological explanations of the following content: - The role and functions of the education system, including its relationship to the economy and to class structure - Differential educational achievement of social groups by social class, gender, and ethnicity in contemporary society - The relationship of the family to the social structure and social change, with particular reference to the economy and to state policies - Changing patterns of marriage, cohabitation, separation, divorce, childbearing, and the life course, including the sociology of personal life, and the diversity of contemporary family and household structures - Crime, deviance, social order, and social control - The social distribution of crime and deviance by ethnicity, gender, and social class, including recent patterns and trends in crime - Globalization and crime in contemporary society; the media and crime; green crime; human rights and state crimes - Crime control, surveillance, prevention and punishment, victims, and the role of the criminal justice system and other agencies. - Ideology, science, and religion, including both Christian and non-Christian religious traditions - The relationship between social change and social stability, and religious beliefs, practices, and organizations.