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LA 3342
Please refrain from texting during class.
Sociological Theory
Dr. Whitney Garcia
Course description
This is a core course in classical and contemporary sociological theory. Emphasis is placed on
the growth of sociological thought, the contextual influences that shape ideas, the social
implications of prominent paradigms and theories, and the current state of the discipline.
Course requirements
Due to the breadth and depth of information covered in this course, students must keep abreast of
all reading assignments, participate in class discussions by bringing forth questions and
comments for the benefit of the class, have consistent attendance, refrain from texting during
class, complete all examinations, and secure assistance from the teacher and undergraduate
learning assistant (ULA) as needed.
Recommended and required texts
Required:
Charles Lemert-Social Theory- The, Multicultural and Classical Readings- fourth edition
George Ritzer- Classical Sociological Theory- sixth edition
Additional readings from the internet, library, and class handouts
Recommended:
Jary and Jary- The HarperCollins Dictionary of Sociology (or other dictionary of
sociology)
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Grading: The distribution of work for grades is presented below based on a total of 200
points for the course. The course is divided into two parts, with varying values assigned to some
of the elements.
Course
elements
Quizzes
Participation
Presentation
Exams
Total
Part I
Part II
60
10
30
10
30
30
100
-----30
100
Total
pts
90
20
30
60
200
Total
% of grade
45%
10%
15%
30%
100%
Additional work is required of students taking Soci 581.
Numeric/alpha correspondence: The sociology department has adopted a plus/minus grading
system. In order to receive credit for this course as a major requirement, you must earn a C or
better. In accordance with action taken by the University Senate in Fall 2005, the c minus grade
has been suspended.
Letter grading:
A
93+
A90-92
B+
87-89
B
83-86
B80-82
C+
77-79
C
70-76
D+
67-69
D
60-66
F
<60
Grading components:
Quizzes (45%): There will be a 20-30 minute quiz at the beginning of each class. The quizzes
focus on the readings due for that class period and are composed of a set of multiple choice
questions and one or two short answer or brief essay questions. The quizzes are intended to help
you focus on the main ideas and to motivate you to keep abreast of all the weekly reading
assignments.
In the beginning of the semester, you will receive reading guidelines to help you to prepare for
the quiz. As the semester progresses and you become more familiar with the quiz style and more
comfortable with the material, the assistance will decrease. However, all through the semester,
you may bring an English language dictionary to the quiz and a 5 x 8 index card with notes on
both sides. You must create your own note card; copying another student’s card will be
considered academic dishonesty. You will submit the card with the quiz and the card will be
returned to you the following week. Making the card is a good exercise because it forces you to
summarize the key points from the readings and hopefully reduces anxiety about the quiz.
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Participation(10%): As this is an upper level major course, all students are expected to
attend class and participate in class discussion on a regular basis. When students take part in
informed discussions of the material, the class is more enjoyable for all. In the second half of the
course when we switch to a format similar to a seminar and student groups take turns leading the
class discussion, participation becomes an even more central part of each class period.
Presentation (15%): For the second half of the course, we will be examining theory through
Charles Lemert’s chronological presentation of five time periods, beginning in the first decades
of the 20th century. At this point, we will shift to a modified seminar format in which a team of
students will be responsible for each week’s material. With detailed guidance, students will work
together, initially in class, and later outside of class to select the week’s readings, compose the
quiz questions, develop the visual presentation of the period, lead the class discussion, and
evaluate the group. The presentation group work is a challenging part of the course which is
intended to hone skills necessary for future academic and professional success.
Exams (30%): The midterm exam will be an in class exam composed of both multiple
choice/matching questions and essay questions. The essay questions will be more in depth than
those asked weekly on the quiz. You will be able to bring your weekly quiz cards with you as
well as an additional exam card.
There are two options for the final exam: an in class exam similar to the midterm and a
take home application essay. To qualify for the take home option, a student must have
demonstrated consistently strong writing and critical thinking skills and be in good standing in
the class in terms of attendance and participation. The take home application essay provides the
student with an opportunity to demonstrate his or her own unique and creative use of the course
material, while the in class exam is a more familiar and traditional examination of knowledge.
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General guidelines for grading: While it is impossible to standardize what constitutes an A,
C, or F grade on any individual quiz or exam question, the following provides a general
guideline.
A: accurate, complete, well-composed, and uniquely insightful response to the question.
B: accurate, complete, and well-composed response to the question.
C: mostly accurate, mostly complete, acceptably composed response to the question.
D: partially accurate and/or partially complete and/or problematically composed response
to the question.
F: inaccurate and/or grossly incomplete and/or unintelligibly composed response to the
question.
Class policies
Class time: After the weekly quiz is complete, we will begin a discussion of the
material. Given the volume of readings, we will not be reviewing all of the assigned work.
Rather, we will be focusing on extracting key ideas and discussing the unifying themes in a
given weeks’ work, tracing theoretical themes from one period to the next, and examining the
current relevancy of classical theory as it relates to stories in the news. In the first half of the
course, each week you will be studying selections of theorists' work arranged thematically and
you will be using the Ritzer text, outside readings, and selections of theorists’ works in Lemert.
In the second half of the course, we will follow the chronological development of social theory
from the classical to contemporary periods, reading a large and varied selection of work in
Lemert.
Attendance: Students are expected to attend all classes. While there is no credit for
attendance, any absence is likely to affect your grade in a negative manner and the impact of
absenteeism in a once a week course is magnified, with each class equivalent to a week of day
classes. Getting notes from another student never is a substitute for being present during a class
period, especially in this course. If you are absent, you are encouraged to get notes from at least
two other students. It is not wise to rely on one other student’s interpretation of the lecture
material. See university catalog for institutional policy on attendance. While there is no credit
given for being present as that is expected, students are allowed one absence without penalty
during the semester. If you have a second absence, you should make an appointment to see me
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before the next class so that we can discuss the effect on your work. If you have two absences in
the second half of the class, you are subject to losing all participation points for part II in
addition to overall deductions for absenteeism. If you miss your presentation week without a
verified emergency, you will be given a zero for all of the Part II participation and presentation
points in addition to overall deductions for absenteeism. Overall deductions for absenteeism
begin at three absences, with a one letter grade deduction applied to your final grade for each
absence (3 absences- 1 letter grade deduction, 4 absences- 2 letter grade deduction, etc.).
Students with more than two absences may not select the take home final option.
Absences: As is customary with any job or other commitment, if you are absent, you should
contact me via email or phone before the class period if at all possible or as soon as possible
thereafter. Students who contact me prior to the missed class period are able to arrange for up to
two make-up quizzes. Make-up quizzes must be taken during my regularly scheduled office
hours or by appointment and arrangements must be made with me in advance. A make-up quiz
must be taken before the next class period. If a student misses more than two quizzes, no
additional makeup quizzes will be given and zeros seriously deflate even the best of averages.
Partial attendance: Attendance refers to being present the entire class period. Leaving after
the quiz, after the break, or at some other time prior to the end of class other than in the case of
an emergency or situation about which you have spoken to me will count as a complete absence.
Lateness: Arriving late is distracting for the class and students are asked to make all possible
efforts to be on time. An additional problem for late arrivals in this course is that quizzes are
given in the beginning of the class. Therefore, if you are late, you will miss a quiz or have less
time to complete it. The “two make-up quiz” policy, which is stated under absences, applies to
quizzes missed from lateness as well as from absences. Therefore, a total of two quizzes can be
made-up, whether they are missed due to absence, lateness, or partial attendance.
Missed Exams: If you have an emergency on an exam day, please speak with me as soon as
possible. If a makeup exam is given, it will include an oral examination portion.
Personal Problems: If you have an ongoing problem that is affecting your academic work, I
encourage you to speak with me as soon as possible. Usually, I can make accommodations for
unusual circumstances, but only if you let me know in the beginning of the problem, not after an
extended absence or the submission of problematic work. The most important thing is for you to
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take the initiative to communicate with me. You have a wide variety of ways to do so- work
telephone, email, mail box, office hours, before or after class.
Students with disabilities: If you need special accommodations for a disability of any sort,
you must register with Disability Support Services (410-704-2638) and bring the appropriate
paper work to me by the second class period. Additionally, you need to make an
appointment with me before the second class period so that we can discuss the specific
accommodations needed. If you consider that you may need any sort of exception from regular
requirements and are not registered with Disability Services, you need to make an
appointment with me before the second class period.
Academic dishonesty: It is apparent from past experience that we do not all share the same
definition of academic dishonesty nor share a similar view of its gravity. You are required to
read the section on academic dishonesty in the catalog by the second class period when your
course contract is due and you will be held responsible for understanding this policy. Academic
dishonesty can take a variety of forms including cheating, fabrication, facilitating academic
dishonesty, and plagiarism, all of which are defined in the catalog. Academic misconduct will
result in a 0 for the work in question, a possible 0 for the course, depending upon the violation,
and will be reported to the chairperson of the department and the office of student affairs. The
protocol for such action is listed in your catalog and you should read this by the contract due
date.
Student rights:
First, you have a right to understand the material presented and I will do all that I can to ensure
that right. You have a right to ask me to repeat and explain material until you understand it.
Please speak up and let me know if something is not clear. I can only help you if let me know.
Second, you have a right to be able to discuss any concerns with me, whether those concerns
relate directly to material content and course requirements or to personal issues that interfere
with your performance in class. My office hours are listed on the website and you can make an
appointment with me for another time if the office hours are not convenient for you. The web site
has my office phone number and my email. As well, you can always leave a note for me in my
mailbox in the sociology office or slip a note under my door. I welcome calls and meetings with
students. Please, do not feel that you are imposing.
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Third, you have a right to feel comfortable expressing your ideas in this class. Many students
say that they do not speak in class because they are scared that they have the wrong answer. A
wrong answer is better than no answer at all. You do not have to be brilliant or articulate to speak
up. Just do it! Life is not a spectator sport.
Resources and recommendations:
Study Groups or Misery Loves Company: I have observed that the collective panic that
prompts the formation of study groups in theory and methods classes is a marvelous
phenomenon to behold. If students approached all courses with this same drive and
determination, the learning experience would be enriched greatly. I will ask if you wish to be
included on an email list for the class. You are under no obligation to put your name on this list.
However, if you chose to do so, I’ll distribute the list to participants next week. Study groups are
usually very helpful since this is material that must be discussed to be fully digested.
Undergraduate Learning Assistants (ULAs): Every semester there is a former theory
student who works with the class. These students are called ULAs and they are here to help you.
They are referred to as ULAs rather than tutors because we often think of tutors as a resource for
those who are failing a class. In contrast, the strongest students in theory tend to be the ones who
consistently work with the ULAs. The ULAs conduct an hour long study session each week. As
well, the ULAs offer extra sessions before the midterm and final exams and help to advise
groups on their presentation preparation. ULA discussion sessions are only open to those
students who have completed their weekly readings and the “admission ticket” is the first draft of
your 5x8 quiz card for the week! Any student who comes unprepared to a discussion session will
be asked to leave. And believe me, after having survived theory themselves, the ULAs do not
hesitate to toss out unprepared students and neither do the other students who did the
reading! Consistently, students who attend the ULA discussion groups do considerably better in
the class than those who do not, with a two letter grade difference in average quiz scores.
Working with the ULAs, however, is not meant as a substitute for communication with me.
The ‘give an inch, take a mile’ dilemma: In rare instances, assistance can create
problematic expectations for a few students. For example, most students appreciate being given a
list of key points for a test and understand this list is just a helpful guideline. However,
sometimes there are students who subsequently complain that the list did not include every test
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item! This conflict of expectations does not only occur between students and teachers. The ULAs
have encountered this problem as well. The ULAs are there to facilitate discussion and help
students focus on the material. However, occasionally students have attended discussion sessions
expecting to be given quiz and exam questions and answers. Sometimes these students have
become annoyed when the ULAs would not oblige. Not only has this attitude placed the ULAs in
an uncomfortable situation, but other students in the ULA session have become annoyed as well.
This is a problem generated by a very small number of students but, unfortunately, the effects
can be far-reaching. Please keep in mind that the ULAs are not obligated to do what they do.
These are students who were invited to assume this status and I am extremely grateful for their
willingness to do so and their exceptional dedication to, and performance in, their role. These
students struggled through the material just as you may. They worked hard and exhibited not
only an understanding of theory, but also an appreciation of the pedagogical process. They
deserve your respect and appreciation. Please treat them well.
Suggestions for Surviving (and even thriving in) Sociological Theory
Read actively. The reading assignments for this course are substantial in volume and are quite
difficult. Don’t try to read this material as if it were a novel. This material takes work.
Highlight important passages. Don’t get carried away. Highlighting every other sentence
defeats the purpose. If you have a tendency to over-highlight, try using a yellow highlighter first,
then reemphasize the main points with a brighter color. This makes the highlighting more
effective and you review the material in the process.
Write notes and questions in the margin of the book. After you’ve finished, make a list of the
questions and ask them in class. I know some people don’t write in their books because they
want to sell them back. Since these are core books in your major, you should not be selling them.
These should become part of your permanent library. There will be a time when you want to
refer back to these, especially if you plan on graduate studies. These are theory books. They
don’t expire. Use your books! If you can’t write in the book, use sticky notes.
Summarize portions of the text in your own words. This is especially helpful with the pieces
in Lemert. Translations of excerpts from original works can be very difficult to read. You don’t
have to feel as if you have a perfect understanding of everything in a piece. You just have to
make an effort. If you can glean only one idea from the piece, that’s preferable to none. Write it
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down. Writing is part of the analytical growth process. You are not simply recording what you
know. You are growing in understanding during the process of writing. You don’t know what
you know until you write it down.
Ritzer provides partial outlines at the beginning of each chapter. Use those as a template.
Add subtopics, details, and additional main topics as you see fit. An outline of every chapter will
help to jog your memory. You can note on the outline if you have lecture notes that elaborate on
a particular point, thereby helping you to integrate lecture and readings.
Talk to yourself or others. There’s no better way to learn something and to discover how much
you know than to teach it to someone else. Forming a strong study partner bond is the best way
to take this course. It’s the most effective way to understanding the material and it’s more
enjoyable to study with a friend over coffee at the diner than doing it solo. Talking to yourself is
useful too. For some reason when we say something out loud, it reaches us at a different level.
Try it, but watch where you do this. People may react oddly to you talking to yourself about
theory in the grocery store.
Make charts and diagrams of concepts. For visual learners, drawing ideas can be very helpful.
For example, you can draw a line and label points on the line with stages of an evolutionary
model. For some people, information in visual form is recalled more easily than when it is in text
form. Often, visual learners are sensitive to color as well. If you write in different colors or use
colored paper under a page that you are reading, you may find that you recall it better.
Use a dictionary. Do not ignore any words that you don’t know. They may be critical to the
meaning of the sentence. Write them down. Look them up. I have had students miss quiz and
exam questions because they did not know the English vocabulary words in the question even
though they knew the theory.
Use association. If you have a list to remember, pick out the first letter of each item and make it
into a word or phrase that you can remember. Use whatever associative techniques work for you.
Often finding something humorous helps recall.
Some people are kinetic learners who recall best when physical movement is associated with
mental work. I know this sounds strange, but try taking a step as you articulate each point of a
theory aloud.
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Budget your time carefully. There is often a temptation to put off assignments when classes
meet only once a week. On the other hand, if you do your reading immediately after class, there
is a possibility of forgetting what you read by the next class. Some suggestions that might help
include:
Plan your assignments for the week the day after class. Know how many pages you
have to read and the estimated level of difficulty of the reading. That requires looking at
the assigned pieces. Then divide the work realistically by the number of days you have
available for study. Make sure that you check your other course obligations so that you
don’t schedule 50 pages on the same day you have to study for an exam. Be realistic
about your personal time. Don’t schedule readings on days you know you are not likely
to study. Don’t schedule readings for the day before class or the day of class. You need
that time to review.
Review before class. Plan your schedule so that you have time to review your notes,
highlights, questions, outlines, whatever, before class or the ULA session. You should be
able to do this in one hour. Reviewing before class will take care of the problem of
forgetting material you read last week.
Look ahead. Some weeks are heavier than others. If you have a lighter week this week,
but you have a social or academic commitment next week, work ahead.
Ask questions. Make sure that you ask questions about what you read. I know you’ve
heard this a million times before, but there is no dumb question. A question doesn’t have
to be anything profound. It can be as simple as verifying your interpretation of the
material. Write your questions down. Be specific. “I don’t understand any of this” may
seem like a true statement, but I can guarantee you that it is not. Everyone understands
something and most people understand more than they give themselves credit for. So,
write specific questions. Narrow down key points that are not clear. By doing this, you’ll
realize how much you do know.
Use the ULAs, but don’t abuse them. ULAs work very hard and can be of great
assistance. The ULA is there to help you, but he or she can only help you to the degree
that you help yourself. Bring specific questions to the ULA. Don’t meet with him or her
about material that you have not read. Work consistently with them. Do not wait until the
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midterm exam to make the first contact. The ULAs cannot handle a sudden pre-exam
influx of new students.
Take
good lecture notes. Lecture consists of a discussion of the readings and the
introduction of material not found in the texts. Class periods may also include
opportunities to apply theories. To get the most out of class time, you must be prepared
by having read the assigned material. Additionally, there are things you can do to
increase the usefulness of your class notes.
o
Use the margin format illustrated in class. By creating an additional
margin in your notebook, you provide yourself with a space to make
summary comments and organize your lecture notes in outline form, with
headings and subheadings. Due to the volume of material covered in this
class, this note-taking format can be very helpful in making it easier to
find information in your lecture and reading notes.
o
Make a glossary in your notebook. Reserve a few pages at the end of
your notebook or designate a section in a sectioned notebook to create
your own dictionary of terms, concepts, theories, and theorists. Add to the
glossary weekly from lecture notes and readings. You might want to do
this electronically and then transfer portions to your quiz/exam card.
o
Make concept charts. While we will be studying theorists and their work
in chronological order, ultimately I want you to see how key issues are
addressed by all of the theorists. To do this you can create a section in
your notebook or in an online file where you add key concepts and note
how the theorists present different views of the same ideas. This will give
you a tremendous advantage when it comes to seeing the larger picture
and it aids in cultivating nomothetic thinking.
A few final notes...
I know that this course sounds frightening and I know that the class has a reputation as a
tough one. I will not mislead you. It is a very difficult course. It is difficult because of the
volume of the work and because of the level of the reading. You are expected to read a lot of
difficult material and to know it, understand it, apply it, and creatively process it. The class
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requires a lot more study time than most, so you need to plan for that right now. It requires very
good study, reading, note taking, and test-taking skills. Many students have put more into this
course than they ever thought that they would or could. Most have been rewarded with not only a
passing grade in the course, but also with a sense of accomplishment that can only come from
tackling something really challenging.
I need you to trust that I will get you through this if you put in the needed effort. The
amount of work will vary with each student, depending upon your unique configuration of
strengths and weaknesses. I will help you in any way that I can, as long as you are willing to help
yourself.
Sociological Theory is core element in the sociology curriculum and the following section
places this course in that larger framework.
Sociology Mission Statement
Our mission in the sociology concentration at Towson University is to prepare students to be
critical consumers of information related to social interaction and society and to be insightful
social observers, capable of enriching the workplaces, communities, and institutions of higher
learning to which they graduate. Through their course of study, students learn to use a variety of
theoretical and methodological tools to analyze and interpret social data, to think creatively and
communicate effectively about social issues and problems, and to engage their communities as
active and responsible citizens oriented towards the welfare of society. The foci of study are
social structures and institutions, social processes and interaction, and awareness of inequality
and appreciation for diversity in an increasingly complex world. Sociology students develop the
ability to adapt to ongoing change in a knowledge-based society and work environment. They
are prepared to enter into a wide range of graduate programs and career settings, such as the
corporate workplace, government, social services, research institutes, and nonprofit and
community organizations.
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Sociology Key Learning Objectives
Upon completion of the course of study in sociology, students should be able to:
1. Communicate effectively in the presentation of sociological material: write proficiently,
read and synthesize sociological literature, speak confidently on sociological issues
2. "Take the role of other", i.e. understand how people from varied backgrounds are shaped
by and experience a social world that includes diversity, inequality, social issues, social
institutions, social structures and processes.
3. Exercise their sociological imagination, apply multiple theoretical perspectives to
sociological questions, and understand the basic connection between individuals and
society.
4. Formulate basic sociological research questions and understand the research process,
including operationalization and measurement of concepts, sampling, quantitative or
qualitative data collection, the use of SPSS or other research software, and the use of
basic statistics.
5. Critically interpret and evaluate sociological information, e.g. read tables of information,
correctly interpret basic statistics (e.g. measures of central tendency), assess whether
concepts are adequately grounded in data, identify good research.
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Sociological theory Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of this course in sociological theory students should be able to:
objective With the successful completion of sociological theory, the student should be
able..
#1
… to read, comprehend, and critique both text discussions of sociological thought
and excerpts from primary sources of classical and contemporary work.
#2
…to view sociological theories as special mirrors of the stratification matrix and
authors’ locations within.
#3
…to apply Mills’ concept of the ‘Sociological Imagination’, seeing sociological
theory as a product of the intersection of the theorist’s biography, society, and time
in history.
…to frame an extensive and diverse collection of thought within multiple
paradigmatic schemes.
…to engage in metatheorizing as a prelude to theory creation.
…to apply classical and contemporary theory to current issues to gain a better
personal understanding of the world.
#4
…to become familiar with a variety of classical methodological approaches,
including Martineau’s Morals and Manners, Durkheim’s Suicide, Weber’s analytical
methods.
…to see the interrelationship between theory and methods.
…to appreciate the central challenge of applying the scientific method to nonempirical social phenomena.
#5
…to distinguish between sociological and social theory and to consider the
challenges of operationalizing theoretical concepts.
LINK HERE FOR COURSE CONTRACT
Sociological Theory Course Contract
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Partial bibliography for Sociological Theory
Collins, Randall. Theoretical Sociology (1988).
Collins, Randall. Four Sociological Traditions (1994).
Collins, Patricia Hill. Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and the Politics of
Empowerment (1991).
Costner, H.L. and R.K. Leik. (1964). Deductions from Axiomatic Theory. American
Sociological Review, 29, 819-835.
Kincaid, Harold (1996). Philosophical Foundations of the Social Sciences: Analyzing
Controversies in Social Research.
Lemert, Charles (ed). Social Theory: The Multicultural and Classic Readings (1993). UPDATE
Lengermann, Patricia Madoo abnd Jill Niebrugge-Brantley; The Women Founders- Sociology
and Sociaol Theory 1830-1930, McGraw-Hill 1998 Boston
Mills, C. Wright the Sociological Imagination , Oxford University Press New York 1959
Ritzer, George. Contemporary Sociological Theory (1992).UPDATE
Turner, J. & Beeghley. The Emergence of Sociological Theory (1982).
Turner, Jonathan. The Structure of Sociological Theory (1991).
Turner, Jonathan H (ed.). Theory Building in Sociology: Assessing Theoretical Cumulation.
Newbury Park, CA: Sage. (1988)