Sociology: Library Guide

Drawing on up-to-the-minute examples, cutting-edge research, and the most current data, Essentials of Sociology powerfully illustrates how a sociological imagination can make us more thoughtful members of our social world, better citizens, and more effective future workers. (NEW) "Employing Your Sociological Imagination" features highlight the practical value of sociology to a wide range of careers. Extensive pedagogy and innovative media help students not only succeed in the course, but also develop the skills necessary for life beyond college.

Sociology Nowreflects the discipline today and emphasizes the big questions about multiculturalism and globalization that sociologists ask.   Sociology has always offered a way to make sense of the complex and sometimes contradictory forces that shape our social lives in any era. AsSociology Now  explains sociology as both a body of knowledge and a "way of seeing", it shows how two such forces in particular have come to preoccupy sociologists and influence the way they look at the events and experiences of the early twenty first century: The first isglobalization--the economic, political, cultural, and social interconnections among people and institutions all over the world. The second ismulticulturalism--the recognition that race, ethnicity, class, gender, sexuality, religion, and other statuses are sources of social inequality, but also, the foundations of our identities. Michael Kimmel, a leading sociologist and gender researcher, and co-author Amy Aronson, a journalist and media scholar, address these questions head-on as they make a compelling case for the importance of sociology in the contemporary world.

The first comprehensive understanding of Du Bois for social scientists The Sociology of W. E. B. Du Bois provides a comprehensive introduction to the founding father of American sociological thought. Du Bois is now recognized as a pioneer of American scientific sociology and as someone who made foundational contributions to the sociology of race and to urban and community sociology. However, in this authoritative volume, noted scholars José Itzigsohn and Karida L. Brown provide a groundbreaking account of Du Bois's theoretical contribution to sociology, or what they call the analysis of "racialized modernity." Further, they examine the implications of developing a Du Boisian sociology for the practice of the discipline today. The full canon of Du Bois's sociological works spans a lifetime of over ninety years in which his ideas evolved over much of the twentieth century. This broader and more systematic account of Du Bois's contribution to sociology explores how his theories changed, evolved, and even developed to contradict earlier ideas. Careful parsing of seminal works provides a much needed overview for students and scholars looking to gain a better grasp of the ideas of Du Bois, in particular his understanding of racialized subjectivity, racialized social systems, and his scientific sociology. Further, the authors show that a Du Boisian sociology provides a robust analytical framework for the multilevel examination of individual-level processes--such as the formation of the self--and macro processes--such as group formation and mobilization or the structures of modernity--key concepts for a basic understanding of sociology.