2022-2023 Course List

Fundamentals of research methods focusing on the research process and research design and including hypothesis testing, basic analysis and interpretation; students will develop and practice research skills.

Description and analysis of sex/gender systems, interpersonal power, language and communication, the role of gender in social institutions such as the family, work, and politics, and the role of social movements in creating change in gender relations.

This course examines the sociological significance of popular culture and focuses on how popularized aspects of social life are produced, consumed and experienced by members of society. Includes discussion of celebrities, sports, music, television, movies, commercials and consumption practices.

The study of symbolic interaction as the basis of the mind, the self, and society.

Introduces students to the differences between indigenous and Western views of the environment. Analyzes the impact of invasion and encroachment on indigenous societies' interactions with nature. Compares historical and contemporary environmental issues in indigenous societies.

Diverse Cultures:

Purple

Introduces students to central topics in medical sociology including: social factors responsible for people's health outcomes; social construction of health and illness; health inequalities; evolution of the social institution of medicine; and/or issues related to race/ethnicity; social class and gender. Fall

Social and social-psychological focus in later life. Problems and prospects of growing old in the United States.

Prerequisites:

SOC 101 

Diverse Cultures:

Purple

Study of the structure of human response to death, dying, and bereavement in their socio-cultural, interpersonal, and personal context. Formation of children's perception of death, functions of the funeral, euthanasia, and suicide are among the topics to be discussed.

The course will acquaint students with dynamic forces operating in the field of population and development. Includes an introduction to basic theories and techniques of population analysis, with coverage of global economic forces: fertility, mortality, and migration. The causes and consequences of over-population are discussed with special attention to resource depletion and food shortages.

Various forms of family violence including dating violence, spouse abuse, and child abuse; social theory, empirical research and social policy on family violence; social context, responses and solutions.

Implications of sociological knowledge for the administration of Human Services programs. Theoretical and practical aspects of administration within social service systems.

Applies sociological theories of identity to the experiences of women being released from prison. Taught at the women's prison in Shakopee, Minnesota and integrates Minnesota State University, Mankato, students with students drawn from the educational program within the women's prison in Shakopee.

Diverse Cultures:

Gold

Analysis of the development, structure, and functioning of social processes in large-scale, formal organizations.

Survey of major sociological perspectives on social movements, including theoretical approaches and empirical research on the causes, processes, and outcomes of social movements.

Overview of the role of the United States in an increasingly globalized society with a focus on economic and political inequality, the class structure, the labor process, race and gender relations, the global dimensions of capitalism, and modern crisis tendencies.

Diverse Cultures:

Purple

Sociological perspectives on social deviance; overview of theoretical approaches; emphasis on symbolic interactionism; issues of social control; research examples and policy implications.

A critical consideration of myths concerning crime, perspectives on crime and their assumptions, current criminology theory, and construction of alternative explanations related to crime.

Study of minority racial and cultural groups in U.S. society. An examination of how the lives of the members of these groups are affected by racism, prejudice, and discrimination.

Prerequisites:

SOC 101 

Diverse Cultures:

Purple

A critical look at the construction of the concepts of law and justice as it operates in the United States and an application of the principles of justice to community issues.

Prerequisites:

CJ 101

An overview of sociological theory that surveys the classical tradition and emphasizes contemporary theories including functionalism, conflict theory, rational choice theory, and symbolic interactionism as well as recent trends in theoretical developments.

Prerequisites:

SOC 101 or SOC 150 or by instructor permission.

Examines the sociology relationship between people and the environment including: ways various societies view the environment, social changes form ecological degradation, and solutions to environmental problems. Topics may include a sociological analysis of climate change, agriculture, and resource extraction. Spring

Diverse Cultures:

Purple

A survey of sociological theory and research on the ecology, demography, and social organization of the urban community. Presents a sociological interpretation of the development of urban society and how the process of urbanization affects the basic societal institutions and individual behavior.

Diverse Cultures:

Purple

An overview of the causes, processes and consequences of social stratification in society. Includes an overview of classical statements about stratification and focuses on social inequalities rooted in social class structures, the organization of political power, and social hierarchies based on race and gender differences in society.

Prerequisites:

SOC 101 or SOC 150 or by instructor approval.

Diverse Cultures:

Purple

Addresses aspects of criminal and civil law pertinent to substance abuse.

This course will address theoretical and practical aspects of the planning and evaluation process within social service systems. Evidence-based methods of developing programs and measuring their effectiveness in the human services will be addressed.