Courses - Spring 2024
SOCY100
Introduction to Sociology
Introduces fundamental concepts and theories of sociology. Guided by C. Wright Mills' "sociological imagination," the course promotes critical thinking; challenges conventional assumptions about culture politics, history, and psychology; and equips students with theoretical approaches and research methods to analyze various sociological topics, including family, work, education, religion, social movements, and issues related to class, gender, race, and ethnic inequalities.
SOCY105
Introduction to Contemporary Social Problems
Embark on an exploration of contemporary social issues and unravel the intricate ways in which these challenges are woven into the fabric of society. Develop a comprehensive understanding of societal organization and partake in a detailed study of selected social problems, with a specific emphasis on issues like social conflict and inequality. This course provides an insightful journey into the nuanced interplay between societal structure and prevalent challenges, fostering a heightened awareness of the dynamics shaping our social landscape.
SOCY200
We will explore the nature of human societies through comparative, historical, and interdisciplinary perspectives. Students will delve into the core of social structures, unravel the defining components of society, and examine their organization, evolution, and impact on collective existence. Students will also explore the socio-historical forces and geopolitical dynamics that drive social change to analyze the complex connections that illuminate our shared social experience across time.
SOCY201
Introductory Statistics for Sociology
Prerequisite: SOCY100; and (MATH107 or MATH111).
Restriction: Must not have completed STAT400, BMGT231, or ENEE324.
Students will explore descriptive and inferential statistics. You will hone your quantitative analytical skills to construct impactful bivariate tables, craft frequency distributions, and decipher measures of central tendency and dispersion. Additionally, you will master the techniques of hypothesis testing, chi-square, ANOVA, and ordinary least squares regression, equipping you to seamlessly translate data into meaningful research insights.
SOCY202
Introduction to Research Methods in Sociology
Prerequisite: SOCY100.
We will examine why social research is needed, explore some of the main quantitative and qualitative techniques to conduct sociological research, and discover how to understand and critically evaluate sociological research on pressing social problems. Students will also learn to use specialized software to analyze and interpret quantitative data in the computer lab.
SOCY203
Sociological Theory
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: SOCY100.
Examines major trends in the history and development of sociological thought, including theories of inequality, the self, institutions, and more. With each theorist students will learn what sociologists assume and focus on when studying societies.
Required for all SOCY majors.
SOCY224
Explore and discuss the major debates and assumptions that construct perceptions of race and how it matters. Sociological and social science theories will give students a historical and present day frame with which to view race and ethnic relations in the twenty-first century.
SOCY227
Introduction to the Study of Deviance
Credit only granted for: SOCY227 or SOCY327.
Formerly: SOCY327.
An introduction to the sociological study of deviant behavior, covering such topics as mental illness, sexual deviance, and the use of drugs.
SOCY230
Sociological Social Psychology
Why do people do that? Sitting at the nexus of sociology and psychology, this course surveys the various ways in which sociologists have answered this question. We investigate individuals-for example, how they develop and understand themselves in relation to others, how they choose to present themselves to the world, and how they form thoughts and opinions. And we study larger units of analyses, from small groups to the broader society. Topics covered include socialization, identity formation, social influence, group processes, how social processes shape individual behavior, and how human behavior shapes society.
SOCY241
Credit only granted for: SOCY241 or SOCY441.
A broad-based overview of inequality in contemporary U.S. society, focusing on measuring patterns and trends over time. A series of learning modules familiarizes students with how inequality unfolds in relation to social stratification processes along the lines of race, gender, education and social class, income and wealth, and health.
Credit granted for SOCY241 or SOCY441.
SOCY242
Sociology of Homelessness
Examines the causes of and solutions for homelessness in society. How social scientists analyze social issues using ethnographic observation, surveys, official statistics, and other research methods. Discusses how policies have responded to the problem of homelessness, and how to evaluate their effectiveness.
SOCY244
Bridging Perspectives: Critical Conversations Between Students and Police
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
This course is a university curriculum created by the International Association of Chiefs of Police to enhance community-police engagement. This course brings university students and police together to engage in facilitated dialogue to learn from one another and build trust. Through this transformative educational course, both groups will enhance their knowledge of the structural and cultural frameworks that influence historical and current events and relationships between communities and police.
SOCY245
The Family in Contemporary American Society
Credit only granted for: SOCY243 or SOCY245.
This is a course in the sociology of the family as an institutional arena in the United States. Students will become familiar with the empirical patterns and trends, political and cultural debates, and policy issues concerning families - and the major theories and research methods used in the sociological study of the family. The readings include a textbook and a research monograph. To succeed, students will attend lectures and participate in discussion; complete quizzes and in-class writing assignments; and take a midterm and final exam.
SOCY335
Sociology of Health and Illness
An exploration of the social model to studying health and illness: how meanings and experiences of health and illness are socially produced. How experiences are shaped by the interaction of external social environments (culture, community) and the internal environment (human body), and by socio-demographic variables (race, class, gender, etc.). Disparities in health and healthcare delivery, medicalization of society, determinants of health, social construction of illness, and the social organization of health care.
SOCY370
Career Exploration and Professional Development for Sociology Majors
Credits:
1
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Restriction: Must be in the Sociology major.
Prepares Sociology majors to make the transition from undergraduate to entering graduate school and/or the professional work world. Topics include career options in Sociology, skills for conducting a job search, resume writing and interview preparation, and the graduate application process.
Restricted to Sociology Majors.
SOCY378
Undergraduate Teaching Assistantship
Credits:
1 - 3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
SOCY380
Honors Independent Reading in Sociology
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Restriction: Permission of BSOS-Sociology department.
This course permits sociology honor students to undertake a program or reading on a particular problem in sociology or a subfield therein. The reading will be done under the supervision of a member of the sociology faculty. Required of sociology honor students.
SOCY381
Honors Independent Research in Sociology
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: SOCY380.
This course permits sociology students to define a particular problem in sociology or a subfield therein and to develop a research plan for use as a thesis topic. The work will be done under the supervision of a member of the sociology faculty.
SOCY383
Honors Thesis Research
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: SOCY381.
Student research under the direction of a member of the sociology faculty, culminating in the presentation and defense of a thesis reporting the research.
SOCY386
Experiential Learning
Credits:
3 - 6
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F
Restriction: Permission of BSOS-Sociology department; and junior standing or higher.
To register, students must have departmental permission form signed by instructor and by Coordinator of Sociology Undergraduate Program.
SOCY398Z
Special Topics in Sociology; Blackness in Israeli Popular Culture and Contemporary Art
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Cross-listed with ISRL329Z and AASP398F. Credit only granted for ISRL329Z, AASP398F, or SOCY398Z.
This course will review the work of artists of Ethiopian origin who are active in the Israeli art field today and analyze the subjects they deal with in their work in relation to the socio-political change in Israel and the increase in Ethiopian representation in popular culture. We will discuss concepts such as socio-political art, activism through art, and a-political art.
This course will review the work of artists of Ethiopian origin who are active in the Israeli art field today and analyze the subjects they deal with in their work in relation to the socio-political change in Israel and the increase in Ethiopian representation in popular culture. We will discuss concepts such as socio-political art, activism through art, and a-political art.
SOCY399
Independent Study in Sociology
Credits:
1 - 6
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
No more than 6 hours of 399 is allowed for credit.
SOCY411
Demographic Techniques
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: (SOCY201; or students who have taken courses with comparable content may contact the department); and SOCY410. Or permission of BSOS-Sociology department.
Basic techniques for analyzing population structure and demographic processes, including fertility, mortality and migration.
SOCY424
Sociology of Race Relations
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: 6 credits in SOCY courses; or permission of the Sociology department.
Cross-listed with: AAST424.
Credit only granted for: SOCY424 or AAST424.
Encourages sociological thinking about US racial and ethnic minority populations, with a focus on African Americans, Latinos, Asian Americans, and Native Americans. The central concern is to understand and explain racial/ethnic inequality. A wide array of topics are discussed, including prejudice and discrimination, slavery, residential segregation, cultural inequality, skin tone stratification, economic and educational disparities, and assimilation/generational processes.
SOCY432
Social Movements
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: 6 credits in SOCY courses; or permission of BSOS-Sociology department.
This course broadens students' understanding of social movements in the United States. Many topics are discussed, including the emergence of social movements, why people join social movements, collective identity, gender, culture, emotions, tactics, repression, and the decline of social movements. Various movements are reviewed, including the civil rights movement, the Chicano movement, the women's movement, the LGBTQ movement, the white power movement, the American Indian movement, and the animal rights movement.
SOCY435
Society, Biology, and Health
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: Must have completed 6 credits in SOCY courses or permission of BSOS Sociology Department.
It is not too far-fetched to speak of the pancreas under capitalism or the proletarian lung. Humans are social beings in physical bodies. In this course, we draw on research studies, podcasts, news articles, and best-selling non-fiction to inform conversation and writing on how various dimensions of human biology influence, and are influenced by, our social and cultural environment. We focus on conceptualizing human behavior as an interplay between both nature and nurture, and consider how this approach changes our understanding of modern social problems. This course is appropriate for students with a range of backgrounds in the social and natural sciences; introductory-level supplemental readings on all necessary biological concepts will be provided.
This is a seminar-style, discussion-based course.
SOCY451
Sociology of Culture
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: 6 credits in SOCY courses; or permission of the department.
Credit only granted for: SOCY498C or SOCY451.
Formerly: SOCY498C.
Analyzes the relationship between society and culture. How do social forces affect cultural objects and products? How do values and meanings shape individual behavior? How can culture be both a source of domination and resistance? These and other topics will be analyzed to show the role of culture in our lives.
SOCY456
Smart Machines and Human Prospects
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: SOCY201 and SOCY202; or permission of the Sociology department.
Credit only granted for: SOCY416 or SOCY456.
Artificial intelligence is everywhere and never sleeps. It is transforming our social institutions in intended and unintended ways. While scientists debate the feasibility of engineering conscious machines with general intelligence, no one debates that the global race is on to create more potent computers. Through targeted research, discussion, and presentation of findings students will answer a specific question on how, where, and in what ways society is being changed by smart machines.
SOCY460
Researching Race, Gender, Class, and Sport
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: SOCY201 and SOCY202; or permission of the Sociology department.
Credit only granted for: SOCY310 OR SOCY460.
Historically, sports have been exclusionary by race, class and gender. Black athletes, women, and poor populations were excluded. Current discussions centered on sports, athletes, and social justice, leads to important sociological questions to consider and problems to investigate. In this research course, students will critically analyze assumptions, historical relationships, and contemporary issues in sports using an Intersectional conceptual framework. Students will analyze and synthesize original and empirical data for research-based poster presentations; and articulate how interrogating sports allows for innovative and revolutionary thinking as global citizens in various communities.
SOCY463
Sociology of Masculinity: How Much Has Masculinity Really Changed?
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: 6 credits in SOCY courses; or permission of BSOS Sociology department.
An examination of the history both feminist social movements and feminist sociology in a specific way. It uses the sociological subfield of men and masculinities as a keyhole through which we will study 'the stalled revolution' for women's equality. Along the way, we will familiarize ourselves with academic and popular reports about changing and contested definitions, ideas, and behaviors of masculinity.
SOCY470
Pregnancy and Parenthood in an Unequal Society
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: 6 credits in SOCY courses; or permission of Sociology Department.
Analysis of patterns in sexual activity, contraceptive use, and unintended pregnancy, and how they reinforce or alleviate socioeconomic, gender, and racial inequalities. Emphasis on the role of healthcare providers and contraceptive access, attitudes about motherhood and contraception, policy interventions, and institutional designs. Social and economic consequences of increasing women's ability to control their fertility.
SOCY480
Researching the Middle East
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: SOCY201 and SOCY202; or permission of the Sociology department.
Credit only granted for: SOCY498E or SOCY480.
Formerly: SOCY498E.
Introduces religion, gender, and politics in the Middle East and North Africa. After an overview of the political and social history the focus will be on methods for carrying out research on fundamental issues facing Middle Eastern societies, including national identity, religion, gender relations and the status of women in the family, politics, education, and labor market.
SOCY490
Experimental Research Practicum
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: SOCY201 and SOCY202; or permission of the Sociology department.
Additional information: This is the first course in the experimental research practicum 2-course sequence.
Hands-on experience in designing, conducting, and analyzing experimental research. Introduces students to causal inference in social scientific research, focusing on experimental designs. Students will get hands-on research experience running experimental studies in the group processes lab. Students will also work with the professor and graduate students in the department to develop a research idea that can be executed in the spring semester.
SOCY498X
Selected Topics in Sociology; The American Working Class
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
The 21st century has brought dramatic changes to the working class in the United States. Today's workers face a very different economy, politics, demography, and culture than the working class of the mid-20th century. This course will review these changes; contrast them with the position of the American middle class; explore gender, racial, and geographic differences within these changes; and look to possible futures ahead.
SOCY498Y
Selected Topics in Sociology; Explaining Social Change: Fact and Fiction in Understanding Why Our World Looks the Way it Does
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
This course examines large-scale processes of social change that have produced durable and defining aspects of our contemporary world and asks, How did we get here? It focuses on four key issues: how markets and the pursuit of profit came to organize virtually all aspects of material life and restructured societies around social classes; how democratic forms of governance emerged to direct states and the persistent challenges presented by authoritarian rule; how social revolution erupts and what kinds of changes it yields; and how warfare between states can produce varieties of change not necessarily comprehended in the foregoing domains.
SOCY602
Statistics For Sociological Research II
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud
Prerequisite: SOCY601; or students who have taken courses with comparable content may contact the department.
Restriction: Permission of instructor.
Credit only granted for: SOCY602 or SURV602.
This course introduces regression analysis using matrix algebra. Topics include bivariate regression, multivariate regression, tests of significance, regression diagnostics, indicator variables, interaction terms, extra sum of squares, and the general linear model. Other topics may be addressed such as logistic regression and path analysis. Statistical programming software may be used.
SOCY616
Sociology Pro-Seminar
Credits:
1
Grad Meth:
S-F
Restriction: Must be in Sociology (Doctoral) program.
Credit only granted for: SOCCY699P or SOCY616.
Formerly: SOCY699P.
The proseminar is the guide to Sociology as a profession, and how sociology is practiced here at the University of Maryland. The goal of the course is to help students gain insider knowledge about how to develop sociological knowledge and capabilities, and what it means to practice sociology as a graduate student and beyond. The course will discuss both practical aspects of professional life in general and specific topics of interest.
SOCY627
Migration
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud, S-F
Examines theories of immigration and immigrant adaptation, empirical patterns of migration and immigration, the economic and social effects of immigration, as well as immigration policy issues.
SOCY630
Population and Society
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud, S-F
Selected problems in the field of population; quantitative and qualitative aspects; American and world problems.
SOCY641
Leadership in Diverse Organizations
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud
Restriction: Must be in one of the following programs: Criminology and Criminal Justice (Master's); Criminology and Criminal Justice (Doctoral); Sociology (Master's); Sociology (Doctoral); or permission from either the Sociology Department or Criminology & Criminal Justice Department.
Provides students with a practical understanding of leadership and a framework for understanding three key conditions from which effective leadership emerges: timing, organizational characteristics, and individual characteristics. We will consider different dimensions and/or styles of leadership, as well as the methods effective leaders use to build solidarity within groups and organizations.
SOCY643
Power and Status in Organizations
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud
Restriction: Must be in one of the following programs: Criminology and Criminal Justice (Master's); Criminology and Criminal Justice (Doctoral); Sociology (Master's); Sociology (Doctoral); or permission from BSOS-Sociology department.
Organizations affect virtually every aspect of modern social life. The impact and reach of public safety organizations--those special entities purportedly designed to maintain order and safety--are particularly influential. Although sociologists, psychologists, economists, and management scholars all examine the workings of status and power within organizations, our perspective will be primarily sociological as we explore how power and status operate within the context of organizations.
SOCY661
Social Stratification
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud, S-F
Restriction: Permission of instructor.
Major theoretical and research problems in the sociology of social stratification. The characteristics, correlates, and consequences of class and status stratification; the distribution of power; the relationship of social stratification to ideology and the institutional orders of society.
SOCY699
Special Social Problems
Credits:
1 - 16
Grad Meth:
Reg
SOCY699M
Special Social Problems; Pro-Seminar for BA/MA Students
Credits:
1 - 16
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud, S-F
SOCY699N
Special Social Problems; Intermediate Sociological Statistics
Credits:
1
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud
SOCY758
Advanced Special Topics in Sex Roles
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud, S-F
SOCY789
Advanced Special Topics in Social Stratification; Race and Ethnicity
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud, S-F
SOCY799
Master's Thesis Research
Credits:
1 - 6
Grad Meth:
S-F
SOCY898
Pre-Candidacy Research
Credits:
1 - 8
Grad Meth:
Reg
SOCY899
Doctoral Dissertation Research
Credits:
6
Grad Meth:
S-F
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