Sociology

Academics at Hanover:

WHY STUDY SOCIOLOGY?

As a Hanover sociology student, you’ll learn to step outside your own class, ethnicity and gender to see the world from other points on the social spectrum. You’ll quickly apply your class work in practical settings.

Maybe your class will visit the penitentiary or homeless shelter. Maybe you will travel to Arizona to study Native American sociology or to a major European city to study urban society. You’ll grow to understand the large social forces and structures that impact lives and how we can affect them. With highly dedicated and accessible faculty, you’ll build the scientific and interpersonal skills needed for success in the social sciences.

DID YOU KNOW?

For the past five years, Hanover sociology students have scored in the 95th to 99th percentile on the Educational Testing Service Examination in sociology administered to students nationwide.

WHAT DO SOCIOLOGY MAJORS STUDY?

Research methods and statistics
Sociological theory
Social inequality
Micro sociology
Institutions
Deviance and law
Social dynamics
Other topics that interest you, from globalization to environmental sociology to the sociology of families

PLACEMENTS

Previous graduates’ career and professional placements have included:

Executive, Fifth Third Bank (Cincinnati)
Statistician, U.S. Government (Washington D.C.)
Urban Planner, City of Indianapolis
Human Rights Activist (Central America)
Fashion Designer (Denver)
Sociology Professor, University of Maryland
Attorney (Lexington, Ky.)
Social Worker (Los Angeles)
School Counselor (Bloomington, Ind.)

“Thanks to Hanover’s sociology department, I am a critical thinker who is able to understand complex social issues and a strong communicator. These skills are the root of my success.”
Jessica Hoover Journey ’09

COURSES

Number

Name

Units

Description

SOC 164 Introduction to Sociology 1.00 Examines links between micro and macro (institutional, national and global) levels of social interaction and the impact of macro level social forces on our everyday lives. Topics include group influence on individuals, socialization, culture, deviance, race, class and gender inequalities; institutions and organizations, population trends, and social change. Partially satisfies the HS CCR.

SOC 216 Juvenile Delinquency 1.00 Examination of juvenile crime and the juvenile justice system. Explores the nature and extent of delinquency, theories of delinquency, empirical research on delinquency, and historical and contemporary efforts to control and prevent delinquency. Prerequisites: Soc 164. Satisfies CP ACE.

SOC 217 Deviance and Social Control 1.00 Examines sociological approaches to deviance, with a focus on power relations and the social construction of deviance in everyday life through the exploration of various examples of deviance. Prerequisites: SOC 164.

SOC 219 Social Problems 1.00 Analysis of causes and consequences of and possible solutions to social problems. Issues include such topics as poverty, racial and gender discrimination, crime, population, environment, prostitution, pornography, sexual orientations, and problems of family and work. Prerequisite: Soc 164.

SOC 222 World Ethnographies 1.00 Examines vastly different cultures from around the world through the reading and study of ethnography—richly descriptive and analytic accounts of particular cultures.. Identical to Anth 222. Prerequisite: Anth 162 or Soc 164. Partially satisfies the LA CCR and satisfies W1 and CP ACE.

SOC 223 Art & Social Life in Taiwan 1.00 Examines how material culture was created, viewed, and used by different peole in Ancient China and modern day Taiwan through visits to museums, cultural sites, and public places in Taipei, Taiwan. Uses art historical, anthropological, and sociological perspectives to understand cultural representations and human social behaviors. Offered during Spring Term only. Satisfies the CP ACE. Identical to ANTH223/ARTH223/SOC223. Not open to students with prior credit in these cross-listed courses.

SOC 225 Sociology of Families 1.00 Systems analysis of marriages and families; diversity of family types; mate selection processes; changing functions, structures, and roles; socio-legal issues; elements of healthy and dysfunctional families; break-up and reconstitution; and family policy. Prerequisite: Soc 164 or GndS 111.

SOC 227 Sociology of Public Places 1.00 Applies social psychological theories to public place social interactions; introduces nonparticipant observation research methods to examine the “interaction order” created by social actors; analyzes the roles that age, gender, race, and class play in public place interactions; includes field trips to public places. Prerequisite: Soc 164. Offered Spring Term.

SOC 228 Sociology of Gender 1.00 A comparative study of gender roles. Topics include: origins of gender roles, gender role stereotypes and consequences, androgyny and gender roles, gender roles in developed and developing nations, changing patterns and the future. Prerequisite: Soc 164 or GndS 111.

SOC 229 Environmental Sociology 1.00 Examines a sociological approach to the environment, including the social construction of nature; how inequality along the lines of race, class and gender affect the distribution of environmental impacts; and the importance of attitudes and behaviors to our interactions with the environment. Prerequisite: Soc 164.

SOC 231 Sociology of Food 1.00 This course explores food from a sociological perspective, establishing an initial understanding of how different social forces have shaped and continue to shape the way we grow, distribute and consume food, both in the United States and elsewhere around the world. Prerequisite: SOC 164.

SOC 235 Confronting Addiction in Indiana 1.00 An experiential learning course which examines poverty and addiction in a regional context. Explores religious and philosophical models of community engagement and social justice. Combines theological perspectives with sociological examinations of a regional social problem both inside and outside the classroom. Identical to Ths 235. Prerequisite: Sophomore standing.

SOC 236 Social Justice in the Internet Age 1.00 An interdisciplinary course which examines contemporary social justice movements. Explores sociological, religious and philosophical models of social justice. Combines theological perspectives with sociological examinations of Internet activism. Identical to THS 236. Prerequisite: Sophomore standing.

SOC 237 Social Justice & Mass Incarceration 1.00 This course explores the American system of mass incarceration from critical perspectives rooted in sociology and social justice. Prerequisite: SOC 164. Satisfies CP ACE.

SOC 238 Society and Social Movements 1.00 This course explores the formation, activities, and goals of social movements. Pre-requisite: SOC 164. Satisfies the CP ACE.

SOC 259 Immigration and Transnationalism 1.00 Examines how various immigrant groups negotiate cultural landscapes as previous identities conflict with present national loyalties and expectations. Also explores pan-ethnic cultural affiliations in urban America and investigates the impacts of transnational citizens on the home culture. Identical to ANTH 259. Prerequisite: ANTH 162 or SOC 164. Partially satisfies HS CCR and satisfies CP ACE.

SOC 315 Political Sociology 1.00 An examination of the sociology of power and community at the national and international levels. Identical with PlS 315. Offered alternate Fall terms. Prerequisites: a 100-level Political Science course (except PlS 160) or Soc 164.

SOC 318 Race & Ethnic Relations 1.00 Historical and global perspectives on racial and ethnic group contacts and conflicts; social psychology of prejudice and discrimination; mechanisms of institutional discrimination; minority group strategies for change. Prerequisite: Either Soc 164 or Anth 162. Satisfies CP ACE.

SOC 319 Urban Sociology 1.00 . A study of the origin and development of cities throughout the world. Offered alternate years. Prerequisite: Soc 164.

SOC 320 Research Methods & Statistics 1.00 Methods of collecting and analyzing social research data. Emphasis on student research participation. Prerequisites: Soc 164.

SOC 327 Sociology of Children and Youth 1.00 Examines sociological approaches to the study of children and youth; analyzes children’s own lives shaped by gender, race, and class; requires field research at a community partner site to complete ethnographic research project. Prerequisites: Soc 164. Satisfies CP ACE.

SOC 328 Sociology of Mental Health 1.00 Examines the topic of mental health and mental illness from critical sociological perspectives, with a focus on the social construction of mental illness in American society. Prerequisites: SOC 164.

SOC 330 Sociological Theory 1.00 Historical review, major theorists, major theories, sociological theory today and its application to modern society. Prerequisite: Soc 164.

SOC 333 Self and Social Interaction 1.00 Investigation of the self in social context. Explores processes of interaction and interpersonal influence, social boundaries, and social and institutional impacts on individuals. Prerequisite: Soc 164. Satisfies CP ACE.

SOC 334 Sociology of Sport 1.00 Sociological theories and concepts are applied in analyzing how sport affects society and how society affects sport. Offered alternate years. Prerequisites: Soc 164.

SOC 336 Crime and Corrections 1.00 An examination of the criminal justice system; nature and extent of crime; past and present practices used to control crime and deal with criminals. Prerequisites: Soc 164. Satisfies CP ACE.

SOC 338 Social Class and Inequality 1.00 A study of the causes and consequences of inequality domestically and internationally and predictions for the future. Prerequisites: Soc 164.

SOC 348 Race, Gender and Sexuality 1.00 A study of theories of intersectionality as they apply to race, gender and sexuality. Prerequisites: Soc 164. Satisfies CP ACE.

SOC 349 Sociology of Change 1.00 Causes and consequences of social change in the United States and at the global level. Topics include: globalization, deindustrialization, technology, population, environment, social movements, revolution, sociological theory, and intentional and unintentional social change. Offered alternate years. Prerequisites: Soc 164.

SOC 359 Social Movements 1.00 An examination of theories of movements of protest, reform, and revolution, and of resistance to change. Comparison and contrast of case studies, including movements such as abolition, temperance, civil rights, and environmentalism. Identical to PLS 359. Offered alternate Fall Terms. Prerequisites: a 100-level Political Science course (except PlS 160) or Soc 164.

SOC 461 Senior Seminar 1.00 A comprehensive, linking analysis of the major areas of Sociology as well as an introduction to new areas of sociological concern. Prerequisites: Soc 164, 320, 330, and senior major status.