Current courses
SOC 202: Statistical Methods in Sociology
This course provides a general introduction to the practice of using numerical data to describe, explain, and make predictions about the relationships between social phenomena. It is not intended to be an exhaustive study of statistical techniques, but only to acquaint students with the building blocks of quantitative analysis in sociology. The course will first explore ways of providing descriptions of the social world with numbers or “statistics”. We will then move onto more exciting territory, investigating how statistics can help us to make inferences about entire populations from limited, random samples. Throughout the course, you will be asked to not only demonstrate proficiency in using formulas, but also in interpreting, analyzing, and critiquing statistical findings.
This course provides a general introduction to the practice of using numerical data to describe, explain, and make predictions about the relationships between social phenomena. It is not intended to be an exhaustive study of statistical techniques, but only to acquaint students with the building blocks of quantitative analysis in sociology. The course will first explore ways of providing descriptions of the social world with numbers or “statistics”. We will then move onto more exciting territory, investigating how statistics can help us to make inferences about entire populations from limited, random samples. Throughout the course, you will be asked to not only demonstrate proficiency in using formulas, but also in interpreting, analyzing, and critiquing statistical findings.
SOC 302: American Society
Since the late 1970s, levels of income inequality in the United States have soared to historic highs. Not since the eve of the Great Depression has American society been so unequal. Despite this, our highest income earners pay far less in federal income taxes than they did in the 1960s. With the lack of robust social provisioning, average American families struggle to make ends meet in an increasingly unequal America. At the same time, the American incarceration rate is higher than any other nation in the world —and far more than any other comparable democracy—with over two million currently in prison. This era of ‘mass imprisonment’ has stripped millions of men (and women) of their political rights and deepened racial divisions.
In this course, we will investigate the major sites of systemic inequality in American society. By putting American inequality into comparative context—both historically and internationally—we will develop a deeper understanding of how American society “really works”. To begin, we will critically examine the growing rift between “haves” and “have-nots” as progressive tax policies have been scaled back. We will then turn to understanding how material inequalities are inflected in the American political system and problematize the notion of formal political equality. Finally, we will take an in-depth look at racial inequality and the criminal justice system; gender inequality and its structuring of intimate relationships; and ultimately, how these social divisions, taken together, very literally make people sick. In each case, we will learn the basic “social facts” about each site of inequality.
Since the late 1970s, levels of income inequality in the United States have soared to historic highs. Not since the eve of the Great Depression has American society been so unequal. Despite this, our highest income earners pay far less in federal income taxes than they did in the 1960s. With the lack of robust social provisioning, average American families struggle to make ends meet in an increasingly unequal America. At the same time, the American incarceration rate is higher than any other nation in the world —and far more than any other comparable democracy—with over two million currently in prison. This era of ‘mass imprisonment’ has stripped millions of men (and women) of their political rights and deepened racial divisions.
In this course, we will investigate the major sites of systemic inequality in American society. By putting American inequality into comparative context—both historically and internationally—we will develop a deeper understanding of how American society “really works”. To begin, we will critically examine the growing rift between “haves” and “have-nots” as progressive tax policies have been scaled back. We will then turn to understanding how material inequalities are inflected in the American political system and problematize the notion of formal political equality. Finally, we will take an in-depth look at racial inequality and the criminal justice system; gender inequality and its structuring of intimate relationships; and ultimately, how these social divisions, taken together, very literally make people sick. In each case, we will learn the basic “social facts” about each site of inequality.
SOC 502: Multivariate Regression Techniques (for Social Scientists)
