Sociology (SOCI) 435

Overview

SOCI 435 surveys several different theories, concepts, and categories used by sociologists to explain social change. Students will be asked to draw from these theories and concepts when examining some of the social, economic, and political transformations occurring at the end of the twentieth century.

Questions concerning social change are fundamental issues for all academic disciplines including sociology. Persistent change appears to be a compelling characteristic of modern societies, just as permanence and order appeared to characterize pre-modern societies. Yet, sociologists have not always agreed upon the mechanisms underlying social change observed in the last two centuries. In this course students will re-appraise a series of classic and contemporary debates in order to develop the basic analytical tools to understand, analyse, and interpret social transformations.

These analytical tools will provide a foundation from which students can critically assess such current social transformations as the population question, the collapse of communism and the end of the cold war, the global AIDS issue, the increasing pollution of the planet, the domination of the nation state by transnational corporations and global trading blocks, new forms of North-South imperialism, the Americanization or homogenization of global culture, the power of the worldwide news media, and more.

Objectives

Upon completion of SOCI 435, students should be able to critically compare and contrast four grand visions of social and historical change: the evolutionary, the cyclical, the dialectical, and the post-developmentalist; critically employ concepts such as social process, development, progress, social time, historical tradition, modernity, postmodernity, and globalization; and draw upon these visions and concepts of social change to determine the role of individual agency, social structure, ideas and norms, social movements and revolutions in social change.

Students should also be able to apply some of these theories and concepts when analysing the many crucial social changes and social transformations occurring at the close of the twentieth century; critically assess the role of superpower dominion in the current world order; critically assess the relationship between the media and public opinion, and the media's role in reporting on major social changes and controversies; and undertake a critical research paper dealing with social change in an area of their interest.

Evaluation

To receive credit for SOCI 435, you must complete a learning plan, a take-home mid-term examination and a research essay. You must achieve a minimum grade of 50 percent on each and a composite course grade of at least "D" (50 percent). The following chart summarizes the evaluation activities and the credit weight associated with each evaluation.

To learn more about assignments and examinations, please refer to Athabasca University's online Calendar.