SOCIOLOGY AND ANTHROPOLOGY: COURSES
All courses listed will not necessarily be offered in any given year.
All courses are taught as seminars.
48-500. Sociological Theory
A seminar on current and emerging trends in social theory from social constructionism to world systems theory, including contemporary debates on impacts of globalization, modernity and postmodernity, and the recovery of neglected voices in sociological theory.
48-501. Classical Theories and Beyond
A seminar on selected classical writings by theorists such as Marx, Weber, and Durkheim, as well as critical extensions of their work. Attention will be paid to contributions to the sociology of knowledge.
48-505. Quantitative Methods and Statistics
Construction and testing of regression and logit models, sampling and questionnaire construction. Additional topics may be selected in view of the needs and interests of students.
48-506. Qualitative Methodology I
An examination of the ethics and politics of research. An emphasis will be placed on interviews and life histories, discourse analysis, and select approaches to historical sociology. The course is designed to provide students with an opportunity to engage in various research activities and debates.
48-520. Social Movements and Popular Mobilization
Seminar on the theory and research of large-scale transformations through historical and cross-cultural examinations of such topics as the development and impact of social movements, states and social revolutions, and the mobilization of people around issues concerning human rights, working conditions, racism, gender, sexuality, environment, peace, poverty, and globalization.
48-521. Social Inequality and the State
Seminar on the theory and research of structured inequality in the national and international context. The focus will be on the role of the state in creating, sustaining and altering different aspects of inequality in terms of resource attainment, political ideology and behaviour. Policy related issues may include globalization, family, sexuality, multiculturalism, immigration, employment, crime, education, health and welfare.
48-525. International Development and its Discontents
Seminar on the central theoretical and empirical issues raised in understanding the ways in which national and global processes of socio-economic development are experienced locally.
48-530. Work and Social Change
This course examines current research and theoretical approaches in the sociology of work with an emphasis on understanding the relationship between the transformation of work and broader social change in class, gender and ethnic relations. Areas of concentration may include the organization of production, worker control and resistance, state labour policies and legislation, unemployment, labour market segregation, and globalization.
48-540. Race and Ethnic Relations
A comparative analysis of race and ethnic relations focussing on such issues as ethnic stratification and mobility patterns, assimilation and cultural pluralism, and policies and legislation governing multiculturalism, employment equity and collective rights.
48-550. Family Relations and Gender Politics
An examination of historical and contemporary debates on gender politics within the context of family formation and social change in Canada. Special attention will be given to the gender division of labour, sexuality, economy and class, and to related social justice issues such as state regulation of marriage, divorce, child care and procreation, reproductive engineering and rights, and ideological power structures and practices that construct family members in particular social and cultural contexts.
48-555. Sexualities and Social Justice
This course will investigate the relationship between sexuality, power inequalities and social change. This may include an examination of the impact of globalization processes on sexualities, the development of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer identities and movements, the racialization and gendering of sexual identity (and the sexualization of racial, ethnic and gender relations), the criminalization of sexualities, and the construction of sexual 'health'.
48-561. Crime and Exclusion
An exploration of research and theory on the conception, construction, and production of crime and other exclusionary processes. Substantive topics may include violence, victimization and the impact of culture, borders, inequalities, and regulatory agencies on crime and deviance.
48-562. Security and Regulation
An examination of research and theory on the regulatory agencies of criminal law and social policy (e.g. courts, police, corrections, social service agencies), modes of regulation (e.g. discipline, surveillance, detention) and their application (e.g. to bodies, spaces, borders and subjectivities).
48-565. Law and Governance
This course examines perspectives on moral regulation, the social construction of law and law as governance. The focus will be the analysis of various forms of law, policy and regulation. Substantive issues to be covered may include sexuality, immigration and exclusion, labour and economic policies, drug policies and communication, or cultural policies.
48-566. Contemporary Criminological Theory
An advanced analysis of social theories in Criminology. Various perspectives will be covered including feminist, Marxist, cultural, postmodern, and constructionist theories.
48-567. Current Issues in Criminology
An examination of contemporary research in criminology, deviance, and/or social justice. Students will critically engage with the results of recent research central to these areas of investigations
48-568. Critical Perspectives on Policy Development and Evaluation
This course provides an in-depth study of the process of policy formation, development, and implementation in the area of crime and criminal justice broadly defined. Particular attention is devoted to the methodology and techniques of program evaluation as well as the social, political, and economic forces shaping the development and effectiveness of policy in the criminal justice realm. Consideration will also be given to the links between policy formation and the broader goals of social justice and the development of policies that reflect social justice concerns. The expertise gained through this course will help students to excel in both employment and academic contexts and applications.
48-569. Culture and Globalization
This seminar course uses cultural perspectives to explore processes of globalization. Topics may include migration, mass mediated practices, transnational organizations, work and employment, and human rights.
48-574. Health and Social Justice
Examines the social construction, production, and subjectivities of health and illness with reference to a variety of social justice developments and policy issues.
48-580. Subordination, Identity and Empowerment
A micro level examination of the effects of subordination on everyday life in the generation of acquiescence and resistance, including the use of discourse in identity formation and popular ideologies.
48-590. Directed Readings: Development of the Thesis Proposal
Students will register for this course with a faculty advisor in their declared area of specialization with the purpose of developing a thesis proposal. (Available for credit only in the MA program by thesis.)
48-600. Social Theory and Social Justice
A seminar to develop the theoretical foundations of doctoral research by critically examining the location of research and researchers in the global system, presumptions concerning human subjectivity and empowerment, and the conceptualization and practice of social justice. (Prerequisite: 48-500 or permission of instructor.)
48-605. Statistics and Quantitative Methods
Sociological applications of structural equation modeling, hierarchical modeling, log-linear models, multinomial and ordinal logits, consideration of the strengths and limitations of quantitative sociology and political issues in its exercise. (Prerequisite: 48-505 or permission of instructor.)
48-606. Qualitative Methodology II
A critical exploration of the epistemological assumptions and analytical tools associated with qualitative methodologies. Students will be exposed to a variety of research issues in the areas of sociological field work, select ethnographic techniques, the analysis of documents, and participatory action research. The course is designed to assist students in developing the methodological component of their PhD proposal. (Prerequisite: 48-506 or permission of instructor.)
48-797. MA Thesis
48-798. Doctoral Dissertation