Courses
Lower Division Courses
SOC 101. Introductory Sociology: The Study of Society (3) [GE]
This course is prerequisite to all upper division courses in sociology. Major ideas,
concepts, and methods in the study of society to include socialization, culture, social
structure, social stratification, deviance, social control, and social change.
SOC 102. Introduction to Social Problems (3) [GE]
Contemporary social problems. Topics may include poverty, inequality, unemployment,
crime and deviance, population and ecological problems, health, family issues, and
the role of ideology and interest groups in the definition of social problems.
SOC 115. Body and Society (3) [GE]
Relationship between the body and society and the body as a product of complex social
arrangements, interactions, and processes. The body and aging, consumer culture, dying,
health, inequalities, life course, and as an object of social control and regulation.
SOC 201. Elementary Social Statistics (3) [GE]
Prerequisite(s): Course in intermediate algebra. Satisfaction of the Entry Level Mathematics
requirement.
Basic statistical techniques in sociology. Tables and graphs, measures of central
tendency and variability, correlations, cross classification, and introduction to
multivariate analysis, sampling and statistical inference. Computer applications may
be included. Students with credit or concurrent registration in the following lower
division statistics courses will be awarded a total of four units for the two (or
more) courses: Sociology 201; Administration, Rehabilitation and Postsecondary Education
201; Biology 215; Civil Engineering 160; Economics 201; Political Science 201; Psychology
280; Statistics 119, 250.
SOC 296. Experimental Topics (1-4)
Selected topics. May be repeated with new content. See Class Schedule for specific
content. Limit of nine units of any combination of 296, 496, 596 courses applicable
to a bachelor’s degree.
Upper Division Courses (Intended for Undergraduates)
SOC 301. Social Research Methods (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 201 and Sociology 101 or 102.
Methods in sociological research to include surveys, field experiments, observations,
ethnography, comparative, historical, and content analysis. Methods are linked to
sociological theory. (Formerly numbered Sociology 250.)
SOC 310. Sociology of Emotions (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101
Human emotions in cultural dynamics, institutional processes, interactions, and societal
structures. Management and regulation of emotions, norms, socialization. Specific
emotions in social and political contexts.
SOC 320. Sex and Gender in Contemporary Society (3) [GE]
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101 and completion of the General Education requirement
in Foundations of Learning II.B., Social and Behavioral Sciences required for nonmajors.
Ways femininity and masculinity are constructed through social arrangements associated
with interpersonal relations, family, education, occupations, and economic and political
systems. How gender relations are portrayed in mass media and how they are accomplished
in community life.
SOC 330. Culture and History of Surfing (3) [GE]
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101 with a grade of C (2.0) or better. Completion of the
General Education requirement in Foundations of Learning II.B., Social and Behavioral
Sciences required for nonmajors.
Surfing from Hawaiian origins to present. Class, gender, and racial intersectionality
within surfing communities. Cultural differences between Polynesian and Western societies.
Surfing subcultures and dominant cultures. (Formerly numbered Sociology 210.)
SOC 335. Sociology of Popular Culture (3) [GE]
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101 .
Forms and features of popular culture. Distinction between highbrow and lowbrow cultures.
Sociological theories about effects, functions, and power of popular culture in society
and in social change.
SOC 338. Sociology of Religion (3) [GE]
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101 and completion of the General Education requirement
in Foundations of Learning II.B., Social and Behavioral Sciences required for nonmajors.
Forms of religious belief, knowledge, practice, and experience tied to different social
arrangements and historical periods. Consequences of religion for community and society.
Secularization and conversion processes in modern industrial societies.
SOC 350. Population and Contemporary Issues (3) [GE]
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 201 and completion of the General Education requirement
in Foundations of Learning II.B., Social and Behavioral Sciences required for nonmajors.
Population processes (fertility, mortality, and migration) as they affect and are
affected by such contemporary issues as rapid world population growth, environment,
urbanization, family, aging, US-Mexico border, and undocumented migration.
SOC 352. Global Social Problems (3) [GE]
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Contemporary social problems from global and transnational perspectives.
SOC 355. Sociology of Race and Ethnicity (3) [GE]
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Historical and comparative analysis of race and ethnic relations. Origins and maintenance
of ethnic stratification systems; discrimination and prejudice; the adaptation of
communities; role of social movements and government policies in promoting civil rights
and social change.
SOC 401. Classical Social Theory (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Classical theories of society. Intellectual history of European and U.S. theoretical
developments in functionalism, historical materialism, historicism, positivism, and
symbolic interactionism. Theories of modernity and evolution of modern world system.
SOC 403. Contemporary Social Theory (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Contemporary theories of society. Intellectual history of U.S. and European theoretical
developments in critical race theory, critical theory, feminist theory, post-structuralism,
structural functionalism, and structuralism. Theories of postmodernity and non-Western
theories of cultural and economic hegemony.
SOC 406. Intermediate Social Statistics (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 301 with a grade of C (2.0) or better.
Statistical techniques in the analysis of social research data and hypothesis testing,
including analysis of variance, covariance, partial correlation, multiple and logistic
regression, logic and log-linear models, discriminant and factor analysis. Practical
application with the use of statistical packages
SOC 407. Survey and Experimental Research Methods (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 301 with a grade of C (2.0) or better.
Research process from research design through data processing, analysis, and interpretation.
Quantitative research techniques including universe enumeration, sampling, questionnaire
construction, scaling techniques, structured interviews, and experimental designs.
SOC 408. Qualitative Research Methods (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101 and 301 with a grade of C (2.0) or better.
Ethnographic research methods including interviewing, observation, participant observation,
and case studies. Problems in research design; gaining and maintaining rapport; analysis,
interpretation, and writing with qualitative data.
SOC 410. Social Psychology: Mind, Self, and Society (3) [GE]
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101 and completion of the General Education requirement
in Foundations of Learning II.B., Social and Behavioral Sciences required for nonmajors.
Major theories, problems, and findings concerning the relationship of the individual
and society. Topics include consciousness and construction of meaning, self-concept
and social identity, socialization and interaction, group behavior and group membership.
SOC 411. Police and Society in the Americas (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Social and cultural factors shaping police work in the United States and Latin America.
Policing through lenses of power and social control. Current controversies and innovations
to include community policing, immigration, militarization, reform, and securitization.
SOC 412. Social Construction of Reality (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Analysis of reality as an ongoing social process. Creation and internalization of
social worlds through language. Common sense and the multiple realities of everyday
life. Dynamic emergence of social structure.
SOC 420. Sexuality in Modern Society (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Social construction of sexualities. Sexual behaviors, desires, and practices. Changing
norms of sexuality, morality and social control, non-normative sexualities, sexual
identities, and social and political movements regarding sexuality.
SOC 421. American Families (3) [GE]
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101 and completion of the General Education requirement
in Foundations of Learning II.B., Social and Behavioral Sciences required for nonmajors.
Changes in intimacy in American family. Selection of mating partners, spousal and
parenting relationships, and alternatives to traditional family forms. Changing functions
of the family viewed in historical perspective. Present diverse family arrangements
and future prospects.
SOC 430. Social Organization (3) [GE]
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101 with a grade of C (2.0) or better and completion of
the General Education requirement in Foundations of Learning II.B., Social and Behavioral
Sciences required for nonmajors.
Social structure of societies. Historical examination of structure and development
of social institutions, communities, and other large scale organizations.
SOC 433. Wealth, Status, and Power (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101 with a grade of C (2.0) or better.
Social inequality as an institutional process. Patterns of unequal distribution of
wealth, power, privilege and prestige, their causes, and impact this has on communities
and societies.
SOC 436. Sociology of Health and Illness (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Social, cultural, and political factors in definitions of health, disease, healing,
and provision of services. Comparative study of medical practices and organizational
structures in America and selected international settings. Emphasis on change, socialization
of practitioners, relationships between health related occupations.
SOC 441. Sociology of Mental Illness (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Social, cultural, historical, and political factors involved in definition of “madness”
and theories of mental illness in various societies. Review of research about incidence,
prevalence, and social epidemiology of mental illness, as a community problem, and
its distribution by social class, gender, age, geographical region, and country.
SOC 442. Homicide in America (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Characteristics and distribution of murder, including historical and cross-cultural
comparisons. Social psychological, structural, cultural and situational explanations
of causes and consequences of juvenile, gang, domestic, mass, serial and sexual murders.
SOC 443. Crime and Society (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Social origins, forms, and functions of criminal law. Sociological theories about
causes and consequences of crime. Measurement and distribution of violent crimes,
property crimes, victimless crimes, white collar crime, and their impact on communities
and society.
SOC 444. Juvenile Delinquency (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Sociological theories about causes and consequences of juvenile delinquency. Social
origins of juvenile justice system, with attention to methods of control and prevention
at community and national levels.
SOC 445. Sociology of Deviance (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Conformity and nonconformity; the relationship between individual liberty and social
control; stigma and the labeling of deviant behavior such as prostitution, alcoholism,
drug addiction, and crime.
SOC 446. Sociology of Criminal Organizations (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Major criminal organizations that operate in underworld across time, space, and socio-cultural
context, including Mafia, Yakuza, Triads, and transnational drug traffickers and human
smugglers. Explore their social organizations, operations, roles, and identities.
SOC 447. Human Trafficking and Modern Day Slavery: A Sociological Perspective (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101 or 102.
Examine complex phenomena of transporting, harboring, and employing human beings through
use of force, fraud, or coercion for labor and sexual exploitation. Analyze root causes
of this modern day slavery and explore possible solutions.
SOC 448. Urban Sociology (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Cities and neighborhoods as they pertain to day-to-day life. Location importance for
life outcomes and what social forces can shape location.
SOC 450. Social Change (3) [GE]
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101 and completion of the General Education requirement
in Foundations of Learning II.B., Social and Behavioral Sciences required for nonmajors.
Social change at the interpersonal, institutional, and societal levels of analysis.
Major economic, political, technological, and demographic forces that have shaped
the contemporary world. Topics may include modernization, industrialization, urbanization,
revolution, and prospects of social change in rich and poor nations.
SOC 455. Sociology of Intersectionality (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Social inequality to include current research on class, gender, and race. Interlocking
systems of privilege and oppression and their impact on society.
SOC 457. Protests, Reforms, and Revolutions (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Revolutionary and reform movements in relationship to the larger society. Conditions
leading to development of social movements, emergence of leadership, ideologies, strategies,
recruitment of members, and social consequences; case studies.
SOC 458. Nonviolence, Peace, and Social Change (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Actions, research, strategies, and theories regarding nonviolent social change. Power
of collective nonviolent actions through the lenses of global, local, and national
conflicts.
SOC 459. The American Labor Movement (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Social history of the American labor movement from late eighteenth century to present.
Relationship between the labor movement, the labor process, and the state. Race and
gender divisions within the labor movement.
SOC 460. Technology and Society (3) [GE]
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101 with a grade of C (2.0) or better. Completion of the
General Education requirement in Foundations of Learning II.B., Social and Behavioral
Sciences required for nonmajors.
Social construction of technological systems. Emergent technologies within particular
cultural forms, social structures, and political practices, and how these phenomena
influence design and use of technology. Technology as a mode of social experience.
SOC 470. Sociology, Research, and Community Engagement (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 301 with a grade of C (2.0) or better.
Division of labor in sociology, theories of organizations and social change, labor
market trends frame internship experience. Students will be required to complete 45
hours of outside supervised research or internship.
SOC 480. Field Internship (3-6)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Supervised field placement of students in community agencies. Practical experiences
related to studies within the sociology curriculum. Maximum credit six units.
SOC 496. Experimental Topics (1-4)
Prerequisite(s): Consent of the instructor.
Selected topics. May be repeated with new content. See Class Schedule for specific
content. Limit of nine units of any combination of 296, 496, 596 courses applicable
to a bachelor’s degree.
SOC 499. Special Study (1-6)
Prerequisite(s): Consent of instructor.
Individual study. Maximum credit six units.
Upper Division Courses (Also Acceptable for Advanced Degrees)
SOC 522. The Family in Comparative and Cross-Cultural Perspectives (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101. Recommended: Sociology 421.
Comparative study of selected family systems in the past and present. Comparative
analysis of major social and demographic changes in marriage and family in post-industrial
nations and less developed countries. Cross-cultural comparisons of family arrangements
in contemporary America by social classes and racial-ethnic groups.
SOC 531. Working and Society (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Structure and change in labor force, nationally and internationally. Social drama
of work: self, roles, conflict, subcultures. Includes exploration of student work
experiences, workers in the community, literacy, and film depictions of work worlds.
SOC 537. Political Sociology (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Social organization of political processes. Power and authority, social class, primary
groups, collective behavior, social change, and other sociological factors considered
in their relationships to political processes.
SOC 539. Sociology of Education (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Social organization of education in the United States and other societies. Structure
and functions of educational institutions. Formal and informal education. Class, ethnic,
and other social factors affecting the educational process. Implications of educational
decision making and testing.
SOC 543. Police, Courts, and Corrections: The Sociology of Crime and Punishment (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Historical sociology of the American criminal justice system. Development and functions
of police, criminal courts, prisons, parole, and probation. Theories and ideologies
of punishment and rehabilitation. Review of contemporary research.
SOC 554. Sociology of the United States-Mexico Transborder Populations and Globalization
(3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Recommended: Chicana and Chicano Studies 355 and/or Sociology 350. Sociology of the
population at the United States-Mexico border region. Demographic dynamics and social
change in border communities. International migration and transmigration. Transborder
families and transnational families. Gender systems and women’s reproductive health
in border communities.
SOC 555. Immigrants and Refugees in Contemporary American Society (3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Contemporary migration to the United States, especially from Latin America and Asia.
Political and economic migration. Immigrant and refugee adaptation. Theoretical controversies,
research applications, and policy implications.
SOC 596. Current Topics in Sociology (1-3)
Prerequisite(s): Sociology 101.
Selected specialized, controversial or currently relevant topics in sociology. Maximum
opportunity provided for student initiative in determining course content and procedures.
May be repeated with new content. See Class Schedule for specific content. Limit of
nine units of any combination of 296, 496, 596 courses applicable to a bachelor’s
degree. Maximum credit of six units of 596 applicable to a bachelor’s degree. Credit
for 596 and 696 applicable to a master’s degree with approval of the graduate adviser.
SOC 597. Investigation and Report (3)
Prerequisite(s): Fifteen units in sociology and consent of instructor.
Analysis of special topics in sociology. Maximum credit six units.
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