Social Theory and Methods

SOC:5000 Scholarly Professionalism and Integrity, 2 s.h.
General introduction to department and discipline for entering graduate students; departmental and graduate college requirements, program and career planning, interaction with faculty members, consideration of student interests and concerns. Two semesters beginning in fall.  

SOC:5110 History of Sociological Theory, 3 s.h.
Ideas of major 19th- and 20th-century social thinkers (e.g., Marx, Weber, Durkheim, Simmel, Mead).  

SOC:6110 Theory Construction and Analysis, 3 s.h.
Contemporary theoretical issues and nature of theory, theory's place in research, strategies of theory construction.

SOC:6140 Seminar: Selected Topics in Sociological Theory, 3 s.h.

  • Contemporary Theory
  • Gender Research Workshop
  • Gender Theory

SOC:6175 Qualitative Methods, 3 s.h.
Logic of qualitative research; basic skills necessary for a qualitative research project. Prerequisite: sociology graduate standing or consent of instructor.  

SOC:6170 Introduction to Sociological Data Analysis, 3 s.h.
Statistical measures for descriptive methods and association; logic of statistical inference, hypothesis testing; background essential to understanding linear models, models for categorical data analysis. Prerequisite: introductory statistics or consent of instructor.  

SOC:5160 Research Design and Methods, 3 s.h.
Research designs; sampling designs and techniques; questionnaire construction, interviewing techniques; participant and non participant observation; coding and preparation of data for analysis; measurement techniques, reliability, and validity. Prerequisite: SOC:6170 or consent of instructor.  

SOC:6180 Linear Models in Sociological Research, 3 s.h.
Statistical techniques associated with general linear model; emphasis on multiple regression, its generalizations; corresponding computer programs. Prerequisite: SOC:6170 or consent of instructor.  

SOC:7170 Advanced Statistical Modeling of Data, 3 s.h.
Models for analysis of categorical data, including loglinear, logit, related discrete data models. Prerequisites: advanced graduate standing and consent of instructor.  

SOC:7180 Structural Equation Modeling, 3 s.h.
Overview of structural equation models (SEMs), also known as LISREL models, covariance structure models; specific types of SEMs, such as simultaneous equations and confirmatory factor analysis; intermediate topics.

Social Psychology

SOC:6210 Contemporary Approaches to Social Psychology, 3 s.h.
Review and critical analysis of current theoretical approaches to and systems of social psychological analysis.  

SOC:6220 Seminar: Selected Topics in Social Psychology, 3 s.h.
Selected theoretical and methodological issues. Examples include:

  • Life Course Seminar
  • Sociology of Emotion
  • Sociology of Morality
  • Self and Identity
  • Power, Status, Trust

Crime, Law, and Social Control

SOC:6410 Seminar: Criminological Theories,  3 s.h.
Theories of crime causation and their relationships to the cultures in which they have functioned.  

SOC:7410 Communities and Crime, 3 s.h.
Distribution of crime as rooted in community-level conditions such as concentrated affluence or poverty, racial residential segregation, unemployment, family disruption, and immigration. Prerequisite: sociology graduate standing or consent of instructor.  

SOC:6420 Seminar: Selected Topics in Deviance and Control, 3 s.h.
Critical analysis of current research; emphasis on theoretical contributions and methodological foundations. Repeatable. Topics include:

  • Interpersonal Violence and Coercive Actions
  • Political and Legal Change in Historical Comparative Perspective

SOC:7460 Sociology of Law Seminar, 3 s.h.
Relationship between law and society explored through writings and research of classical and contemporary sociologists and legal scholars. Prerequisite: sociology graduate standing or consent of instructor

Gender and Family

SOC:5310 Gender Theory, 3 s.h.
Introduction to sociological analysis of gender; multiple ways that gender patterns the social world in which we live; predominant theoretical stances related to study of gender; how gender structures everyday social interaction; how social institutions (e.g., work, family) give rise to and recreate gendered meanings, expectations, structures; possibilities for interventions and change to gender system.

SOC:6310 Gender Stratification Seminar, 3 s.h.
Occupational gender segregation; gender gap in pay; role of family caregiving in women's lower pay; devaluation of caregiving work; comparable worth.

Social and Political Organizations

SOC:6810 Social Stratification, 3 s.h.
Classical and contemporary theories; current research on the causes and magnitude of inequality in economics, power, and prestige; social mobility; critical issues in stratification.  

SOC:7820 Seminar: Selected Topics in Social Stratification, 3 s.h.
Prerequisite: social science graduate standing or consent of instructor. Examples include:

  • Status, Value, and Inequality
  • Social Capital
  • Race and Ethnicity
  • Inequality Seminar
  • Social Construction of Value

SOC:6850 Seminar: Sociology of Labor Markets, 3 s.h.
Sociological and economic theories and research concerning area/regional/local labor markets, industrial sectors and the dual labor market, occupational/internal labor markets; other structural explanations of inequality.  

SOC:7860 Seminar: Economy and Society, 3 s.h.
Relationships between social classes and nation-states in capitalist societies; historical experience of the United States; comparative perspective, especially regarding Western Europe.  

SOC:7620 Social Network Analysis, 3 s.h.
Relational, data-oriented approach to representing linkages or relationships among social units, and to examine the relevance of these social structures in social processes. Prerequisite: basic multiple regression or consent of instructor.  

SOC:6610 Complex Organizations, 3 s.h.    

SOC:5810 Education and Social Change, 3 s.h.
Role of educational institutions, in connection with political and economic structures, in social change; illumination of theories of social change through case studies of educational systems in less developed nations.

SOC:5130 Sociology of Education, 3 s.h. 
Effects of school and school organization on educational outcomes; course-taking patterns and tracking, desegregation, differences in school sector; focus on entire span of student's academic career; examination of school and organizational effects at the primary, secondary, and postsecondary levels of education.

SOC:5165 Race, Class and Gender Inequalities in Education, 3 s.h.
Role of ascribed characteristics (e.g., race, class, gender) on educational opportunities and outcomes; achievement gaps, school desegregation, social and cultural capital, peer influence, family attributes, neighborhood influence, influence of significant others, course-taking patterns, and educational destinations.

SOC:5680 Sociology of Higher Education, 3 s.h.
Sociological approach to study of higher education; issues of inequality and stratification in higher education; focus on relationship between higher education and larger economic and demographic processes; college access, college destinations, attainment, and returns to a college degree.

SOC:6264 Post-Industrial Cities, 3 s.h. 
Aspects of urban inequality in post-industrial cities; racial inequality, urban poverty, neighborhood inequality, and municipal bankruptcy.

Teaching

SOC:7010 Teaching Sociology, 3 s.h.
Supervised preparation for teaching sociology courses; literature on teaching; course objectives, alternative teaching techniques; preparation of course syllabus, lectures, discussions, exams. Prerequisites: advanced graduate standing and consent of instructor.

Independent Reading and Research

SOC:6080 or CRIM:6080 Master's Thesis, arranged

SOC:7030 or CRIM:7030 Readings and Research Tutorial, arranged

SOC:7090 or CRIM:7090 PhD Dissertation, arranged

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Course Catalog (General Catalog)

The General Catalog provides information about academic programs at the University of Iowa, and is published for informational purposes and should not be construed as the basis of a contract between a student and the University of Iowa. Every effort is made to provide information that is accurate at the time of publication.

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Current Courses (MyUI)

The MyUI Schedule displays registered courses for a particular session and is available to enrolled students with a HawkID login required. The list view includes course instructors (with a link to their email), time and location (with a link to the building in which the course is taught), and features to drop courses or change sections.