Current Courses

A survey course that introduces students to the discipline of sociology with particular reference to Canadian Society. This course examines theories and research concerning the nature of social order and conflict in industrial society; the relations between important structures or elements of society, including the economy, family, education, religion, complex organizations, racial and ethnic groups, and the dynamics of social change. Several major theoretical approaches in sociology are compared throughout the course.

A survey course that introduces students to the discipline of sociology with particular reference to Canadian Society. This course examines theories and research concerning the nature of social order and conflict in industrial society; the relations between important structures or elements of society, including the economy, family, education, religion, complex organizations, racial and ethnic groups, and the dynamics of social change. Several major theoretical approaches in sociology are compared throughout the course.

A survey course that introduces students to the discipline of sociology with particular reference to Canadian Society. This course examines theories and research concerning the nature of social order and conflict in industrial society; the relations between important structures or elements of society, including the economy, family, education, religion, complex organizations, racial and ethnic groups, and the dynamics of social change. Several major theoretical approaches in sociology are compared throughout the course.

A survey course that introduces students to the discipline of sociology with particular reference to Canadian Society. This course examines theories and research concerning the nature of social order and conflict in industrial society; the relations between important structures or elements of society, including the economy, family, education, religion, complex organizations, racial and ethnic groups, and the dynamics of social change. Several major theoretical approaches in sociology are compared throughout the course.

A survey course that introduces students to the discipline of sociology with particular reference to Canadian Society. This course examines theories and research concerning the nature of social order and conflict in industrial society; the relations between important structures or elements of society, including the economy, family, education, religion, complex organizations, racial and ethnic groups, and the dynamics of social change. Several major theoretical approaches in sociology are compared throughout the course.

An introduction to the main research approaches used in sociology. The course includes practical experience in developing a research program by considering research question development, research design, methods of data collection, research ethics and data analysis. Of particular interest are the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches.

A study of the classical tradition in sociological thought focusing on those theorists whose ideas constitute the foundation of contemporary sociological analysis. This will include a consideration of the work of Marx, Weber, Durkheim, among others.

Introduction to Sociology of Globalization explores social conditions characterized by global economic, political, cultural, and environmental interconnections and flows that cross existing political borders. Therefore, it challenges our existing conceptualization of an international world of borders and nation states. The course explores the concept of globalization and its relevance to our lives. Types of empirical topics covered include contemporary global inequalities; environmental problems; transnational communities and families; transnational migration; the effect of globalization on gender, race, ethnicity, and religion; transnational social movements; and the women's movement.

This course reviews theory and research with a focus on the social basis of deviance, deviance construction, and the consequences of social reactions to selected forms of deviance.

The various perspectives used by sociologists to examine social problems will be described and evaluated. Concrete social problems will be used as examples of these perspectives.

This course will explore the comparative situation of older women and men in different cultures and different historical periods within western societies. The cultural and social-structural determinants of their changing status will be examined through alternative theoretical perspectives within sociology. The social construction of 'elderly' as a status will be explored through how older people are perceived,described, talked about, and interacted with, in everyday behaviour and how these relations may be 'negotiated' by the elderly themselves. The political economy of aging focuses upon disparities of income, and the determinants and effects of poverty on the lives of older people.

This course unpacks issues associated with sport in North America. Students are asked to critically engage with sport practices as they intersect various social phenomena including identity, nationalism, the body, colonialism, and the family. Students examine how power operates through the practices associated with sport and consider the potential, and consequences, of using sport for social change.

This course focuses on particular aspects of the social processes that shape, and are shaped by female and male social roles such as gender and power, gender and social structures of work, and feminist social movements.

A critical analysis of various conceptual frameworks in family research, and a cross-cultural analysis of marriage and the family, both past and present is pursued. Particular attention is paid to the current developments in marriage arrangements, changes in the meaning of marriage and the family, as well as the future of the family.

This course explores health from a sociological perspective. The course focuses on the social determinants of health, inequalities in health and illness, health care provision, and the social construction of health and health practices.

The focus of this course is on the type of political system known as liberal democracy. Particular emphasis is placed on the historical genesis of liberal democracy, on its structural dynamics, and on the role of the working class within the system. The examination includes an analysis of the sources of stability and cleavage governing the development of liberal democracies. Finally, the functioning of liberal democracies is contrasted with that of communist political systems.

The senior seminar is a one-semester course, required for a Major degree in sociology, which is to be taken in the final year of study. The course is organized around substantive issues, with different sections devoted to different topics. The issues are addressed as puzzles or lines of inquiry that explore current concerns. Students are expected to bring the knowledge they have acquired of the competing traditions of sociological inquiry to bear on the theme. This course will be conducted as a seminar, with students taking responsibility for researching, presenting, and discussing material. Regular attendance and active participation will be emphasized. Enrolment limited to approximately 15 students in each section.

A survey course that introduces students to the discipline of sociology with particular reference to Canadian Society. This course examines theories and research concerning the nature of social order and conflict in industrial society; the relations between important structures or elements of society, including the economy, family, education, religion, complex organizations, racial and ethnic groups, and the dynamics of social change. Several major theoretical approaches in sociology are compared throughout the course.

A survey course that introduces students to the discipline of sociology with particular reference to Canadian Society. This course examines theories and research concerning the nature of social order and conflict in industrial society; the relations between important structures or elements of society, including the economy, family, education, religion, complex organizations, racial and ethnic groups, and the dynamics of social change. Several major theoretical approaches in sociology are compared throughout the course.

A survey course that introduces students to the discipline of sociology with particular reference to Canadian Society. This course examines theories and research concerning the nature of social order and conflict in industrial society; the relations between important structures or elements of society, including the economy, family, education, religion, complex organizations, racial and ethnic groups, and the dynamics of social change. Several major theoretical approaches in sociology are compared throughout the course.

A survey course that introduces students to the discipline of sociology with particular reference to Canadian Society. This course examines theories and research concerning the nature of social order and conflict in industrial society; the relations between important structures or elements of society, including the economy, family, education, religion, complex organizations, racial and ethnic groups, and the dynamics of social change. Several major theoretical approaches in sociology are compared throughout the course.

A survey course that introduces students to the discipline of sociology with particular reference to Canadian Society. This course examines theories and research concerning the nature of social order and conflict in industrial society; the relations between important structures or elements of society, including the economy, family, education, religion, complex organizations, racial and ethnic groups, and the dynamics of social change. Several major theoretical approaches in sociology are compared throughout the course.

An introduction to the main research approaches used in sociology. The course includes practical experience in developing a research program by considering research question development, research design, methods of data collection, research ethics and data analysis. Of particular interest are the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches.

Statistics are used and misused by social scientists, policy makers, and the media to describe the social world. Sociologists use statistics to understand social inequality and examine relations of power. In this course you examine the use and meaning of statistics in sociology, social policy and popular media to increase your ability to differentiate dodgy statistics from valid evidence. Note: To fulfill requirements for the Minor, Major or Honours in sociology, students may take this course or any other statistics course.

This course reviews theory and research with a focus on the social basis of deviance, deviance construction, and the consequences of social reactions to selected forms of deviance.

This course examines critical features of developing surveillance practices, including changes in privacy and identity, the integration of surveillance throughout the society, and the challenge to civil liberties that they raise,as well as resistance and opposition.

This course explores the conceptual, theoretical, and methodological understandings most relevant to the sociological study of "race," racialization, racism, and colonialism. We give particular attention to critical decolonial thinking on race. We examine the process of racialization, through which "being white" becomes the normative standard of "just being human." We contextualize how the creation of whiteness as an identity-based entitlement has led to social division and oppression. We draw on the experiences of diverse groups of Black, Indigenous, and other People of Colour (BIPoC) in Canadian and global contexts. We begin with the premise that BIPoC share a common history in terms of dispossession, discrimination, and oppression, but also pursue a range of different struggles and dreams in relation to their lands and nation-states. We explore racialization of bodies in contemporary culture to probe a series of assumptions and theories about race, racism, and colonialism in both academic and popular thought.

This course focuses on the relations between the beliefs and institutionalized practices that people hold sacred, and contemporary community life. Students explore the contradictory trends of mass secularism and the rise of religious fundamentalism, and the practices through which people collectively mobilize to sustain, challenge, and change religious identities. The question raised by Durkheim is explored: If religion expresses and reinforces community solidarity, how can modern societies accommodate religious diversity? A further question is: How are religions implicated in political struggles, the women's movement, nationalism, and war?

This is a seminar course examining selected topics on the political economy of women. Potential topics include women as paid workers, domestic labour, and women and poverty.

A study of contemporary developments in sociological theory, focusing on major trends, their interrelationships, and controversies. Prerequisite: SOCI 2033.

This course critically examines law from various sociological perspectives, with particular reference to Canada. The course is designed to cover sociological jurisprudence and selected theories of law, as they relate to family, administrative, labour, criminal and other types of law.

This course focuses on the nature of the relationship between school systems and the broader societies of which they are a part. This is done with two purposes in mind: (1) to determine both the structural configuration and the functions of education in contemporary society and (2) to demonstrate the effects of this relationship on the internal functioning of schools. A variety of theoretical perspectives on the conceptualization of the school-society connection are examined.

This course explores the interaction between society and the body. It begins with an examination of classical and contemporary theories of the body, and then explores special issues with regard to the development of the civilized body, as well as gender, sexuality, marginalization, deviancy, chronic illness and disability.

Employing both classical and contemporary sociological perspectives, this course explores the nature of art in society by looking at how art objects are produced, distributed, and consumed. Theoretical perspectives are related to historical and contemporary examples from a range of artistic media (e.g., pictorial art, film, photography, literature, and music) to expose the interplay between art and society. The relationship between the fine arts and popular culture are examined, as well as the role of technology in the various arts.

This course explores the social construction of queerness in heteronormative societies. Students apply sociological concepts and theories to the study of queer identities, communities, and sexual practices. They examine social and political responses to queerness, and the ways in which these responses shape the lives of queer people. Prerequisite: SOCI 1006 and 6 credit hours of sociology at the 2nd-year level.

The senior seminar is a one-semester course, required for a Major degree in sociology, which is to be taken in the final year of study. The course is organized around substantive issues, with different sections devoted to different topics. The issues are addressed as puzzles or lines of inquiry that explore current concerns. Students are expected to bring the knowledge they have acquired of the competing traditions of sociological inquiry to bear on the theme. This course will be conducted as a seminar, with students taking responsibility for researching, presenting, and discussing material. Regular attendance and active participation will be emphasized. Enrolment limited to approximately 15 students in each section.

A critical examination of selected orientations from contemporary sociological theory. The implications of these perspectives for both the nature of sociological inquiry and the prevailing models of society are considered. Prerequisites: SOCI 2033 and 3023.