Bachelor of Arts in Sociology online

Examines the structure and dynamics of human society and interprets social behavior within the context of modern society and culture. A prerequisite to all other sociology courses unless waived by the instructor.

This course introduces students to the major theories and theorists in sociology through all historical periods. After an introductory consideration of the scientific method and its application to the study of human social life, it examines the principal categories of theory developed by sociologists. In addition to exploring the distinctive characteristics of each theoretical strategy, the course addresses such important issues as the relationship between theory and empirical research, the changing character of sociological theory over time, and the nature of theoretical controversies and debates in the field. Since this is a Writing Intensive course, students will engage in writing both as a means to learn sociological theories and as a way to develop proficiency in conventional styles of sociological writing.

This course examines inequality in the U.S. focusing primarily on race, gender, class, sexuality, and ethnicity, among other dimensions of inequality. It examines the global origins and structural organization of inequality and how it works in and through institutions such as work, family, education, healthcare, media, and politics. By exploring the unequal distribution of power and privilege, this course also considers how social inequality shapes society, how and why inequality is created and persists, and how some people have worked to both challenge inequity while others to reproduce and maintain their positions of power in society.

This course teaches students the process of social scientific inquiry. Students will learn the fundamentals of social science research methods, including the process by which research questions are formulated, relevant literature is reviewed, data are collected and analyzed, and results are written up. As this is a writing intensive course, students will learn methods in part through weekly writing assignments. The end product of the course will be a paper or proposal that has been improved through an iterative process of feedback by the professor and revision by the student.

This course introduces students to approaches for assembling, analyzing and presenting qualitative and quantitative data. Students will become familiar with a variety of sociologically relevant data that are available online. Students will learn how to conduct basic data analyses in SPSS or Excel in order to address questions of sociological and criminological significance.

This research-based senior seminar course is an in-depth, critical analysis of the literature and social phenomena in the field of sociology. Each student is expected to select a specific social organization, problem, or policy, explore the current research literature, complete an original independent research project and make a presentation about the empirical findings. Topics vary in each course section according to each instructor’s pre-announced theme. This is a writing intensive course.

This course examines the actual and symbolic role of organized crime in American society. It begins with an overview of the distribution, structure and operation of organized crime over time, including patterns of ethnic succession in the control of organized criminal activities. The course goes on to explore the changing nature of organized crime in the global era. Theories of organized crime are presented and assessed, and the tactics used to combat organized crime are examined. Myths surrounding organized crime are scrutinized critically, and prominent role of organized crime in popular culture is considered. Special attention is paid to a critique of the stereotypes that link organized crime and ethnicity in the popular mind and to the consequences of these stereotypes for the groups involved

This course will introduce to the students an overview of (1) the concepts of crime, law and criminology; (2) theories of crime causation; (3) the nature and extent and patterns of different kinds of crimes and social reactions towards the crimes in the American society; and (4) relevant crimes and social policies in other countries. As a writing intensive course, students will engage in writing both as a means to learn the concepts and theories outlined above and as a way to train themselves in conventional styles of criminological writing.

This course provides a broad introduction to white-collar crimes: illegal acts motivated primarily by financial gain, business advantage or power, which are characterized by deceit, concealment, or violation of trust, which are not dependent on the direct application or threat of violence. These crimes nevertheless result in great harm, from physical, economic, and emotional harm to environmental degradation and threats to democracy.  It provides students with an historical and sociological overview of such crimes, an understanding of the major types of white-collar crime, and the key theoretical tools developed to diagnose and explain the problem. It also delivers a critical overview of the scope and societal impact of white-collar crime both in the U.S. and internationally; an analysis of public responses to these crimes; and a discussion of the efficacy of strategies to prevent white-collar offenses from governmental and business organizations.

This course seeks to provide students with an overview of intersectional inequalities such as race, ethnicity, class, gender, and sexual identity in crime and the administration of justice, focused primarily in the United States. It also addresses differences in offending and victimization among disadvantaged populations. Students will examine historical and current criminal justice policies and the impact of such policies on community of color, poor people, women, the LGBTQ community, and other disadvantaged groups (e.g. persons with disabilities and the elderly). In addition, the course will examine theoretical perspectives on class, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual identity, and justice. Students will leave this course better understanding the role systems of inequality place in criminal justice policy and practice, and how criminal justice policies and practice impact marginalized populations."

An analysis of the nature of work, the individual’s relation to work, the organizations workers form to protect their interests, and the interactions among workers, their organizations, and other institutions. Course offered Fall and Spring Semesters.

A sociological approach to the study of marriage and family living. The student is required to develop a critical evaluation of studies and research in the field.

Examines the concept of deviance in society through a study of the issues of value judgements, abnormality and eccentricity. Implications are found for the causes of the behavior of groups socially labeled as deviant.

This course gives an overview of juvenile offending. It covers the nature, extent, causes, and patterns of juvenile delinquency and status offending. The course also gives an overview of juvenile justice. It covers the structure and functioning of the juvenile justice system and the role of the community in responding to juvenile offending. Included are discussions of major debates and controversies surrounding juvenile offending and justice.

This course will use an interdisciplinary approach to examine the history of immigration in the United States. We will do this through the lens of our home state, New Jersey, because it is one of the top immigrant destinations in the United States. Although the United States is often described as a nation of immigrants, this description has been contested throughout its history. Nativist and xenophobic beliefs against immigrant communities have influenced and sometimes determined U.S. immigration policy and law. This course will examine the experience of New Jersey immigrant communities, intersectionality (such as gender, race, sexuality etc.) within these communities, and the impact of US policies of inclusion and exclusion. Community and Civic Engagement. This course fulfills UCC area 5.