Synopses & Reviews
Examine the sociological meaning in Hurricane Katrina, same-sex marriage, the abuses at Abu Ghraib prison and scores of modern, compelling issues such as these in Andersen and Taylor's updated new edition of this easy-to-understand text. The book uses research and data to illustrate how class, race-ethnicity, gender, age, geographic residence, and sexual orientation relate to key sociological topics.. Andersen and Taylor inspire you to think for yourself about sociology with the book's "Debunking Society's Myths" features and critical thinking exercises. End-of-chapter summaries in a question-and-answer format provide a built-in review to help you prepare for exams, while an extensive map and illustration program makes concepts easier to understand. View the world through a sociological lens with this best-selling textbook . . . a perpetual favorite with students. This modern book and its fascinating coverage will make you want to read more as you learn to question, challenge, and look at the world like sociologists do.
Review
"...[Andersen and Taylor's SOCIOLOGY: UNDERSTANDING A DIVERSE SOCIETY] is good in providing students with a context for diversity. It is up-to-date and comprehensive. It provides the student the opportunity to explore more in depth with the we resources and suggested reading. All in all, I think it is a well-researched user-friendly textbook..." "...the writing style and use of language...engages the reader. It is erudite enough to convey the information yet accessible to the reader."
Review
"...the writing style is excellent for undergraduates."
Review
Andersen and Taylor's SOCIOLOGY: UNDERSTANDING A DIVERSE SOCIETY is "a solid, comprehensive text with an exciting combination of graphics, perspectives, and opportunities for students to consider policy issues."
Synopsis
Andersen and Taylor is a theoretically balanced, mainstream, comprehensive text characterized by its emphasis on diversity. In every chapter, students explore research and data that illustrate how class, race-ethnicity, gender, age, geographic residence, and sexual orientation relate to the topics covered. This text provides a solid research orientation to the basic principles of sociology while maintaining an accessible style, appealing to the ever-changing student population, and inviting students to view the world through a sociological lens. This highly integrated, research-oriented, contemporary example approach combined with its comprehensive coverage accounts for its wide appeal to professors and students alike.
About the Author
Margaret L. Andersen (B.A., Georgia State University; M.A., Ph.D. University of Massachusetts, Amherst) is the Edward F. and Elizabeth Goodman Rosenberg Professor of Sociology at the University of Delaware, where she has also served in several senior administrative positions, including most recently as Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs and Diversity. She holds secondary appointments in Black American Studies and Women and Gender Studies. She is the author of several books, including (among others) THINKING ABOUT WOMEN, recently published in its tenth edition; the best-selling anthology, RACE, CLASS, AND GENDER (co-edited with Patricia Hill Collins, now in its ninth edition); LIVING ART: THE LIFE OF PAUL R. JONES, AFRICAN AMERICAN ART COLLECTOR; and ON LAND AND ON SEA: A CENTURY OF WOMEN IN THE ROSENFELD COLLECTION. She is a member of the National Advisory Board for Stanford University's Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity, the Past Vice President of the American Sociological Association, and Past President of the Eastern Sociological Society, from which she received the ESS Merit Award. She has also received two teaching awards from the University of Delaware and the American Sociological Association's Jessie Bernard Award. Howard F. Taylor has taught at the Illinois Institute of Technology, Syracuse University, and Princeton University, where he is presently Professor of Sociology and former director of the African American Studies Center. He has published over fifty articles in sociology, education, social psychology, and race relations. His books include THE IQ GAME (Rutgers University Press), a critique of hereditarian accounts of intelligence; BALANCE IN SMALL GROUPS (Van Nostrand Reinhold), translated into Japanese; and the forthcoming RACE AND CLASS AND THE BELL CURVE IN AMERICA. He has appeared widely before college, radio, and TV audiences, including ABC's NIGHTLINE. Past president of the Eastern Sociological Society, Dr. Taylor is a member of the American Sociological Association and the Sociological Research Association, an honorary society for distinguished research. He is a winner of the DuBois-Johnson-Frazier Award, given by the American Sociological Association for distinguished research in race and ethnic relations, and the President's Award for Distinguished Teaching at Princeton University. Raised in Cleveland, Ohio, he graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Hiram College and has a Ph.D. in sociology from Yale University. He lives in Pennington, N.J., with his wife, a corporate lawyer.
Table of Contents
Part One: INTRODUCING THE SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE. 1. Developing a Sociological Perspective. 2. Doing Sociological Research. Part Two: INDIVIDUALS IN SOCIETY. 3. Culture. 4. Socialization. 5. Social Interaction and Social Structure. 6. Groups and Organizations. 7. Deviance. 8. Crime and Criminal Justice. Part Three: SOCIAL INEQUALITIES. 9. Social Class and Social Stratification. 10. Global Stratification. 11. Race and Ethnicity. 12. Gender. 13. Sexuality. 14. Age and Aging. Part Four: SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS. 15. Families. 16. Education. 17. Religion. 18. Economy and Work. 19. Government and Politics. 20. Health Care. Part Five: SOCIAL CHANGE. 21. Population, Urbanization, and the Environment. 22. Collective Behavior and Social Movements. 23. Social Change in Global Perspective. Glossary. References. Credits. Name Index. Subject Index.