SOC 1202: Introduction to Sociology and Cultural Diversity

This course encourages students to explore how a sociological toolkit may be used to examine the impetus for social and historical changes and the effect such changes have on how individuals live, work, and find their place in this world. It operates from the premise that individual lives are not just personal but social— as humans we are shaped by the societies in which we live and the social forces at work within them. Major theoretical perspectives and concepts will be discussed over the course of the semester with primary emphasis on the roles that culture, dimensions of inequality and social change play in shaping individual lives. Students will also explore the influence that social institutions such as the family, religion, education, healthcare, government, economy, and environment have on how humans function within society.