Sociology

This course focuses on how collective action and social movements have sought to raise awareness and effect change in migration and identity issues. The course is designed to engage students in a multi-disciplinary, experiential research project on migration issues through a series of set themes related to collective action. It aims to better understand the forms of collective action on the on the issues of migration, based on the in-depth study of the Paris experience. It critically addresses concepts of integration, community, ethnicity, citizenship, asylum, and migrant rights by systematically putting them to the test through social and political mobilizations. As such, it will allow students to explore migrants’ diverse experiences as they interact with societies, culture, and institutions with a strong emphasis on the role played by activism. Given the predominance of migration in the nation’s capital city, a wide range of opportunities for case studies to develop research projects, crossing various disciplines such as history, political science, sociology, literature, journalism, and visual studies on social movements about migrants, migration and identity, and migration in Paris. The Parisian field offers myriad case studies on these issues as the undocumented migrants’ social movements, associations for the defense of migrants’ rights, aid and support institutions for foreigners, as well as organizations created by communities of origin. This is why, by focusing on the research dimension, this course intends to rely on, from a pedagogical perspective, meetings with social actors and collection of first-hand data. Research papers deal with collective action motivated by positions and identities related to migration, ethnicity, religion, anti-racism, nationalism, and diversity. The focus on migration and identity in an historical perspective is particularly relevant to developing research skills and service-learning opportunities for students.
 

This course examines the basic principles and basic procedures of social survey methods. Using the general process of social surveys as the layout logic and small research projects, it introduces survey design, measurement, questionnaire design, survey sampling, data collection, data processing, statistical software application and statistical analysis preparation, data statistical analysis, survey report writing, and method selection.

The course introduces students to basic concepts in the study of human sexuality from a psychological perspective and encourages students to think about the personal, social, and cultural dimensions of human sexuality. It covers topics such as clinical sexology, the context of sexuality in Irish society, sexual health promotion, and a critique of contemporary issues including “hooking up,” pornography and sexualization, and sexuality, with a particular focus on youth and emerging adulthood.

This is a special studies course involving an internship with a corporate, public, governmental, or private organization, arranged with the Study Center Director of Liaison Officer. Specific internships vary each term and are described on a special study project form for each student. A substantial paper or series of reports is required. Units vary depending on the contact hours and method of assessment. Graded P/NP only.

This course examines French and Francophone cultural productions since the end of the Second World War, a traumatic event that transformed and deeply marked France’s society. It focuses on the evolutions of French national identity and diverse representations of it in a context of decolonization, European dynamics, and globalization. The concept of national identity is challenged by multicultural and immigrant populations that shift our understanding of “French” towards a transnational perspective. The critical urgency of this issue of definition is underlined by increasing political tensions in France that are also accentuated by the growing demands for new public commemorations that seek to acknowledge silenced, wounded memories and that, in doing so, may further divide society. The course examines how dissent about French identity revives democracy while paradoxically undoing national borders. It progresses chronologically, starting with post-War liberations from the margins: women (feminism), colonials (decolonization), youth, and other social identities (May 1968). It then analyzes how these forms of gender, ethnic, and social otherness persist or were dealt with in the 70s and 80s. The course also takes a close look at the geographical and spatial fractures that weigh upon French society. Finally, it addresses today’s issues concerning the education system, in particular the teaching of history, the unprecedented economic crisis, old age, climate change, Islam, Islamophobia, Anti-Semitism, the attacks in Paris in 2015, and the refugee crisis.

What impact does war have on different groups of people, such as refugees or war correspondents? How have societies altered the conduct of war, through the persecution of minorities, for example? This course addresses these questions, exploring the dynamic relationship between culture, conflict, and change to fully explore people at war. Through both a thematic and case study approach, it draws on a wide range of historic and contemporary conflicts to investigate the destructive and transformative power of conflict on social, cultural, and political life.

This course explores the institution of the family from a sociological perspective, offering a comprehensive overview of the historical development and contemporary dynamics of marriage and family. Key topics include family structure and identity, gender role divisions, the interplay of emotion and power in intimate relationships, intergenerational dynamics and caregiving responsibilities, as well as institutional transformations affecting the modern family.

Grounded in theoretical frameworks, the course also examines the intersections of money and intimacy, the cultural and practical dimensions of motherhood and fatherhood, the social construction of childhood environments, and the evolution and impact of family policies in China. By integrating historical context with real-world case studies, students will develop a nuanced understanding of the complexity and diversity of contemporary family life, and the role of marriage and kinship in a rapidly changing society.