SCY2101

Sociological theory and methodology

Chris Lloyd

8 points - 3 hours per week - First semester - Caulfield - Prerequisites: First-year SCY sequence or equivalent

Objectives Students should acquire an overview of the historical development of sociological theory; an increased understanding of the central debates in contemporary sociological theory; an awareness of sociological theorising as a process and a socially embedded production; the ability to identify and discriminate between different approaches to theorising in sociology; and an enhanced ability to analyse, evaluate and apply theoretical reasoning in sociology.

Synopsis This subject covers the following topics: theoretical thinking in sociology and the politics of knowledge production; a brief overview of the development of sociological theory; the 'classical' theorists: Marx, Durkheim, Simmel and Weber; the rise and fall of structural functionalism; the sociology of everyday life: symbolic interactionism and phenomenology; recent developments in sociological theory: the debate over poststructuralism and postmodernism; the challenges of feminist theorising in sociology.

Assessment One seminar paper (2500 words): 40% - Two critical reviews (750 words each): 15% each - Test (2 hours): 30%.

Recommended texts

Craib I Modern social theory 2nd edn, St Martins, 1992
Ritzer G Sociological theory 4th edn, McGraw-Hill, 1996
Seidman S Contested knowledge: Social theory in the postmodern era 2nd edn, Blackwell, 1997

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