COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
SOCIOLOGY
(SOC)

5003 Sociological Theory
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
The nature of sociological theory, the major varieties of theory, the theorists who developed them, and the social and historical contexts of theory development and construction. Issues concerning the relation of theory and research are also explored.

5013 Advanced Conceptualization and Measurement
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: 3 semester hours of undergraduate research methods.
Advanced quantitative research methods. Topics may include index construction and scaling, analysis of variance, multiple correlation, and regression, with use of applicable computer programs to analyze local, state, and/or national data sets.

5023 Quantitative Research Methods
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: SOC 5013.
Analyses are pursued using a variety of multivariate statistical techniques developed to meet specialized research problems. Topics may include log-linear analysis, factor analysis, path analysis, discriminant function analysis, logistic regression, and/or LISREL.

5033 Qualitative Research Methods
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
Qualitative strategies and techniques used in social science research, including field methods such as participant observation, in-depth interviews, and the collection of documents. Emphasis is on understanding the ways people interpret their experiences and construct and share their reality.

5043 Evaluation Research
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
Theory and practice of evaluation of public policy and social service programs. Evaluation theories, models, and key evaluation studies are reviewed. Practical and political issues involved in the design and implementation of evaluations are addressed. Evaluation of a social agency or program may be included.

5103 Complex Organizations
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisites: SOC 5003 and SOC 5013.
Structure and dynamics of large organizations, with emphasis on outcomes related to varying organizational contexts. The influence of culture and society on organizational behavior is also examined.

5113 Civil Military Relations
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: SOC 5013.
Theories of military organization and the impact of the military on societies and communities. Topics may include race and gender relations, military unions, coup d'etats, war, and technology.

5123 Family Contexts and Social Change
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
Family system organization and process within the broader context of community and society. Emphasis is on the changing historical roles of families, as well as cross-cultural, socioeconomic, race and ethnic, and gender variability in the family. The impact of education, the economy, and politics is also considered.

5133 Sociology of Health and Health Care
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
The relation of social behavior to health status, epidemiology, and the social organization of medicine in the United States and cross-culturally. Emphasis is on the development of the health care industry and problems associated with the delivery of health care services.

5143 Demography and Community Trends
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: SOC 5013.
Basic demographic perspectives and data; methods of analysis of population size, distribution, and composition; determinants and consequences of population trends. Applications of computer programs for demographic analysis may be included.

5153 Sociology of Tourism and Leisure
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
Interdisciplinary survey of current theories and research on leisure activity. Leisure trends and their effects on tourism and economic development are examined.

5203 Social Stratification
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
Theory and research pertaining to structures of social inequality–their causes, forms, and consequences. Emphasis is on the distribution of power, prestige, and economic privilege, and patterns of social mobility in the United States.

5213 Race and Ethnic Relations
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
Dominant-subordinate relations between various racial and ethnic groups, from cross-cultural theoretical perspectives. Models of assimilation, cultural pluralism, and colonialism are investigated, as are their implications for minority and majority group members.

5223 Mexican Americans: Community, Culture, and Class
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
Sociological focus on the Mexican American population. Emphasis is on the theories used to interpret the experiences of this group, particularly those oriented to issues of stratification and social mobility.

5233 Gender and Society
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisites: SOC 5003 and SOC 5013.
Interdisciplinary survey of theory and current research on gender and gender-related issues. Gender-based theories are examined and compared to explanations for other forms of social stratification. Implications for family dynamics, the labor force, and the economy are explored.

5243 Aging and Society
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
Theory and research on the structure and dynamics of age stratification. Historical and cross-cultural differences in the status of the elderly are emphasized, as are the policy implications of demographic shifts toward an aging population.

5253 Border Studies
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
An examination of borders in an era of globalization, with emphasis on the United States-Mexico border. Themes may include a theoretical criticism of American mainstream border studies and its more important representatives.

5263 Cultural Studies
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
A study of the significance of culture in society, including the relationship between culture, consciousness, the economy, identity, and history. The development of the field and crucial debates in the literature will be examined. The relationship of Cultural Studies with Critical Theory, feminist theory, multicultural theory, and media studies will be explored.

5313 Theories of Identity
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
An examination of different theories that make sense of how people construct social and cultural identities. The course will cover theories of identity developed by symbolic interactions, Marxism, psychoanalysis, structuralism, and poststructuralism. Special emphasis will be devoted on how feminism and post-colonial theory have dealt with issues of identity construction.

5323 Sociology of Childhood
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
Explores concepts, theories, and empirical research focusing on childhood and children. Topics may include social structure and its consequences for children’s lives, how circumstances, meanings, and representations of childhood differ across cultures.

5333 Language and Society
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
An examination of the work of important scholars in the study of language and social behaviors.

5343 Education and Reproduction of Inequality
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
Examines the relation between types of societies and systems of education, the connection between schooling and societal stratification, and how schooling contributes both to social mobility and to the reproduction of the prevailing social order.

5353 Crime and Delinquency
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
The role of crime and delinquency in society is analyzed. A consideration of the relationship among data, theory, and policy as integral components of crime and delinquency forms a central theme of this course. Independent empirical work is required.

5413 Sociology of Music
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
Explores the social significance of music in people’s everyday life. Includes an examination of different schools of thought that have explored the relationship of music and identity. Examines different approaches and case studies of popular musics of the world, i.e., conjunto and tejano, tango and rock, and salsa.

5513 Comparative/Historical Sociology
(3-0) 3 hours credit.
Comparative strategies and historical methods are examined through methodological readings and evaluations of important works in the field; an examination of how theoretical concerns and historical-comparative evidence are brought to bear on the study of organizational structures, institutional relationships, political conflicts, cultural patterns, and social change.

6903 Topics in Advanced Sociology
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisites: SOC 5003 and SOC 5013.
A seminar offering the opportunity for specialized study not usually available as part of the regular course offerings. Topics may include social gerontology, deviance, demography of aging, social psychology, religion, culture and society, mass communications, and research applications. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

6951-3 Independent Study
1 to 3 hours credit. Prerequisites: Graduate standing and permission in writing (form available) of the instructor and the Sociology Graduate Advisor of Record.
Independent reading, research, discussion, and/or writing under the direction of a faculty member. For students needing specialized work not usually available as part of the regular course offerings. May be repeated for credit, but no more than 6 hours, regardless of discipline, will apply to the Master’s degree.

6961 Comprehensive Examination
1 hour credit. Prerequisite: Approval of the Sociology Graduate Program Committee to take the Comprehensive Examination.
Independent study course for the purpose of taking the Comprehensive Examination. May be repeated as many times as approved by the Sociology Graduate Program Committee. Enrollment is required each term in which the Comprehensive Examination is taken if no other courses are being taken that term. The grade report for the course is either "CR" (satisfactory performance on the Comprehensive Examination) or "NC" (unsatisfactory performance on the Comprehensive Examination).

6963,6 Internship
3 or 6 hours credit. Prerequisites: Consent of instructor and 18 semester credit hours of graduate work.
Work-oriented experience within a local organizational setting where the principles, theories, concepts, and methods of the discipline can be applied. A research paper under the supervision of assigned faculty is required.

6973 Special Problems
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.
An organized course offering the opportunity for specialized study not usually available as part of the regular course offerings. Special Problems may be repeated for credit when topics vary, but no more than 6 hours, regardless of discipline, will apply to the Master’s degree.

6983,6 Master’s Thesis
3 or 6 hours credit. Prerequisites: Permission of the Graduate Advisor of Record and thesis director, and 24 semester credit hours of graduate work.
Thesis research and preparation. May be repeated for credit, but no more than 6 hours will apply to the Master’s degree. Credit will be awarded upon completion of the thesis. Enrollment is required each term in which the thesis is in progress.