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COURSE SYLLABUS

Welcome to the sociology of deviant behavior! The concepts of deviance and social control are so important that some consider them the core concepts of sociology. This course looks at how attributes or behavior are defined as deviant, the social consequences of deviant labels, and the construction and imposition of norms, values, and rules. We take up both the "social construction" of deviant categories and the “social facts” of deviance. Course objectives include the following: • To understand how deviance is defined and produced. • To gain a working knowledge of the key sociological theories of deviance. • To apply these ideas critically to selected case studies. • To critique and evaluate institutional responses to deviance and control.

I'll do my best to post a pdf of each week's powerpoint slides 24 hours before the lecture. That way, you can print them out if you like and take notes directly on my notes. You'll also find some of the required readings here, as well as a course syllabus, midterm and final review sheets, and links to sites that you might find useful.

LECTURE SLIDES [note: lectures posted prior to class]

1. 1/23 Welcome! Defining Deviance: Social Facts and Social Constructions -- service learning packet

2. 1/30 Social Controls and the Problem of Order; Deviant Careers
Supplement: Uggen, Criminology and the Sociology of Deviance (recommended only) [pdf]

3. 2/6 Subcultures, Power, and Unconventional Sentimentality; Individualistic v. Sociological Theories

4. 2/13 Structural Theories
Supplement: Behrens et al., Racial Threat and Felon Voting [pdf]

5. 2/20 Labeling, Learning, and Control Theories

6. 2/27 Methodologies -- How we Learn the "Social Facts"
Supplements: EEOC Statistics: www.eeoc.gov/stats/harass.html and MTF Survey:

7. 3/5 MIDTERM EXAMINATION [review guide and old sample questions]

- . 3/12 SPRING BREAK - NO CLASS

8. 3/19 Crime (visit FBI sex offender registries)

9. 3/26 Organizational and Occupational Deviance / Leaving Crime
Supplement: Huiras et al., Career Jobs and Employee Deviance (recommended only) [pdf]

10. 4/2 Sex, Gender, and Deviance WORKING PAPER DRAFT DUE

11. 4/9 Sexual Harassment and Sex Work WORKING PAPERS DUE (The Woodsman)
Supplement: Uggen and Blackstone. Sexual Harassment, Gender, and Power. [pdf]

12. 4/16 Substance Use and Rulemaking

13. 4/23 Suicide and Disability -- Goffman and Bodily Stigma [cdc obesity and slides]

14. 4/30 Stigma Management and Mental Illness

15. 5/7 Sociology's Central Concept, and review

16. 5/14 FINAL EXAM 230 Anderson Hall

midterm review sheet and sample questions

final review sheet

OTHER RESOURCES
local counseling and resources for problems with violence, eating disorders, or relationships [compiled by Heather Hlavka]