Global Arc

A historical and analytical overview of war focusing on the origins and consequences of organized violence, the experience of battle, the creation and behavior of warriors, and the future of such conflicts. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

This mandatory course for concentrators is intended to provide the groundwork for understanding sociological arguments, evidence, research, and writing. It provides students with the opportunity to try their hand at interpreting and evaluating arguments in the sociological literature and constructing their own arguments for a sociological study. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

An overview of the research process in social science, including techniques of sampling, methods of data collection, principles of measurement, problems of inference and proof, basic methods of data analysis, and ethical considerations. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

Systematic survey of the principal concepts underlying all sociological description and explanation-prediction, with special attention to the different ways these concepts are employed in the four currently leading groups of theories, namely, structural functionalism, exchange theory, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

This is a class about using the tools of machine learning to study social data. The power of machine learning tools is their applicability around a wide range of tasks. There are huge opportunities for applying these tools to learn and make decisions about real people but there are also important challenges. This course aims to (1) show social scientists and digital humanities scholars the potential of machine learning to help them learn about humans, make policy and help people while also (2) showing computer scientists how a social science research design perspective can improve their work and give them new outlets for their skills.

This course provides an overview of contemporary Chinese society. Chinese society is best understood through a number of different intrinsically-linked and mutually-interdependent aspects. For this reason, we will explore its history, cultural practices, government, economy, and family structure.

A review of the stages of communism, including reform and dismantling. Comparisons of social classes and ethnic groups under the old system and their readiness for recent changes. Treatment of workers, farmers, intellectuals, officials, and new entrepreneurs. Comparative approach to China, Russia, and other countries formed from the Soviet Union. Two ninety-minute classes.

A study of selected topics of current interest in the sociology of Latin America. The specific subject matter will vary from year to year, reflecting the changing interests of both faculty and students. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

An examination of gender as an integral component of socioeconomic development in advanced and less-developed countries, with a focus on the United States and selected areas of Latin America. Special attention will be given to processes of industrial restructuring on a global scale that have increased the participation of women in the formal labor force. An understanding of the relationship between gender inequality and social order will be a central object of inquiry. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

Sexuality is fundamental to the organization of society -- both in the U.S. and across the world. Though sexuality carries important personal significance, the understanding of why and how it influences our lives is inextricably woven into a complex, global fabric. The aim of this course is to unravel this fabric and reveal the deeply globalized nature of sexuality in the modern era and how this shapes understandings of sexuality, the sexual identities available to us, and how the state regulates it -- especially from a global, comparative perspective.