University of Surrey - Guildford
Registry
  
 

  
 
Registry > Module Catalogue
View Module List by A.O.U. and Level  Alphabetical Module Code List  Alphabetical Module Title List  Alphabetical Old Short Name List  View Menu 
2010/1 Module Catalogue
 Module Code: SOC2015 Module Title: UNDERSTANDING INTERNET CULTURE
Module Provider: Sociology Short Name: SOC222
Level: HE2 Module Co-ordinator: HINE C Dr (Sociology)
Number of credits: 20 Number of ECTS credits: 10
 
Module Availability

Year
Assessment Pattern

Unit(s) of Assessment
Weighting Towards Module Mark (%)
One research project
25
One essay
25
One examination
50

Module Overview

The aim of this module is to provide a basis for understanding the Internet as a social phenomenon. The module will introduce the origins of the Internet and its development over time, explore the forms of computer mediated communication currently available and discuss different frameworks for their understanding the social implications.

 

 
Prerequisites/Co-requisites
None
Module Aims

Lectures will introduce topics such as online identity, social segmentation, and the formation of online communities and also explore specific issues such as the governance of the internet, the role of the internet in democracy and social activism, and the implications of the Internet for the social distribution of expertise. Seminars will include both conventional face-to-face workshops and group activities using a variety of online applications, which will encourage students to reflect on the impact that different forms of communication have on their experiences.

 

 
Learning Outcomes

On completion of the course students will

 

 

  • understand key events in the history of the internet and the study of computer-mediated communication

     

  • have experienced the main forms of communication that the internet offers

     

  • be able to discuss different frameworks for understanding the sociology of computer mediated communication and the role of the internet in society

     

  • be able to discuss the implications of the internet for key sociological concepts such as identity, community, social segmentation and democracy.

     
Module Content
Methods of Teaching/Learning

Lectures and classes
Selected Texts/Journals

Cavanagh, A. (2007) Sociology in the Age of the Internet. Maidenhead : McGraw Hill/Open University Press

 

 

Thurlow, C., Lengel, L., and Tomic, A. (2004) Computer mediated communication: social interaction and the Internet. London : Sage.

 

 

Bakardjieva, M. (2005) Internet Society: the Internet in Everyday Life. London : Sage.

 

 

Abbate, J. (1999) Inventing the Internet. Cambridge, MA : MIT Press.

 

 

Kitchin, R. (1997) Cyberspace: the World in the Wires. London : John Wiley

 

 

Jones, S. (ed.) (1998) Cybersociety 2.0 Revisiting Computer Mediated Communication and Community. Thousand Oaks, CA : Sage.

 

 

Wellman, B. and Haythornthwaite, C. (eds.) (2002) The Internet in Everyday Life. Oxford : Blackwell.

 

 

Wood, A. and Smith, M. (2005) Online Communication: linking technology, identity and culture, 2nd edn, Mahwah, NJ : Lawrence Erlbaum.

 

 

 
Last Updated

September 2010