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2011/2 Provisional Module Catalogue - UNDER CONSTRUCTION & SUBJECT TO CHANGE
 Module Code: SOCM036 Module Title: CONCEPTS AND THEORIES IN SOCIOLOGY
Module Provider: Sociology Short Name: SOCM036
Level: M Module Co-ordinator: CRONIN AC Dr (Sociology)
Number of credits: 15 Number of ECTS credits: 7.5
 
Module Availability

Semester 1 - Year 1

Semester 3 - Year 2
Assessment Pattern
Two 2000 word essays for SR students
Module Overview
This module is an introduction to theoretical thinking in sociology. It aims to illustrate the application of concepts and provide a survey of different theoretical perspectives. Students will be provided with a general introduction to the logic and language of sociological inquiry. The module will concentrate on basic sociological concepts and describe how they are formulated and how they mediate between theory and data, thus emphasising their dual theoretical and empirical character.
Prerequisites/Co-requisites
Module Aims
The module aims to illustrate the application of concepts and provide a survey of different theoretical perspectives.
Learning Outcomes
At the end of the module, students should:-
  • Have a basic understanding of the role concepts play in empirical social research
  • Appreciate the role concepts play in the theorizing process
  • Recognise the fundamental differences between quantitative and qualitative approaches to the construction and application of concepts.
Module Content
  • The stages of concept-formation in sociological research
  • The use of concepts in quantitative and qualitative research
  • Generating theory
  • Key concepts covered include social class, gender, globalisation, power and stigma.
Methods of Teaching/Learning
Lectures
Selected Texts/Journals

Cuff, E.C., Sharrock, W.W. and Francis, D.W (1998) Perspectives in Sociology, Unwin Hyman, 4th Edition. 
Durkheim, E (1952) Suicide: A Study in Sociology, Routledge..
Delanty, G and Strydom, P (eds) (2003) Philosophies of Social Science, Open University Press.

Layder, D (1998) Sociological Practice: Linking Theory and Social Research, Sage.

 Taylor , S. (ed)(1999) Sociology: Issues and Debates, Macmillan
Ritzer, G.J. Goodman, D.J (2004) Sociological Theory, McGraw Hill, 6th edition 
Stones, R. (2008) Key Sociological Thinkers.  MacMillan, 2nd edition
Last Updated
August 2009