Sonoma state university sociology
The Department of Sociology offers a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and a Minor in Sociology.
Sociological research attempts to improve the human condition within the context of a strong tradition of social justice and human equality. Society shapes attitudes, goals, hopes and aspirations, and personal preferences. Society affects individuals, groups, and entire nations. Yet at the same time that society is shaping the individual, the individual is shaping society. In order to understand oneself and others, to understand the world, to understand the future, one has to understand society. Sociology is the discipline that studies groups and societies—what they are, how they got that way, and what impact they have.
Sociology is a field with diverse areas of study. These range from the behavior of the individual as a social actor to the structure of entire societies. Key topics include social psychology, socialization, deviant behavior, group behavior, organizations and institutions, power, inequality, and social change. Major social institutions, including the family, education, religion, social welfare, medicine, work, politics, leisure, and the media, are also explored in detail. To develop skills for studying society, students are introduced to valuable techniques such as survey research, sampling, observational methods, content analysis, experimentation, interviewing, and computer applications in research.
