SOC 155: The Changing American Family (FEMGEN 155, FEMGEN 255, SOC 255)
Family change from historical, social, demographic, and legal perspectives. Extramarital cohabitation, divorce, later marriage, interracial marriage, and same-sex cohabitation. The emergence of same-sex marriage as a political issue. Are recent changes in the American family really as dramatic as they seem? Theories about what causes family systems to change.
Terms: Spr
| Units: 4
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-SocSci, GER:EC-AmerCul, WAY-EDP, WAY-SI
Instructors:
Rosenfeld, M. (PI)
;
Allen, S. (TA)
SOC 156A: The Changing American City (CSRE 156, SOC 256A, URBANST 156A)
After decades of decline, U.S. cities today are undergoing major transformations. Young professionals are flocking to cities instead of fleeing to the suburbs. Massive increases in immigration have transformed the racial and ethnic diversity of cities and their neighborhoods. Public housing projects that once defined the inner city are disappearing, and crime rates have fallen dramatically. Do these changes signal the end of residential segregation and urban inequality? Who do these changes benefit? This course will explore these issues and strategies to address them through readings and discussion, analyzing a changing neighborhood in a major city in the Bay Area in groups (which will include at least one site visit), and studying a changing neighborhood or city of their choice for their final project. The course does not have pre-requisites.
Last offered: Autumn 2019
| UG Reqs: WAY-EDP, WAY-SI
SOC 157: Ending Poverty with Technology (PUBLPOL 147)
There are growing worries that new technologies may eliminate work, increase inequality, and create a large dependent class subsisting on transfers. But can technology instead be turned against itself and used to end poverty? This class explores the sources of domestic poverty and then examines how new technologies might be developed to eliminate poverty completely. We first survey existing poverty-reducing products and then attempt to imagine new products that might end poverty by equalizing access to information, reducing transaction costs, or equalizing access to training. In a follow-up class in the spring quarter, students who choose to continue will select the most promising ideas, continue to develop them, and begin the design task within Stanford¿s new Poverty and Technology Lab.
Last offered: Winter 2018
SOC 158: Ending Poverty with Technology: A Practicum. (PUBLPOL 148)
Will robots, automation, and technology eliminate work and create a large poverty-sticken dependent class? Or will they eliminate poverty, free us from the tyranny of work, and usher in a new society defined by leisure and creative pursuits? This two-quarter class is dedicated to exploring new theories about poverty while at the same time incubating applied technology solutions. The first quarter is devoted to examining the theory of technology-based solutions to poverty, and the second quarter is devoted to planning a viable technology-based product that will reduce poverty. This product may then be built in a follow-up Using Tech for Good (Computer Science 50) class in the first quarter of 2018 (but class participants are not required to take that follow-up class). The course is premised on the view that innovative solutions to poverty will be based on new conversations and an authentic collaboration between Silicon Valley and leaders from education, government, and low-income communities
Last offered: Spring 2018
| Repeatable
for credit
SOC 160: Formal Organizations (SOC 260)
(Graduate students register for 260.) Organizations are ubiquitous: they educate us, manage our finances, and structure our daily routines. They also distribute resources, status, and opportunities. This course will explore the role of formal organizations in contemporary social life, and their consequences for individuals. Drawing on a range of research in the social sciences and examples from the real world, we will examine several topics, including: the origins of organizations, how decisions are made in organizations, why some organizations survive while others die, incentives and employment relationships, how social networks shape social stratification, and what kinds of organizational policies promote diversity.
Terms: Spr
| Units: 4
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-SocSci, WAY-SI
Instructors:
Furuta, J. (PI)
SOC 162: The Social Regulation of Markets (SOC 262)
Social and political forces that shape market outcomes. The emergence and creation of markets, how markets go wrong, and the roles of government and society in structuring market exchange. Applied topics include development, inequality, globalization, and economic meltdown. Preference to Sociology majors and Sociology coterm students.
Last offered: Spring 2018
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-SocSci, WAY-SI
SOC 167A: Asia-Pacific Transformation (INTLPOL 244D, SOC 267A)
Post-WW II transformation in the Asia-Pacific region, with focus on the ascent of Japan, the development of newly industrialized capitalist countries (S. Korea and Taiwan), the emergence of socialist states (China and N. Korea), and the changing relationship between the U.S. and these countries.
Last offered: Winter 2020
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-SocSci, GER:EC-GlobalCom, WAY-SI
SOC 167VP: Justice + Poverty Innovation:Create new solutions for people to navigate housing, medical, & debt
How can emerging technologies and human-centered design be used to help people going through problems with housing, medical care, and debt? In this class, we will work with local partners to develop new tech and design prototypes to address poverty-related problems. We will explore new digital solutions, as well as how to use emerging technologies like AI and blockchain. At the same time, we will explore policy and legal reforms that could address root causes of the problems.nStudents will work in small, interdisciplinary teams with partners organizations in law, medicine, and policy. They will do design research in the field, propose new solutions and test them, and develop new initiatives that will be piloted. The goal is to incubate promising, feasible public interest technology and design projects.nThe class will be run in parallel to similar classes in Mexico, Guatemala, and Colombia. Students will have the chance to learn about similar innovation efforts in other countries, and will be challenged to think about how their own projects could be replicated and scaled
Last offered: Winter 2020
| Repeatable
for credit
SOC 168: Global Organizations: The Matrix of Change (PUBLPOL 168, PUBLPOL 268, SOC 268)
We learn how to apply analytical tools from the social sciences to organizations, and study how to design effective organizations and projects within and across institutional settings. A variety of organizations are included and how they deal with strategy changes and accountability. The theme for this year's class is on accountability of non-profit organizations such as Doctors Without Borders, The International Rescue Committee and The Red Cross. Recommended:
FINANCE 377, MS&E 180,
SOC 160,
ECON 149, or
MGTECON 330.
Terms: Win
| Units: 4
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-SocSci, WAY-EDP
Instructors:
Meyersson Milgrom, E. (PI)
SOC 169: Introduction to Intersectionality (AFRICAAM 169B, FEMGEN 169)
"Intersectionality" is so popular, it's almost impossible to avoid: it was added to the Merriam-Webster dictionary in 2017, it was painted on signs at the Women's Marches, and it guides modern day social movement organizers. But what does intersectionality mean? What can intersectionality offer And what does it mean for research and social movements to be truly intersectional? The aim of this course is to provide students with an understanding of the concept of intersectionality. First, we will delve into the works (chiefly from Black feminist scholars) that provide the foundation for today's concept of intersectionality. We will then explore, compare, and critique sociological research that applies (or fails to apply) an intersectional lens to its objects of study. Finally, we will investigate the use of intersectionality in social movements and outside academia. Throughout the course, we will prioritize reading, evaluating, and questioning sociological theory and research.
Last offered: Winter 2019
| UG Reqs: WAY-EDP, WAY-SI
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