Community Based Criminology Project
The Community Based Criminology Project is designed for sociology majors who are specializing in criminology and are near the end of their studies.
Students who are hoping to establish careers within the criminal justice system will benefit from the opportunity to participate in and observe the activities of placement sites. Through this program, students will receive relevant practical experience in a criminal justice setting. Possible placements include:
- Edmonton Police Service
- RCMP
- John Howard Society
- Parole Service
- Forensic Department, Alberta Hospital
- Legal Aid
Students who intend to pursue graduate studies will benefit from the opportunity to develop and apply criminological knowledge and quantitative/qualitative research skills. In addition, participation in this program enhances CVs and resumes and provides students with valuable contacts and professional references.
Students will spend approximately 180 hours (i.e. 12 hours per week) with a public, private, or non-profit criminal justice organization from January through April. They will also participate in one 3-hour seminar each month, in which academic work (e.g. written assignments; presentations) is required. A complete course description and course prerequisites are listed under SOCI 426.
For more information, contact:
Dr. Michael Gulayets, Criminology Project Advisor
780-633-3652 • crimproject@macewan.ca
Special Topics Fall 2011
SOCI 424: Advanced Topics in Deviance, Normality, and Social Control
Topic: Hands, Harms, and Hope: Power, Choice, and Being (Non)Violent
Instructor: J. Minaker
Do hands hurt? Do they symbolize hope? What ways of being with others are normative in North American society today? The simple answer: it depends on the context. It becomes more complex when we examine who is doing what to whom and why. In this course we will explore how various expected and encouraged codes of conduct are not only conditioned by the specific sites (e.g. home, schools, communities) in which they occur, but connected to the social positioning of the actors (i.e. power/marginalization). Topics covered include: bullying, mixed martial arts, family violence, hockey, and media culture.
SOCI 449: Advanced Topics in Social Psychology
Topic: Sociology of the Self
Instructor: J. Stepnisky
This course is an in-depth examination of sociological approaches to the study of selfhood. From a sociological perspective the self is not an entity that resides within a single person. Rather the self is a shared and relational phenomenon. Selves are created through social, cultural and interpersonal forces. The seminar begins with an intensive study of major theoretical approaches to selfhood: symbolic interactionism, psychoanalysis, poststructuralism, feminism, and postmodernism. The remainder of the seminar includes discussion of three books that examine specific problems in the sociology of selfhood. Gergen’s The Saturated Self looks at the impact of electronic media and communication technology on selfhood. Michalko’s The Mystery of the Eye and the Shadow of Blindness considers the way that selfhood is defined through the experience of ability and disability. Elliott’s Making the Cut examines the growing popularity of cosmetic surgery and its relationship t o the body, the self, and globalization. As this is a seminar all students are expected to attend class and come prepared for discussion. The major course requirement is a research paper on a topic of your choosing
SOCI 470: Advanced Topics in the Sociology of Families
Topic: (Dis)Advantaging Families: Diversity, Inequality and Globalization
Instructor: B. Heather
This course focuses on the impact of an internationalized economy on families. While past courses have focused on migration and child labour, this one will focus on the impacts of inequality of income among families, and the ways in which they respond to their situation. Students may take a specifically Canadian focus or research the lives of families in one specific country, culture or area (such as rural or urban communities). They will be expected to share their research findings with the class.
Course Objectives: By the end of this course students will be able to discuss (in)equalities in the social contexts of families, within families and between families, and be able to describe some of the effects and potential of globalization for families, including migration. They will also have expanded their knowledge of research and writing academic papers, including being challenged to write for the Canadian Journal of Family and Youth undergraduate section.
Special Topics Winter 2012
SOCI 463: Advanced Topics in Canadian Society
Topic: Sport in Canadian Society
Instructor: F. Angus
This course provides an in-depth study of a topic in Canadian Society. The selected topic for Winter 2012 is Sport in Canadian Society, during which we will critically examine the role of organized sport in Canadian Society, with a particular focus on professional ice hockey.
All societies have some form of sport and/or play, which is significant in representing and reproducing societal values. A sociological examination of sport focuses on the role of this important set of institutions and activities in shaping social relations and understandings about difference and identity. This course will explore the relationships between sport and social inequality (racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia), sport and nationalism, and sport and the economy. Two main theoretical approaches will be taken: 1) Social Conflict Theory, which is useful in examining professional sports (and sports players) as commodities in a capitalist society, as well as the racialized, gendered and social class dimensions of sport. 2) Symbolic Interactionist/Cultural Theory, which will be used to examine the myths, meanings and cultural significance of sport to individuals, groups and national culture such as sports spectacle, violence in sport, the symbiotic relationship between sport, work, and leisure. A focus on hockey is taken because the game of hockey is perhaps the most central and pervasive form of popular culture in Canada. It has been called the ‘tie that binds,' the ‘common passion,' and the ‘Canadian game.' This course seeks to create a critical understanding of how hockey's significance extends far beyond the ice rink into the cultural, economic and political spheres of Canadian society.
Important Note: The course will probably include a field trip: attending an Edmonton Oilers hockey game, so that students can observe and experience a live sports game, and be able to critically analyze the social domain of the hockey arena, the spectators (race, gender and social class), the placement and significance of advertisements (and other corporate signifiers), and the sports game itself. This will fall outside the scheduled class time. Students will not pay for the tickets to the game.
Course Objectives: Students will learn to examine critically the role of sport in Canada, from a s ociological perspective. The history of sport in Canada will also be examined and students will uncover the sociohistorical roots or sexism, racism and homophobia in sport. Students will also be able to understand why sport, especially professional sport, has become a commodity in the national and global marketplace. Students will also learn how to observe sport as a cultural phenomenon which has the capacity to evoke deep and wide-ranging emotion for spectators and sports players. Students will also advance their learning in conducting participant-observation qualitative research.
SOCI 477: Advanced Topics in Youth
Topic: Rock ‘n Roll IS Youth Culture
Instructor: T. Bereska
According to Marcel Danesi (2010), without rock ‘n roll, there would be no youth culture. That is, in the 1950s, rock music served as the core around which youth culture was built. Since that time, music has continued to be central to all aspects of youth culture, giving rise to everything from clothing, to slang, to patterns of consumption, to belief systems, to basic ways of seeing and understanding themselves and the world around them. In this course, we will explore music and other aspects of youth culture, as well as the relationships between youth culture and other elements of the larger society—from the 1920s “Jazz babies” that preceded the birth of rock ‘n roll, through the eras that saw Elvis culture, Hippie culture, punk culture, disco culture, metal culture, rap culture, clubculture, and more.
