Fall 2014 SOC 101 Syllabus Draft 1

SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 1
SOCI OLOGI CAL I MAGI NATI ON THROUGH ORGANI ZATI ONAL PRAXI S
INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY (SOC 101)

Fall 2014 | Tuesdays & Fridays
11:10-12:25pm | West Building 424

Instructor: Matthew Block
mblock@gc.cuny.edu | (773) 320-3732
Office Hours: Tuesday 3:30-5:30 & by appointment in West Building Rm. 1636

SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 2
TABLE OF CONTENTS

Course Overview and Materials 3-4

Assignments and Grading 5-10

Schedule of Topics, Readings, and Assignments 11-15

Additional Course Policies 16

Appendix A
Pre-Assignment Critically Reflexive Socio-Autobiography 1
17

Appendix B
Organizational Research Assignment 1: Selecting a Field Site for Investigation
18-20

Appendix C
General Criteria for Selecting Organizations
21-22

Appendix D
Fact Sheet for Connecting with Organizations
23-25

Appendix E
Organizational Research Assignment 2 Establishing Organizational Relationships and Outlining Research
Questions
26-27

Appendix F
Organizational Research Assignment #3a Describing/Analyzing a Historical Artifact
Response #3b Responding to the Description and Analysis of a Colleague
28-30

Appendix G
Organizational Research Assignment #4a Ethnographic Participant-Observation Field Notes and Analysis
Response #4b Responding to the Ethnographic Field Notes and Analysis
31-33

Appendix H
Organizational Research Assignment #5a Semi-Structured Narrative Interviews and Transcripts and
Development of Explanatory Hypothesis
Response #5b Responding to Interviews and Hypotheses
34-36

Appendix I
Organizational Research Assignment #6a Using Statistical Methods to Develop and Test Hypotheses
Response #6b Responding to Statistical Methods
37-38

Appendix J
Agenda for Organizational Research Assignments In-Class Presentations and Responses
39

Appendix K
Final Project/Portfolio Outline
40-41

Appendix L
Final Presentation Outline
42

Appendix M
Academic Calendar Fall 2014 (including dates of vacation, withdrawal, and financial reimbursement)
43
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 3

Know that many personal troubles cannot be solved merely as troubles, but must be understood
in terms of public issues and in terms of the problems of history-making. Know that the
human meaning of public issues must be revealed by relating them to personal troubles and to
the problems of individual life. Know that the problems of social science, when adequately
formulated, must include both troubles and issues, both biography and history, and the range of
their intricate relations. Within that range the life of the individual and the making of societies
occur; and within that range the sociological imagination has its chance to make a difference in
the quality of human life in our time.

C. Wright Mills
The Sociological Imagination

It is not just important what we speak about but how and why we speak. Often this speech
about the other is also a mask, an oppressive talk hiding gaps, absences, that space where our
words would be if we were speaking, if there was silence, if we were there. This we is that us
in the margins, that we who inhabit marginal space that is not a site of domination but a place
of resistance. Enter that space This is an intervention. A message from that space in the
margin that is a site of creativity and power, that inclusive space where we recover ourselves,
where we move in solidarity to erase the category colonized/colonizer. Marginality as site of
resistance. Enter that space. Let us meet there. Enter that space. We greet you as liberators.

bell hooks
Marginality as Site of Resistance

OVERVIEW

This course integrates an overview of the foundations of sociological theory with a survey of
sociological methods and contemporary sociological topics of study. Through reading, film, discussion,
fieldwork, collaborative group-work, narrative and analytical writing, and lecture, students will learn to:
(1) connect social issues and social problems to their own experiences, and in doing so will develop
what C. Wright Mills called the sociological imagination; (2) understand a range of themes and methods
for analyzing and producing sociological knowledge; and (3) engage in the process of conducting a
sociological investigation applying relevant theory and methods to the analysis of a particular site of
investigation.

This course is not designed to be a traditional Introduction to Sociology course. In an effort to reorient
the pedagogical process from one privileging expert knowledge to be instilled in novices to one that
elicits and engages the experience, knowledge, and imagination of all members of the classroom
community, there will be no textbook, no examinations, few lectures, and no grades other than the final
(as required by the Department and the College). Instead, this course is designed to engage you
individually and collectively in a process through which you will learn to use sociological theories and
methods as tools for reflection and action in your own life, work, and play. While this process is
intended to foster maximal freedom and empowerment for everyone in the class, it also means that you
will be responsible for managing your time effectively and staying up-to-date with readings, field-work,
and writing assignments. This reorientation will only be successful if you push yourself to engage
actively and conscientiously with the materials, assignments, other members of the classroom
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 4
community, and the organizations in which you will conduct research. I genuinely recognize that this
will be a great challenge, and as a result am more than happy to make myself available at any point
throughout the semester in person, by email, by phone, and by text, in the event that you feel you need
additional support to make this process as rewarding for you as possible.

This course incorporates many ideas and suggestions from students who have taken the course in the
past. If you believe that changes or additions to the syllabus will help make your experience in this
course a memorable and transformative one, please let me know so that we can make the
accommodating modifications. In the past, changes as substantive as the structure of the final project
and reading materials have been made on the basis of students requests.

COURSE MATERIALS

Most course materials, including the updated syllabus, assignments, readings, and announcements will
be found on the courses Blackboard site. If you do not already have access to Blackboard, it is
imperative that you gain access to the Blackboard site immediately. You will not receive credit for
assignments that are not uploaded to Blackboard. All materials will be uploaded to Blackboard before
the semester begins, though some of the materials include larger selections than those assigned for the
course. Thus, the readings on Blackboard should be accessed and read in conjunction with the
specifically designated selections as found in this syllabus under the Schedule of Topics and Readings
section.

You will be working in groups throughout the semester. Much of the group work will take place on
Googledocs and in class. In the past, however, groups of students have also elected to meet outside of
class, which has greatly improved the quality of their work. There will be a short tutorial on the use of
Googledocs during Week 3. It will be much easier for you to use Googledocs if you have a Gmail
account, so please register for one if you have not already done so.

If I need to contact you directly I will use your Hunter College email address as it is listed on
Blackboard. Please make sure that your updated email address is on file on the Blackboard site, and that
you check this email regularly. When you email me, please make sure to include your name somewhere
in the email so that I know the person with whom I am communicating.

SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 5
ASSIGNMENTS AND GRADING

1. Participation and Socio-Autobiography [10%]
The course will run like a seminar rather than a typical lecture in order to take full advantage of
limited class time. This means that participation is essential. This participation will be
comfortable at times and challenging at others. It will involve whole-class, small-group, and
paired discussions, as well as partner and group presentations and workshopping our writing, field-
work notes, etc. While you will be asked to draw on your personal experiences in your comments
and questions, it is vital that we are all grounding our thinking and our analysis in a common set of
texts and ideas so that we can engage in a substantive dialogue. You will be assigned relatively
short texts (usually under 35 pages per class) that are deeply theoretical and have had profound
theoretical and practical impact. You will be asked to select two readings to present and facilitate
for the rest of the class in pairs, which will be included as part of your participation, though it will
also be evaluated separately.

A central component of this course will also entail subjecting your own experiences, perspectives,
and ambitions to critical and constructive analysis and re-vision. Thus, you will be asked to
complete two drafts of a socio-autobiography throughout the course of the semester. The first
draft will be submitted on the first day of class, and the second draft will be submitted as part of
your final project/portfolio (see below). The grade for the first Socio-Autobiography will be part
of your participation grade; the grade for the second Socio-Autobiography will be part of your
final project/portfolio grade.

2. Organizational Field-Work and Analysis (Field Site Selection, Establishing Organizational
Relationships, and Analytical Field-Work Essays and Responses) [50%]
In this course, you will apply analytic frameworks from sociology and related social sciences to
the analysis of your own, original empirical research. This research will take place in an
organization that you will select during the first weeks of the course. Each of the organizational
field-work assignments will be roughly two, single-spaced pages. Each of the first two
organizational field-work assignments will be worth 5% of your final grade, and the following four
organizational field-work assignments will be worth 10% of your final grade, including responses
to your colleagues.

Specific instructions for each organizational field-work assignment will be provided and discussed
in class at least 10 days before the assignments are due. A draft of the instructions for the
assignments will be uploaded to Blackboard before the semester begins. These drafts are also
included as appendices to this syllabus so you may review them at any time. (What have been
included are drafts, and will be presented, discussed, and revised as a class.)

You may choose to work with one or two colleagues in a common organization. If you choose to
do this, however, you will be responsible for conducting your own research and submitting your
own, independent analysis. Furthermore, you will be responsible for justifying your choice of
organization based on the General Criteria for Selecting Organizations. Only the final
project/portfolio may be completed collaboratively.

A. The first organizational field-work assignment Field Site Selection and Description
will include preliminary research and analysis to identify an organization you have a
particular interest in studying. This should be an organization where you can do field-
work for a couple of hours per week throughout the semester. Once you have identified
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 6
an organization in which to conduct your field-work, you will be asked to develop your
connection with managers or administrators in order to facilitate your ongoing research
there. The General Criteria for Selecting Organizations and the Fact Sheet for
Connecting with Organizations will be uploaded to the Other Materials folder under the
Course Materials tab of the courses Blackboard site, and they are also included in
Appendices C and D, below.

B. The second organizational field-work assignment Establishing Organizational
Relationships will be a research schedule that you outline and design with a
representative of the organization. This assignment will also include an outline of
potential research questions given the site you have selected and the questions and
concerns that have emerged through your first few weeks of reading and thinking. The
Fact Sheet for Connecting with Organizations will be uploaded to the Other Materials
folder and the Organizational Research Assignment 2 will be uploaded to the
Organizational Research Assignments folder under the Course Materials tab of the
courses Blackboard site; they are also included in Appendices D and E, below.

C. In the following four assignments you will apply the analytic frameworks from the
readings to analyze the data you collect in your organization. You will be analyzing the
organization you choose using four distinct sociological methods: (1) historical, (2)
ethnographic, (3) narrative-interview, and (4) statistical. There will be sessions to
introduce each of these methods throughout the course, before you are responsible for
completing each, respective assignment. The guidelines for Organizational Research
Assignments 3-6 will be uploaded to the Organizational Research Assignments folder
under the Course Materials tab of the courses Blackboard site, and they are also
included in Appendices F-I, below.

D. For each of the final four organizational field-work assignments, you will present to a
group of two or three of your colleagues, and they will give you feedback (verbally and
in writing) which you can use to develop your piece as part of the final project. Thus,
you will also be responsible for responding, in writing, to the analysis of one of the other
members of your group for each assignment. The responses will include praise, critique,
suggestions, and discussion questions. Your responses to your colleagues will count as
two of the ten points you are able to receive for each organizational field-work
assignment. I will organize the groups based on common interests and organizations at
the end of Week 3. The Agenda for Organizational Research Assignments In-Class
Presentations and Responses can be found in Appendix J, below.

E. The historical, ethnographic, narrative-interview, and statistical analysis
assignments AND RESPONSES must be completed and brought to class as hard copies
on the due date, in order to receive credit. This means that you will have to share
your completed assignments with your group at a mutually agreed-upon time before
it is due, so that each person has time to review and respond to the work of his/her
colleague.

3. Paired Presentations and Discussion Facilitation [10%]
Throughout the course of the semester, you will be required to present and facilitate discussions of
one or two of the course readings in pairs. On the first day, you will sign up to present and
facilitate the readings that are of interest to you. These presentations/facilitations should include
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 7
points a-f, below. You may collaborate on the presentation and facilitation with your partner in
any way you choose, so long as both people are equally involved in the process. (For example,
one person may decide to present the reading, the other person may decide to facilitate the
discussion, and you may decide to write the summary together, or you may decide to share all
responsibilities equally.)

Required Components of Partner Presentations/Facilitation:

a. A succinct summary of the researchs topic and question (i.e. what does this reading
examine?) and main claims (i.e., what are the findings and argument?).
b. A brief description of the research methods.
c. A brief description of the limitations of this research.
d. A brief description of a possible, alternative or competing explanation for the findings.
e. A description of the contribution of the research, including an application of the concepts
and ideas to some personal experience(s) or contemporary issue(s).
f. 4-5 questions to facilitate the class discussion. These should not be yes/no questions, or
even direct summary questions (since you will already be summarizing all relevant points),
but questions that interrogate and extend the thinking of the researcher, including his/her
decisions as an investigator.
g. For some of the readings, I will give presenters/facilitators a list of concepts and/or
questions to address during their presentations. If I do this, it will be during the class
before your presentation/facilitation.

*You are required to submit the materials you create, as a pair, on Blackboard by 9am on the
day of the presentation. Additionally, please do NOT read what you have written directly to the
class. You are welcome, however, to use as many notes and other visual aids as you would like
in your presentations. The presentations should be brief (5-10 minutes) so there is time for you
to facilitate a discussion with the rest of the class.

4. Group Presentations [10%]
Throughout the course of the semester, you will be asked to present, as a group, four empirical
research applications of more abstract theoretical and methodological approaches we will learn.
These presentations should be roughly 10 minutes, including a few minutes for questions at the
end. You should be creative with these presentations you can decide to do it more
conventionally, like the paired presentations, and/or you can incorporate musical,
visual/performing arts, literary, technological, and other devices to interpret and present the text.
Whatever format you decide to use to present, all members of your group must be involved equally
in designing and presenting, and the presentations must include the following components:

a. Summary of the main questions and conclusions of the article.
b. The site the investigator chose to answer their question(s), the methods the investigator
chose to conduct his/her investigation, and the benefits and drawbacks of choosing the
particular site(s) and method(s) to answer the question(s) of the investigator.
a. Theoretical connections to other texts and materials we have covered as a class. You may
include as many theoretical connections as you can find, though at least one of them must
either be with Marx, Weber, and/or Durkheim and should be explained carefully.
b. Extensions of this research (i.e., questions, applications, directions for future research,
including your own, etc.)

SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 8
*You are required to submit the materials you create, as a group, on Blackboard by 9am on the
day of the presentation in the Group Presentations folder under the Course Materials tab.

2. Final Project/Portfolio and Presentation [20%]
Rather than writing a final paper from scratch, your final project/portfolio will be a synthesis of the
most salient components of the research and writing you will have completed throughout the
semester. If you have completed your research in an organization with one or more colleagues,
you may complete the final project/portfolio and presentation collaboratively. The final
presentations will take place during the last class session and the scheduled final exam period.
Final project/portfolio and presentations may take a variety of forms, so long as the following
components are included:

a. Organizational overview, including your focus of inquiry within the organization
b. Overview of research methods
c. Theoretical framework, summarizing and applying at least three readings from the
course
d. Data analysis, which thematically summarizes the key points that emerge from your
data
e. Findings and recommendations
f. Personal Socio-Autobiography Draft 2
g. Appendices
h. Works cited
i. Presentation (individual or group)

Final paper/portfolio and presentations will be graded according to the following criteria:
a. Inclusion of all required criteria
b. Use of empirical data
c. Summary and application of theoretical frameworks from the course
d. Connection to themes and insights from personal socio-autobiographies
e. Clarity, thoroughness, creativity, and overall quality of description, analysis,
explanation, and presentation.
f. Personal growth (for individual component[s])
g. Effectiveness of collaboration (for group component[s])

*Note: If you choose to complete a collaborative final project/portfolio, you must let
me know on or before November 14
th
so that we can agree on a format that will
make most effective use of individual and collective roles and responsibilities, and so
that I can grade each person individually on their contribution to the final product.

3. Attendance
Because this course will be largely discussion and group-oriented, and because readings and
assignments will be regularly introduced, discussed, practiced, and shared in class, attendance is
absolutely essential. If, for some unforeseen and serious circumstance, you have no choice but to
miss a class session, it is crucial that you let me know in advance so that we can work to create a
plan for you to catch up on missed material. This will likely involve extra reading and writing so
as to engage you in concepts from class. You will be permitted the equivalent of one-and-a-half
weeks of excused absences from class (three classes). Each additional absence will result in a
deduction of 3% from your final grade and will also affect your participation grade. Two late-
arrivals will be evaluated as an absence. More than five absences will result in course failure.
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 9

4. Discretionary Adjustments
As the instructor of this course, I reserve the right to make minor adjustments to grades on
particular assignments and for the course as a whole on the basis of such intangible factors as
quality of collaboration with other members of the classroom community; level of time, thought,
and effort put into the work; and level of personal growth and development. Any such adjustment
will be accompanied by a detailed explanation. This course provides you with the opportunity to
demonstrate engagement, insight, and effort in a variety of areas, all of which are equally
significant to the study of sociology. While you may excel in some aspect(s) of the course and
struggle more in others, my aim is to evaluate you in a way that will be most beneficial to you and
your overall intellectual development. As such, if you demonstrate extraordinary engagement,
insight, and/or effort in one or more areas, I may elect to weigh that area more strongly than others
in the calculation of your final grade.

5. Feedback
You will receive regular feedback on your organizational research assignments from the
other members of your research group. Given the size of the class, I will be able to give in-
depth feedback on roughly two of your assignments throughout the course of the semester.
If, at any point, you would like additional feedback on a particular assignment, you are
more than welcome to set up an appointment to meet with me during office hours and I will
review your work with you in detail.

6. Late and I ncomplete Assignments
Socio-Autobiography
The socio-autobiography (draft 1) will be assessed on the basis of Credit/Partial-
Credit/No Credit. If it is completed as instructed by the required due date, you will
receive full credit. If you fulfill only some of the requirements, or if it is submitted
late, you may be awarded partial credit. If they are not completed as instructed, you
will not receive credit.

Organizational Field-Work Assignments, and Paired/Group Presentations
The Field Site Selection, Establishing Organizational Relationships, Analytical
Field-Work Essays and Responses, and Paired and Group Presentations will be
assessed on the basis of Credit/Partial-Credit/No Credit.

o If these assignments are not completed by the assigned due date, no credit
will be awarded. Because your group and the whole class depends on these
assignments being completed within the expected time frame in order to be
able to provide you with adequate feedback and engage in the discussion, no
credit will be awarded if they are completed late.
o No exceptions will be made for late Organizational Field-Work Analysis
assignments or Paired/Group Presentations for any reason.
o If the group member to whom you are responsible for responding for the
Organizational Research Assignment does not complete their assignment on
time, you may respond to the other member of the group whose assignment
is due on the same day. If neither of the assigned members of your group
submits their work on time, you will not be penalized for your lack of
response, so long as you submit a brief explanation for the lack of response
to the Blackboard assignment page in lieu of the response itself. No
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 10
exceptions will be made for technology failures, so make sure you test the
group communication strategy well in advance, and plan to have a backup
(e.g. Googledocs + email addresses + phone numbers, etc.).
o In the rare instance that you do not complete one of these assignments on
time, however, there is still an incentive to complete it quickly, as the
assignment must still be included as an appendix that will count towards
your grade for the Final Project/Portfolio.
o Assignments that are partially completed or do not meet the required criteria
may be awarded partial credit, so long as they are submitted on time.

Final Project/Portfolio, and Presentation
The Final Project/Portfolio will be assessed on a traditional A-F scale. Late
projects/portfolios will be penalized on the basis of one letter grade per day, unless
you receive a specific exception on the basis of extraordinary personal
circumstances. Final presentations will be included as one part of the grade for
your paper/portfolio. There will be two possible days to present final work. No
extensions will be given for presentations.

*Important Note

Please submit all assignments as Microsoft Word attachments to Blackboard to ensure
you receive credit. Assignments not uploaded as instructed to Blackboard by the
assigned due-date may not receive credit, even if they have been completed as instructed.

When you upload your assignment, please save the document with the following label:

SOC101.ASSIGNMENT NAME.NUMBER.FIRST NAME.LAST NAME.DOCX

Example: SOC101.ORGANIZATIONAL RESEARCH 1.MATTHEW.BLOCK.DOCX

SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 11
SCHEDULE OF TOPICS, READINGS, AND ASSIGNMENTS

*Note: Under the date of the class session is a number in parentheses. This is the number of pages to be read by class on the indicated date. Please
plan accordingly so you are able to complete the required assignment on time and participate fully in class discussion.
WEEK/SESSION TOPIC MATERIALS ASSIGNMENT DUE

WEEK 1: AUGUST 24
TH
30
TH

FRI, AUG 29
TH

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WHAT IS
SOCIOLOGY?
INTRODUCTION:
ENGAGING
PERSONAL
TROUBLES AND
SOCIAL ISSUES
THROUGH
RESEARCH
Mills, C. W. (1959/2000). The Promise in The Sociological
Imagination. New York: Oxford University Press. Pp. 3-24.
Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the Oppressed, Chapter 2. New
York: Continuum. Pp. 71-86.
CRITICALLY REFLEXIVE
SOCIO-AUTOBIOGRAPHY
1

WEEK 2: AUGUST 31
ST
SEPTEMBER 6
TH

TUES, SEPT 2ND

(50)

SOCIOLOGY OF
EDUCATION
STRUCTURE,
CULTURE,
REPRODUCTION,
AND
TRANSFORMATION
Willis, P. E. (1977). Learning to Labour: How Working Class
Kids Get Working Class Jobs. New York: Columbia University
Press. Pp. 1-51.
SUBMIT 2-3
ORGANIZATION IDEAS

FRI, SEPT 5
TH

(13)

MARXIST
SOCIOLOGY
EXPLOITATION
AND ALIENATION
Marx, K. (1975). Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts in
Karl Marx: Early Writings. London: Penguin Books. Pp. 322-334.

WEEK 3: SEPTEMBER 7
TH
13
TH

TUES, SEPT 9
TH

(29)

SOCIOLOGY OF
POLITICAL
ECONOMY
CAPITAL AND
POWER
Marx, K. and F. Engels. (1972/1978). Wage Labour and Capital
in The Marx-Engels Reader: Second Edition, Ed. R. C. Tucker. Pp.
203-217.
Marx, K. and F. Engels. (1972/1978). Manifesto of the
Communist Party: Part I in The Marx-Engels Reader: Second
Edition, Ed. R. C. Tucker. Pp. 469-483.
ORGANIZATIONAL
RESEARCH ASSIGNMENT 1
FRI, SEPT 12
TH

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PHILOSOPHY OF
SCIENCE
IDENTIFYING
PHENOMENA AND
INITIAL
CONDITIONS
THROUGH
HISTORICAL
ARTIFACTS
Glaser, B. G. and A. L. Strauss. (1967/1999). The Discovery of
Grounded Theory: Strategies for Qualitative Research. New
Brunswick: AldineTransaction. Chapters 2 and 11, pp. 21-43 and
251-257.
Torpey, J. (2000). The Invention of the Passport: Surveillance,
Citizenship, and the State. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press. Pp. 158-167.
Risnicoff de Gorgas, M. (2012). Reality as an Illusion, the
Historical Houses that Become Museums, in Museum Studies: An
Anthology of Contexts, Ed. B. M. Carbonell. Malden: Blackwell
Publishing, Ltd. Pp. 356-361.

WEEK 4: SEPTEMBER 14
TH
20
TH

TUES, SEPT 16
TH

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SOCIAL
MOVEMENTS
PRAXIS AND
RESISTANCE

Marx, K. and F. Engels. (1972/1978). The German Ideology in
The Marx-Engels Reader: Second Edition, Ed. R. C. Tucker. Pp.
155-163.
Marx, K. and F. Engels. (1972/1978). Theses on Feuerbach in
The Marx-Engels Reader: Second Edition, Ed. R. C. Tucker. Pp.
143-146.
Marx, K. and F. Engels. (1972/1978). Manifesto of the
Communist Party: Part II in The Marx-Engels Reader: Second
Edition, Ed. R. C. Tucker. Pp. 483-491.
ORGANIZATIONAL
RESEARCH 2:

ESTABLISHING
ORGANIZATIONAL
RELATIONSHIPS AND
OUTLINING RESEARCH
QUESTIONS

FRI, SEPT 19
TH

(25-67)
COMPARATIVE-
HISTORICAL
APPLICATIONS
A. Anyon, J. (1980, Fall). Social Class and the Hidden Curriculum of
Work. Journal of Education, 162(1), 67-92.
B. Bourgeois, P. (1995). In Search of Respect: Selling Crack in El
GROUP PRESENTATION 1
(INCLUDING WRITE-UP)
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 12
OF MARXIAN
THEORY
Barrio. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Chapters 2 and
3, pp. 48-113.
C. Fantasia, R. (1989). Cultures of Solidarity: Consciousness, Action,
and Contemporary American Workers. Berkeley: University of
California Press. Chapters 2 and 3 (first half), pp. 25-93.
D. Thompson, A. K. (2010). Black Bloc, White Riot: Anti-
Globalization and the Genealogy of Dissent. Oakland: AK Press.
Chapter 1, pp. 31-57.
E. Thompson, E. P. (1971). The Moral Economy of the English
Crowd in the Eighteenth Century. Past and Present, Past &
Present, 50(1), 76-136.
F. Klein, N. (1999). No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies. New
York: Picador. Chapter 9, pp. 27-62.
G. Dvila, A. M. (2012). Culture Works: Space, Value, and Mobility
Across the Neoliberal Americas. New York: New York University
Press. Chapter 5, pp. 112-134.
H. Frampton, C., G. Kinsman, A. K. Thompson, and K. Tilleczek.
(2006). Sociology for Changing the World: Social Movements/
Social Research. Halifax: Fernwood Publishing Co., Ltd. Of T-
Shirts and Ontologies: Celebrating George Smiths Pedagogical
Legacies. Pp. 71-86.

*Each group should focus on deeply grasping and presenting their
own text before reading the others.

ST
27
TH

TUES, SEPT 23
RD

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SOCIAL
STRATIFICATION
STRATIFICATION
AND INEQUALITY
Weber, M. (2009). Class, Status, Party, in From Max Weber:
Essays in Sociology, Eds. H. H. Gerth and C. Wright Mills. New
York: Routledge. Pp. 180-195.

TH
OCTOBER 4
TH

TUES, SEPT 30
TH
WORKSHOP 1 NO READI NGS ORGANIZATIONAL
RESEARCH 3

WEEK 7: OCTOBER 5
TH
11
TH

TUES, OCT 7
TH

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ETHNOGRAPHIC
METHODS
METHODS 2:
ETHNOGRAPHIC

DEPICTING
VARIATION AND
IDENTIFYING
IDEAL TYPES
Bernard, R. H. (2006). Field Notes: How to Take Them, Code
Them, Manage Them, in Research Methods in Anthropology.
Lanham: AltaMira Press. Pp. 387-398.
Merriam, S. B. (1998). Qualitative Research and Case Study
Applications in Education, Chapter 5. San Francisco: John Wiley
& Sons, Inc. Pp. 96-104.
Emerson, Robert M. Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes, Chicago:
University of Chicago Press. Pp. 41-43, 243-248.

FRI, OCT 10
TH

(32)

HISTORICAL
SOCIOLOGY
RATIONALIZATION
AND THE IRON
CAGE
Weber, M. (1930/1992/2005). The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit
of Capitalism. London: Routledge. Chapters 1 and 5, pp. 3-12,
102-125.

WEEK 8: OCTOBER 12
TH
18
TH

TUES, OCT 14
TH

***(48)***

ORGANIZATIONAL
SOCIOLOGY
BUREAUCRACY
AND CHARISMA
Weber, M. (1946). From Max Weber: Essays in Sociology,
translated and edited by H. H. Gerth and C. W. Mills. New York:
Oxford University Press. VIII. Bureaucracy, pp. 196-244.

FRI, OCT 17
TH
ETHNOGRAPHIC
APPLICATIONS
OF WEBERIAN
A. Zimmerman, D. H. (1969). Tasks and Troubles: The Practical
Bases of Work Activities in a Public Assistance Agency, in
Explorations in Sociology and Counseling. New York: Houghton-
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 13
THEORY Mifflin. Pp. 237-266.
B. Rothschild, J. and J. A. Whitt. (1986) The Cooperative Workplace:
Potentials and Dilemmas of Organizational Democracy and
Participation. Chapter 4, pp. 73-115.
C. Graeber, D. (2009). Direct Action: An Ethnography. Oakland: AK
Press. Preface and Chapter 7 (first half), pp. vii-xix and 287-332.
D. Chen, K. K. (2009). Enabling Creative Chaos: The Organization
Behind the Burning Man Event. Chicago: University of Chicago
Press. Chapter 6, pp. 113-150.
E. Chen, K. K. (2012). Charismatizing the routine: Storytelling for
meaning and agency in the Burning Man organization. Qualitative
sociology, 35(3), 311-334.
F. Liebow, E. (1967). Tally's Corner: A Study of Negro Streetcorner
Men. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. Chapter 2, pp. 29-71.
G. Freeman, J (aka Joreen). (1972). The Tyranny of
Structurelessness. Retrieved from
http://www.jofreeman.com/joreen/tyranny.htm
H. Geertz, C. (1973/2005). Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese
Cockfight. Daedelus, 134(4), 56-86.


WEEK 9: OCTOBER 19
TH
25
TH

TUESDAY, OCT
21
ST

(21)

COMMUNITY AND
URBAN SOCIOLOGY
MORALITY,
SOLIDARITY, AND
COMMUNITY
Durkheim, E. (1984). The Division of Labor in Society. New
York: Free Press. Pp. 49-70.

FRIDAY, OCT 24
TH
RESEARCH 4

WEEK 10: OCTOBER 26
TH
NOVEMBER 1
ST

TUES, OCT 28
TH

(37)

SOCIOLOGY OF
RACE AND
ETHNICITY
DOUBLE
CONSCIOUSNESS,
THE VEIL, AND
THE COLOR LINE
Du Bois, W. E. B. (2007). The Souls of Black Folk. Oxford:
Oxford University Press. Pp. 7-44.

FRI, OCT 31
ST

METHODS AND
EMPIRICAL
APPLICATIONS 3

REFLEXIVE
DIALOGUE AND
NARRATIVE
INTERVIEW
A. Katsiaficas, D., V. A. Futch, M. Fine, and S. R. Sirin. (2011).
Everyday Hyphens: Exploring Youth Identities with
Methodological and Analytic Pluralism. Qualitative Research in
Psychology, 8(2), 120-139.
B. Skinner, D., J. Valsiner, and D. Holland. (September, 2001).
Discerning the Dialogical Self: A Theoretical and Methodological
Examination of a Nepali Adolescents Narrative. In Forum
Qualitative Sozialforschung/Forum: Qualitative Social
Research (Vol. 2, No. 3).
C. Sirin, S. R., & Fine, M. (2007). Hyphenated selves: Muslim
American youth negotiating identities on the fault lines of global
conflict. Applied Development Science, 11(3), 151-163.
D. Jasper, J. M. (2008). The Art of Moral Protest: Culture,
Biography, and Creativity in Social Movements. University of
Chicago Press. Chapter 9 Culture and Biography: The Pleasures
of Protest. Pp. 210-228.

(INCLUDING WRITE UP)

WEEK 11: NOVEMBER 2
ND
8
TH

SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 14
TUES, NOV 4
TH

(41)

SOCIOLOGY OF
KNOWLEDGE
RATIONALITY,
THE SACRED,
AND THE
PROFANE
Durkheim, E. (1995). The Elementary Forms of Religious Life,
Trans. K. E. Fields. New York: Free Press. Introduction and
Chapter 1, Pp. 1-18 and 21-44.

FRI, NOV 7
TH

(30)

COLLECTIVE
BEHAVIOR
COLLECTIVE
CONSCIENCE
Durkheim, E. (1995). The Elementary Forms of Religious Life,
Trans. K. E. Fields. New York: Free Press. Conclusion, pp. 418-
448.

WEEK 12: NOVEMBER 9
TH
15
TH

TUES, NOV 11
TH

(14)

SOCIOLOGY OF
SEX AND GENDER

INTERSECTION-
ALITY AND
MESTIZAJE

Anzalda, G. (1987). Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza.
San Francisco: Aunt Lute Books. Chapter 7: La Conciencia de la
Mestiza: Towards a New Consciousness, pp. 77-91.

FRI, NOV 14
TH

WORKSHOP 3 NO READI NG ORGANIZATIONAL
RESEARCH 5

WEEK 13: NOVEMBER 16
TH
22
ND

TUES, NOV 18
TH

(22)

SOCIOLOGY OF
EMOTIONS
DE-
INSTITUTIONALIZ
ED IDENTITY AND
THE
LIMITATIONS OF
ESTABLISHMENT
SCIENCE
Lorde, A. (2012). Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches. Random
House Digital, Inc.. Chapters 2 and 10, Poetry is Not a Luxury
and The Masters Tools Will Never Dismantle the Masters House,
pp. 36-39 and 110-113.
hooks, bell. (1990). Marginality as Site of Resistance, in Out
There: Marginalization and Contemporary Cultures, R. Ferguson
Ed. Cambridge: MIT Press. Preface, pp. 341-343.
Freud, S. (1961). Civilization and Its Discontents, Chapter III.
New York: W. W. Norton and Co. Inc. Pp. 33-45.
Freud, S. (1927/2011). The Ego and the Id. Eastford: Martino
Press. Diagram of the Ego and the Id.

FRI, NOV 21
ST

***(51)***

QUANTITATIVE
SOCIOLOGY
CRITICAL
STATISTICS
Grey, S. H. (1999/2009). The Statistical War on Equality: Visions
of American Virtuosity in The Bell Curve. DataCrtica:
International Journal of Critical Statistics, 3(1), 3-31.
Bullard, A. (2005). The Critical Impact of Frantz Fanon and Henri
Collomb: Race, Gender, and Personality Testing of North and West
Africans. Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences, 41(3),
225-248.

RD
29
TH

TUES, NOV 25
TH

(15)

PUBLIC SOCIOLOGY
A. Torre M.E. and M. Fine. (2011). A Wrinkle in Time: Tracing a
Legacy of Public Science through Community Self-Surveys and
Participatory Action Research. Journal of Social Issues, 67(1),
106-121.
B. Fine, M., & Torre, M. E. (2006). Intimate details Participatory
action research in prison. Action Research, 4(3), 253-269.
C. Freire, P. (2000). Education for critical consciousness. London:
Continuum. Pp. 37-78.
D. Cahill, C., I. Rios-Moore, and T. Threatts. (2008). Different
Eyes/Open Eyes: Community-Based Participatory Action
Research. In Revolutionizing Education: Youth Participatory
Action Research in Motion, edited by J. Cammarota and M. Fine.
(2008). New York: Routledge. Chapter 5, pp. 89-124.
E. Frampton, C., G. Kinsman, A. K. Thompson, and K. Tilleczek.
(2006). Sociology for Changing the World: Social Movements/
Social Research. Halifax: Fernwood Publishing Co., Ltd. Marxs
Method and the Contributions of Institutional Ethnography. Pp.
232-245.
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 15


TH
DECEMBER 6
TH

TUES, DEC 2
ND

***(45)***

CRITICAL
SOCIOLOGICAL
THEORY
CRITICALLY
CONSCIOUS
FORMATION OF
SELF AND
COLLECTIVE
IDENTITY
Marcuse, H. (1969/2000). An Essay on Liberation. Boston:
Beacon Press. Pp. 3-48.

FRI, DEC 5
TH
RESEARCH 6

WEEK 16: DECEMBER 7
TH
13
TH

TUES, DEC 9
TH
STUDENT
PRESENTATIONS
NO READI NGS BRING ALL
PRESENTATION
MATERIALS ON
FLASHDRIVE 15 MINUTES
BEFORE CLASS STARTS

WEEK 17: DECEMBER 14
TH
20
TH
/23
RD

FINALS WEEK
DATE TBD STUDENT
PRESENTATIONS
NO READI NGS FINAL
PROJECT/PORTFOLIO
DUE DECEMBER 23
RD
ON
BLACKBOARD AT 9AM
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 16
ADDITIONAL COURSE POLICIES

1. Academic Adjustments for Students with Disabilities
In compliance with the American Disability Act of 1990 (ADA) and with Section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Hunter College is committed to ensuring educational parity and
accommodations for all students with documented disabilities and/or medical conditions. It is
recommended that all students with documented disabilities (Emotional, Medical, Physical, and/or
Learning) consult the Office of AccessABILITY, located in Room E1214B, to secure necessary
academic accommodations. For further information and assistance, please call: (212) 772- 4857 or
(212) 650-3230.

2. Academic Honesty
Hunter College regards acts of academic dishonesty (e.g., plagiarism, obtaining unfair advantage,
and falsification of records and official documents) as serious offenses against the values of
intellectual honesty. The College is committed to enforcing the CUNY Policy on Academic
Integrity and will pursue cases of academic dishonesty according to the Hunter College Academic
Integrity Procedures.

3. Classroom Conduct
Let us keep our eyes and ears open to alternative points of view, and always maintain respect for
one another. Please put cell phones on silent and refrain from texting, emailing, Facebooking, and
use of all other non-pertinent internet use during class. Laptops and other tablets (including iPads)
may only be used for taking notes and/or reading from assigned materials. Students who regularly
disrupt lectures and/or discussions may be asked to leave.

4. Writing Resources
Besides working with fellow classmates or your professor, individual tutoring services can be
found at the campus Reading/Writing Center located in Thomas Hunter 416. You can learn more
about the center by calling them at (212) 772-4212 or online at http://rwc.hunter.cuny.edu.

5. Mental Health
If your personal life begins to interfere with your academic life, you should seek support from the
colleges counseling services. A detailed description of services offered can be found at
http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/studentservices/pcs or by calling (212) 772-4631.

6. Further Changes to the Course Syllabus
As the course unfolds, it may be necessary to add or remove readings or otherwise adjust the
schedule though only with sufficient warning. When changes involve new materials, they will
be uploaded onto Blackboard. When changes involve cutting down selections of materials already
provided, an announcement will be made in class. Your continued patience and cooperation is
appreciated.
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 17
APPENDIX A

Pre-Assignment
Critically Reflexive Socio-Autobiography 1

In a 750 word essay (not including headings, titles, etc.), identify one experience that you
feel or believe has been formative in shaping the person you are. Describe the experience
in detail and analyze the ways in which you feel the experience has shaped your identity
(who you are) and your trajectory (what you do). For those of you who are stressing this
essay, relax. It should take you no more than 4-5 hours. Please submit your essay to
me by uploading it to Blackboard in the Critically Reflexive Socio-Autobiography
folder under the "Course Materials" tab by 9:00am on Friday, August 29th.

The experience you choose should be one that you believe transformed you into a
different person than you would have been had you not had this experience. Examples
might include coming-of-age experiences or moments of epiphany and clarity regarding
your position in and relation to a family, community, organization, or society. These
can be experiences where you were a primary actor and/or those in which you were
affected in important ways by others actions. Because the study of sociology is the
study of social forces, the point of this assignment is to help us all start to think
intentionally and critically about how these forces impact our lives, and to identify our
capabilities of creating, sustaining, reproducing, and transforming these forces.

*Note: This is not a conventional 5-paragraph essay. Do not write an introduction, three
body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Your description and analysis should begin in the
first sentence of the essay and end in the last sentence. It can be any number of
paragraphs, so long as it is roughly 750 words.
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 18
APPENDIX B

SOC 101
Organizational Research Assignment 1: Selecting a Field Site for Investigation

Due Tuesday, September 9
th

The number and variety of such structural changes increase as the institutions within
which we live become more embracing and more intricately connected with one another.
To be aware of the idea of social structure and to use it with sensibility is to be capable
of tracing such linkages among a great variety of milieux. To be able to do that is to
possess the sociological imagination (Mills 1959: 10-11).

Choosing a field-site for investigation is perhaps the most important part of the research
process. The site that you choose will allow you to trace certain linkages, as Mills
writes, as well as to ask certain questions, to use certain methods, to build certain
relationships, and to have certain experiences. Your research this semester will take
place in an organization that you select. The organization that you choose should be one
that you are inspired to research using a sociological lens throughout the semester. You
will be asked to do at least five field visits to this organization, usually between 2 and 3
hours each. During these field visits you will collect different kinds of data: historical,
ethnographic, narrative-interview, and statistical. The focus of your data will be
informed by the questions that you ask, and the literature that we read. Because this
literature will relate to social, cultural, political, and economic issues, you should choose
an organization that will allow you to ask and answer questions about society, culture,
politics, and economics. The assignments will require you not only to analyze the social
function of the organization from the perspective of those within the organization, but
also to critically analyze the organization in its broader sociological context. This means
that while you will certainly have the opportunity to understand problems and solutions
from the perspectives of the those people working, living, and playing within the
organization, you will also have the opportunity to consider the perspectives that might
not be represented by the organization or its members, and to challenge what are
perceived as common-sense knowledge, values, and practices within the organization.

The organization you choose should be compelling and inspiring to you for some clear
reason(s). Maybe it is an organization you already know well. Maybe it is an
organization you have been excited to get to know. Maybe it is an organization where
somebody you know well works or has experiences that you find interesting or important.
Maybe it is an organization you grew up near or one that is in the neighborhood where
you live. Maybe it is an organization that you think is doing especially important and
good work that connects with your interests and passions, or even an organization whose
work you find significantly problematic. As you consider the organizations that you
might be interested in researching, you should get in touch with an executive-level
administrator or one of their representatives to ensure that they are willing to host you as
you complete your field-work. In selecting your organization, you should reach out to
someone you know in the organization, and you should begin the process of connecting
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 19
with the people who must approve your fieldwork (see Assignment #3 for instructions to
facilitate organizational contacts).

I encourage you to choose organizations either in partners or in groups of three, though
you may work individually if you choose. Since we will be sharing our research notes,
data and analyses with each other and giving regular feedback, it will be extremely
helpful if you are sharing your work with others who are conducting research in the same
organization. If you work in groups, you will have more data to use, all of which you
will be able to share with each other (though you will still have to collect your own data,
of course). Selecting an organization with others does, however, mean that you will have
to agree on an organization that is inspiring to both (or all) of you. It also means that you
will have to negotiate with the organizational representatives in requesting that they host
multiple people.

The people whose work is strongest are usually those who choose their organizations
because they have deep feelings about the organizations themselves, or the public issues
and themes addressed by the organization. The organization you choose can be formal or
informal it can be a school, religious organization, artistic organization, political
organization, family organization, bounded social network, corporate or non-profit office,
etc. so long as you are confident that you can complete each of the required research
assignments using this organization as your focus. Choosing this organization will likely
require a bit of soul-searching. The organization you choose to research should excite
you it should be a place you want to spend time in, and also a place that will require
you to challenge and yourself intellectually, emotionally, socially, and even
professionally.

As you are thinking about the organization you plan to select, make sure you are thinking
about the readings we have done so far. In the past, the people who have chosen an
organization simply out of convenience are those who run into trouble later in the
semester, and have to start their projects over from scratch. Also, those who have waited
until the last minute to reach out to representatives from the organization to make sure
they are willing to host their research have been unable to meet the project deadlines and
have faced negative consequences as a result. However, people who know little or
nothing about the organization they choose often have to put in a great deal of additional
time learning the basics of the organization before they are able to complete the required
assignments, especially during the first half of the semester.

I am happy to answer any questions you may have about this assignment by email,
phone, or in person once the semester begins. In the past, however, many students have
simply asked, I am thinking about *Organization X*. Is this good? My response is
always the same: there is no such thing as a good or bad organization, only an
organization that fits your needs and desires and the requirements listed below more or
less effectively. Thus, a better question to ask would be: I am thinking about conducting
my research on *Organization X*. It is inspiring to me because ___________. But I am
concerned about it because ____________. The more information you give me about the
organization(s) you are considering and the thinking you have already done, the easier it
will be for me to give you useful feedback. My email address is mblock1@gmail.com,
and my phone number is (773) 320-3732. Please dont hesitate to get in touch if you feel
you need support or feedback at any point throughout the process.
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 20

Organizational Research Assignment 1 must include the following components:
1. A detailed description of the organization based on information you can find
online, in other publications, and through informed conversations with people
familiar with the organization. These publications (including conversations)
should be explicitly referred to (and cited) in your description. 400 words
2. What inspires you about this organization? Essentially, what made you choose
it? What intrigues you about this organization, from a sociological standpoint?
300 words
3. What kinds of sociological questions do you have about this organization? 200
words
4. What conversations have you had with people in the organization that lead you
to believe that this will be a viable research site for you? Brief, but thorough
description. This is so I know that this is a viable site for you. 100 words
5. If you are planning on working with one or two other people, who else is in your
group?
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 21
APPENDIX C

SOC 101
GENERAL CRITERIA FOR SELECTING ORGANIZATIONS

o Generativity/Criticality
Your organization should be one you want to help, support, and with which
you want to collaborate, and also one that you are willing to critique. If you
choose an organization of which you are extremely critical, it makes the
research problematic because you will end up in the position of an embedded
spy who is trying to expose the organizations failures. This is a problematic
positionality to take with respect to an organization from whom you will be
asking for support to help you learn throughout the semester. Thus, you
should choose an organization that you can engage with collaboratively or
generatively. On the other hand, if you choose an organization to which you
feel so connected or inside that you find it difficult to take the position of an
outsider or a stranger, you will find it difficult to apply the theories from the
course in engaging critically with the organization and its limitations.
Balancing your roles as an insider looking for ways of supporting and
collaborating with the organization and as an outsider looking to critique and
challenge the organization is essential for this project to be a successful
growth experience for you and the members of the organization where you
conduct your research.

o Reflexivity/Positionality
Just as you should be able to take the role or the position of both an insider
and an outsider in this organization, you should also be able to articulate the
ways in which your experiences have shaped your position with respect to
this organization. For example, if you deeply identify as Catholic and decide
to research your church, you should be able to explain how your experiences
and beliefs shape your relationship to the organization and thus play a part
in the kinds of questions you ask and do not think to ask, the kind of
relationships with other members of the organization you seek and avoid,
and the kind of knowledge and action that you want to promote or deter
through your project. Being aware of how your own experiences and
personal interests shape your research is a key aspect of doing valid
sociological investigation.

o Access
How difficult will it be for you to gain access to do your research in this
organization? You should choose an organization where you can gain access
and support from the leadership and members of the organization;
otherwise, completing the assignments will be like pulling teeth. You will
know from your first few communications with the organization (phone calls,
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 22
emails, meetings, visits) whether or not the leadership and members of the
organization will be willing to support your project. If nobody is returning
your calls or answering your emails after a few tries, or if people are only
willing to sit down with you for a 10 minute meeting when you visit, you
probably will struggle to complete the assignments in as much depth as is
required throughout the semester. At the same time, however, if you choose
an organization simply because it is extremely convenient and you have easy
access, but it does not particularly inspire you, you will likely encounter
problems in thinking of research questions to ask, finding people with whom
to build relationships and collaborate, and conducting an analysis that is
relevant and important to you and the members of the organization.

o Inspiration
How likely is it that you will be able to sustain interest and commitment to
this project even when there are challenges and obstacles? Everyone has
different experiences, passions, and commitments. This project is designed
so that everyone can pursue her/his own interests and inspirations.
However, not everyone is aware of what they are inspired by and committed
to. The aim of this project is to push you to engage deeply and systematically
not only with the members of an organization and sociological theories and
methods, but also with your own unresolved experiences, unanswered
questions, and unfulfilled desires.

o Navigability
The logistics of doing research in the organization you choose are important.
Trying to conduct thorough sociological research on an entire university,
multi-national corporation, hospital, or large community-based organization
may not be feasible in five visits over one semester. If you are interested in
doing research in a large organization, you should consider what specific part
of the organization you are interested in examining. This might be a single
office, department, program, project, etc. that is part of the organization.
Furthermore, trying to conduct research in an organization that is extremely
difficult for you to get to will present obstacles to completing the project later
on. Finally, the more knowledge and experiences you have in the
organization you choose, the better, assuming you can still maintain your
stance as an insider/outsider from a critical distance. Choosing an
organization that you know little or nothing about is ok, but you will have to
put in additional time at the beginning of the semester getting to know the
organization than someone else who is already familiar with their fieldwork
site.

o Sociological Imagination
Is this an organization that lends itself to asking and answering important
questions (for you and for society) about the relationship between peoples
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 23
lives (troubles) and the social forces that influence their possibilities and
limitations in a given historical era and geographic space (issues)? All
organizations can be explored sociologically, but different people are drawn
to be curious about distinct phenomena. The organization you choose should
be one to which you can apply relevant sociological questions.

SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 24
APPENDIX D

SOC 101
FACT SHEET FOR CONNECTING WITH ORGANIZATIONS

*You do not have to make contact with your organizations until we have met as a class, but
when you do make contact, here are responses to some questions you will likely be asked.

Topics to cover in the face-to-face conversation:

I. What am I asking for?
To allow you to conduct four fieldwork visits of between 2 and 4 hours each (plus an initial meeting to
set up the research program).

II. What will be the nature of each visit?
The visits will include the application of four distinct methods of investigation to answer a particular
sociological question about the organization and its role in, and relationship to, society:
1. Identification, collection, and analysis of a historical artifact
This can be either an object or a photograph of an object that has special meaning in the history
of the organization, and that is relevant in the context of the question(s) you are interested in
asking about the work of the organization.
In order to identify an object that has special meaning in the history of the organization, you
will have to use available resources including but not limited to talking with people who
have been a part of the organization for a long time, reading materials about the organization
that are published and publicly available, reading internal documents to which members of the
organizational membership give you access.
2. Ethnographic participant observation
Participant observation is a method through which you engage in the real temporal and spatial
dynamics of some aspect of organizational life and take careful notes (both during your
observation and afterwards) regarding what you see, hear, etc.
You should identify a part of the organizational life that is particularly relevant to the work of
the organization, and that connects in some way to the question you want to ask. This could be
a meeting that you are allowed to attend, some space where members of the organization carry
out their work, or a space in which the organization has a special influence or stake. Depending
on your relationship with the members of the organizational leadership and the degree of
secrecy of the organization, you may gain access to only very public spaces, but you may also be
able to access the most private spaces. More private and privileged is not always better when it
comes to ethnography, because the goal is not to do an expos, but to uncover unspoken
meanings that underlie everyday functions.
3. Collection and analysis of a statistical artifact
While we will not be doing our own statistical data collection in this class (unless you are
particularly interested in spending the time to do this), organizations generally keep different
kinds of statistical data on their employees, participants, the achievement of their missions, or
the rationale for their missions. You will work to identify one or more statistical artifacts such
as graphs, charts, tables, surveys, presentations etc. that the organization uses. Again, these
may be extremely public documents or slightly more privileged ones, depending on the
organization you choose and your relationship with this organization.
4. In-depth interview
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 25
Once you have had the opportunity to do research in the organization for a few sessions, and
you have analyzed some of your initial data using sociological frameworks, more questions
regarding the internal workings of the organization will emerge. Doing an interview with
someone who plays an important role in the organization will allow you to understand the
organization from the perspective of an individual who spends a great deal of their time there,
and who can share with you a depth of knowledge that would be difficult to come by elsewhere.

III. What if they ask me who will see the data I collect?
You can assure them that your data will stay between them, you, the professor of your class, and
a small working group of three other student-researchers. Also tell them that if they would like
to review your data before you use it for class, you will share it with them and give them the
opportunity to redact (omit) any potentially sensitive components.

IV. What if they ask me why I need to collect this data for an Introduction to Sociology course?
You can tell them that we are learning how to produce sociological knowledge. Because
sociology is the study of social, cultural, political, and economic forces in society, you need to
collect first-hand data so you can apply relevant sociological theories to try to gain a deeper
understanding of the significance of the work of the organization in the broader context of
society. Without the opportunity to collect and analyze this data for yourself, you will only
learn how to consume sociological knowledge, not how to produce it.

V. What if they ask me how much of their time this will take?
You can tell them that all you need from them is their willingness to host you the time it takes to
agree on a research schedule. If they are willing to share relevant documents with you, and to
allow you to independently observe some facet of the organization for 2-3 hours (either all at
once, or in up to 3 increments), the only direct time commitment you need is an interview of
between 1 and 1 hours, which can be conducted with anyone who plays an important role in
the life of the organization.

VI. What if they ask me what they will get out of doing this?
What they can be assured of is that you will provide them with the final report which will
include the data you collected, your sociological analysis of the organizations work, and how
the research impacted you as an individual. This could be useful in demonstrating the impact of
the organization beyond the kind of data that organizations often generate internally.
Indirectly, you can tell them that if they decide that your work is of high quality, you might be
interested in interning or otherwise working with/for them in the future.

VII. What if they ask me why I chose their organization?
This is your opportunity to come up with all of the reasons that you think this organization
matters in the community, the city, and the world, and why it personally matters so much to
you. Each person will have to come up with these reasons on their own, but this is your time to
make the person you are speaking with feel important and accomplished and like they are
making a real contribution to society that needs to be studied and analyzed. Even if they dont
ask you this question, you should find a way of saying this early on in the conversation. If you
speak compellingly and convincingly about why you are choosing this organization, you will
likely get to answer the other questions (which is what you want).

VIII. General tips
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 26
Be professional, courteous, serious-of-purpose, and humble. When you are contacting them,
either by phone, email, or in person, be conscious of how you are presenting yourself. This
includes the grammar, vocabulary, and tone of voice you use in your conversation, the clothes
you wear, the way you carry yourself, your body language, and the seriousness and
commitment to the research and the organization that you demonstrate. If you come across as
not caring very much or as only doing this because you are being forced, the organizational
representatives will likely not listen to what you have to say. If you come across as being
genuinely interested in the organization and what they do, and potentially interested in
working with or for them in the future, they will likely be much more receptive to you.
Your goal is to have them ask you more of the questions above (and others) rather than fewer.
Once they start asking these questions, they are investing time and thought in the interaction
with you. The more time they invest in the interaction, the more likely they are to follow
through by allowing you to do your research. If they do not ask you any questions, chances are
that they will forget about you in a few minutes. So try to answer their questions with calmness
and seriousness. A common tendency when people get nervous is to try to end the
conversation quickly. Try not to let this happen. The more you engage with them, the better (as
long as youre not being pushy). Each minute you have them, you wedge your foot in the door
another inch.

IX. How to get the face-to-face meeting
If you know someone in the organization or are already connected with the organization in
some way, you should try to set up your first meeting in person and get to the content of the
request quickly.
If you are connecting with the organization for the first time, you should:
1. Find the email address and phone number of someone in the organization who deals with
people from the outside. This might be someone in a Public Relations department. If the
organization is too small or young to have a PR department, or if you cant figure out who to
contact, call the general number that you can find for the organization, tell them that you
are a student in sociology at Hunter College who is interested in conducting research with
their organization, and ask who you should speak with to try to inquire regarding the
possibilities of doing this work with them. Get that persons name, email address, and
phone number.
2. Send them a brief email introducing yourself, explaining what you are hoping to do (in 2-3
sentences), and asking them if you can set up a time to meet with them in person to inquire
regarding the possibilities of conducting a project like this.
3. If they respond to your request, ask them to set up a meeting at their earliest convenience.
4. If they do not respond to your request within 24 hours, call back the general number of the
organization and ask to speak with them directly. If they are not available, do not leave a
message you already emailed them. Instead, ask when you can call back and speak with
them.
5. Call back when you are told they will be available, introduce yourself briefly, tell them you
sent them an email, and ask whether they received it.
6. If they say that they did receive your email and have not had a chance to get back to you,
then apologize for calling again so quickly and explain that you have a tight timeline
because of the schedule of the course, so you were hoping to speak with them soon. Then
ask whether you can set up a meeting at their earliest convenience to gauge the possibilities
of conducting this research with their organization this semester.
7. If they say that they did not receive it, then explain what was in the email (using the same 2-
3 sentences), and ask them if you can set up a time to meet briefly at their earliest
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 27
convenience to gauge the possibilities of conducting this research with their organization
this semester.
8. Like with any new project, relationship, or endeavor, you have to put yourself out there in
order to succeed. You are taking a risk, and sometimes risks dont work out the way you
hope. Try your best, and if it doesnt work with the first organization, try another. You
should already be thinking of back-up plans in case your first choice(s) dont work out.
If you plan to try to conduct your research in an organization as a pair or in a small group, you
should agree with your group members on who will be the best point-person to make the initial
contact. That person should know when other group members are available to make sure that
everyone can be present at the meeting. When you are asking to set up the in-person meeting,
you should make sure they are aware that all of the people in your research team will be
present. The research schedules that you set up, however, will be different, and the people you
plan to interview should also be different.

APPENDIX E

SOC 101
ORGANIZATIONAL RESEARCH ASSIGNMENT 2 ESTABLISHING ORGANIZATIONAL
RELATIONSHIPS AND OUTLINING RESEARCH QUESTIONS

DUE TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16
TH

The assignment must include the following components:

1. 500 words
A write-up of the notes from your first (or most recent) meeting with a
representative of the organization in which an agreement was made to allow you
to conduct four fieldwork visits. The write-up should include any questions and
concerns articulated by the organizational representative, as well as any
stipulations or requirements to which they have asked you to adhere during your
investigations or your reports.

2. Use the attached table
The name(s), position(s), and email address(es) of one or more organizational
contacts who have agreed to host you for four fieldwork visits of between 2 and 3
hours each.

3. Use the attached table
A research schedule that includes (at least) four specific dates and times when you
will visit the organization to complete the fieldwork component of each of the
four Analytical Field-Work Essays. This schedule should coincide with the
syllabus (see table on reverse side of this page). In other words, you should plan
to conduct fieldwork during the week before each given assignment is due to be
submitted, and early enough in the week that you have time to write up your
investigation for feedback and to be presented in class.

4. 500 words
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 28
Two or three possible research questions. Each question should include the
following information:
a. What is the question?
b. How will the process of asking and answering this question require the use
of the sociological imagination the connection of specific structures and
practices in the organization with broader social, cultural, political, and
economic structures and institutions?
c. Why is the research site and the population sample you have chosen ideal
for the collection of data that will help you answer this question?
d. Why is this question compelling to you? In what way(s) will the process
of asking and answering this question help you engage in what Marx calls
revolutionary, practical-critical, activity?
SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 29
NAME _________________________

ORGANI ZATI ONAL CONTACTS:

SCHEDULE OF FI ELDWORK VI SI TS:
*NOTE: YOU SHOULD TRY TO SCHEDULE YOUR FIELD-WORK VISITS EARLIER, RATHER THAN LATER IN THE WEEKS. THIS WAY, YOU WILL HAVE ENOUGH
TIME TO WRITE UP YOUR ANALYSES ON THE BASIS OF THE DATA YOU COLLECT, AND YOU WILL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SCHEDULE ADDITIONAL FIELD-
WORK VISITS FOR LATER IN THE WEEKS IN THE CASE THAT EITHER (A) YOU FIND THAT YOU NEED TO COLLECT ADDITIONAL DATA FOR YOUR ANALYSIS, OR
(B) YOUR ORIGINAL VISIT HAS TO BE RESCHEDULED AS A RESULT OF UNANTICIPATED SCHEDULING CONFLICT.

Week of Fieldwork Visit Date and Time Organizational representative with whom you
will make contact when you arrive and by
whom you will be supervised (if necessary)
Saturday, September 13
th
Friday, September 26
th

Tuesday, October 8
th
Tuesday, October 21
st

Saturday, November 1
st
Tuesday, November 11
th

Wednesday, November 26
th
- Tuesday, December 2
nd

Name Position Email Address
Contact #1

Contact #2 (if
applicable)

Contact #3 (if
applicable)

SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 30

APPENDIX F

SOC 101
ORGANIZATIONAL RESEARCH ASSIGNMENT #3A DESCRIBING/ANALYZING A HISTORICAL ARTIFACT
RESPONSE #3B RESPONDING TO THE DESCRIPTION AND ANALYSIS OF A COLLEAGUE

DUE MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 29
TH

Assignment 3A
In 1250 words, please include the following components:

I. One or more photographs or other visual/physical representations of your
object/artifact

II. A detailed description of your object/artifact. Any aspect of the object/artifact that is
important for a reader to understand your analysis should be included in this
description. This is where you set the scene for the reader. (roughly 200 words)

III. An analysis of the ways in which this selected object/artifact depicts one (or more) form
and function of an organizational structure that is relevant in the context of your
research question (see, for example, Torpey p. 158 paragraphs 0-1) (roughly 400
words)

IV. An analysis of the ways in which your object/artifact depicts one or more value, belief,
and/or meaning as they are held and shared through the organizational culture (see, for
example, Willis pp. 17-22) (roughly 400 words)

Responses to points III and IV (above) should include multiple meanings that the
object carries for the participants in the organization itself (see, for example,
Risnicoff de Gorgas p. 360, full paragraphs 4-6)
Responses to points III and IV should include the ways in which this object can be
viewed by the outside observer who is looking at the structural and cultural forms
and functions of the object through a critical lens (see, for example, Leone and
Little p. 363 full paragraphs 3-4, p. 366 full paragraph 2, p. 372 block quote and
explanation). In other words, you should include a discussion and critique of
intentionality in your analysis of the distinct meanings of the object. Who has a
stake in the object having particular meanings for particular purposes/interests?
In your responses to points III and IV you should reference at least one of the texts
we have read for class. It can be the same text for both, or a different text for each.
The reference can either be in the body of the text itself (if it is appropriate given
your analysis), or it can be in a footnote in which you directly connect your
analysis to one of the theories we have read. (If you decide to combine points III
and IV, you can simply discuss how a particular theoretical frame allows for a fluid
analysis between the organizational structure and culture.)
Sewell argues that events bring about historical changes in part by transforming
the very cultural categories that shape and constrain human action. Because the
causalities that operate in social relations depend at least in part on the contents
and relations of cultural categories, events have the power to transform social
causality (Sewell 2005:101). Your discussion of the cultural and structural
significance of your object/artifact should include some discussion of how the
object/artifact acquired its significance and meaning. Following Sewell, you
SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 31

should refer to specific events that were particularly important in establishing the
meanings that the object/artifact has come to represent/denote.
SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 32

V. Connect your analysis of the object/artifact (from points 2-3) with your original
question. In what ways does this help you answer your research question? In what
ways does your analysis of the object/artifact push you to revise or rethink your
research question and/or general research approach? Based on your analysis of this
object/artifact, what sub-questions emerge that you will try to answer through
ethnographic, interview, and statistical data? In what ways would you like to change
your approach in future assignments to best facilitate a strong connection with the
members of your organization, and to maximize the quality of your research, including
the potential usefulness of your findings for you and for the members of the
organization? (roughly 250 words)

SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 33

Assignment 3B
Your response to your colleague should include the following components:

*Note: All three components, below, should be addressed with respect to the outline of the
assignment and the theoretical frameworks from the course.

I. Praise What about the piece were you most compelled by? What do you think was
especially interesting or innovative in the authors approach to data collection,
conceptualization, and presentation? Be specific not general about exactly what you
are praising and why. 2 pieces of praise.

II. Critique What about the piece did you feel came across as confusing, unclear,
unfocused, or analytically weak? Be specific not general about exactly what you are
critiquing and why. 2 pieces of critique.

III. Suggestions What would you recommend adding or changing as the piece is prepared
to be included in a final paper? 2 suggestions.

IV. Questions What questions are you left with after reading the piece that you think the
author could address more explicitly in a future draft? Consider questions that will help
lead your group in a discussion about the presenters work. 2 questions

SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 34

APPENDIX G

SOC 101
ORGANIZATIONAL RESEARCH ASSIGNMENT #4A ETHNOGRAPHIC PARTICIPANT-OBSERVATION FIELD
NOTES AND ANALYSIS
RESPONSE #4B RESPONDING TO THE ETHNOGRAPHIC FIELD NOTES AND ANALYSIS

DUE THURSDAY, OCTOBER 23
RD

Assignment 4A
In 1750 words (including field notes) please include the following components:

I. In introducing your field notes, you should include a detailed description of the setting in
which you paint a picture of the specific, bounded site in which you are conducting your
research, as well as any important details of the organizational context that are necessary in
the context of your research question and your analysis of the data. [Roughly 250 words].

II. Detailed field notes that establish your ethnographic authority by demonstrating a
systematic approach to collecting qualitative, empirical data in at least one participant-
observation. (See Bernard, Emerson, and Merriam). [Roughly 1000 words].
a. The field notes should be descriptive, not evaluative (show, dont tell), and
should include descriptions of individuals, activities, and the physical setting.
b. While you should begin by describing the scene in general terms (you can write
this up immediately after your observation), your field notes should be detailed
and focused (zoomed-in), rather than general (wide-angle).
c. You should include specific details about what you see and hear people do and
say, including subtle descriptions of their movements, facial expressions, tone
of voice, and other behaviors that will help you analyze what they are thinking
and feeling based on empirical observation.
d. You should include specific quotes or paraphrases that are as accurate as
possible, including of conversations between two or more people.
e. Who and what you focus carefully on observing should be whatever is most
relevant in the context of your research question.
f. Include descriptions not only of the activities and people at the focal point of
the setting, but also descriptions of activities and people at the periphery who
might raise questions or problems regarding the consistency and universality
and allow you to recognize some of the potential complexities (depicting
variation and the inconvenience sample).
g. The field notes should also include a detailed description of moments in which
you engage with others in the setting, and how others respond to your presence
(what you do and say).
h. Your field notes should also include your methodological, analytical, and
personal reflections, including those that reflexively address your positionality
in the research setting. (See Berger, Turner).
i. Your field notes should include at least one of the following components in 200
words (unless you choose to include a map):
i. Diary post-observation personal reflections on the research process
ii. Map diagram of spatio-temporal dynamics
iii. Transcription transcription of audio/visual recordings

SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 35

III. In your conclusion, you should include a detailed analysis of your field notes in the context
of one or more of the theoretical frameworks we have reviewed in class. This is where you
formulate a structural/cultural hypothesis to explain the ways in which your observations
can help you answer some part of your research question. The connection between your
empirical observations, your research question, and the theoretical framework you are
drawing upon should be made clear and explicit. (See Glaser and Strauss, Mills, Merriam,
Emerson) [Roughly 500 words].

SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 36

Response 4B


I. Praise What about the piece were you most compelled by? What do you think was
especially interesting or innovative in the authors approach to data collection,
conceptualization, and presentation? Be specific not general about exactly what
you are praising and why. 2 pieces of praise.

II. Critique What about the piece did you feel came across as confusing, unclear,
unfocused, or analytically weak? Be specific not general about exactly what you
are critiquing and why. 2 pieces of critique.

III. Suggestions What would you recommend adding or changing as the piece is
prepared to be included in a final paper? 2 suggestions.

IV. Questions What questions are you left with after reading the piece that you think
the author could address more explicitly in a future draft? Consider questions that
will help lead your group in a discussion about the presenters work. 2 questions
SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 37

APPENDIX H

SOC 101
ORGANIZATIONAL RESEARCH ASSIGNMENT #5A SEMI-STRUCTURED NARRATIVE INTERVIEWS AND
TRANSCRIPTS AND DEVELOPMENT OF EXPLANATORY HYPOTHESIS
RESPONSE #5B RESPONDING TO INTERVIEWS AND HYPOTHESES

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 13
TH

Assignment 5A
Please include the following components:

I. Brief description of your relationship (formal and informal) with your
interviewee, and a brief description of the setting of the interview.

II. Questions for Semi-Structured Interview:
List of 3-5 open-ended interview questions and 5-10 highly-structured interview
questions
a. The key to a good semi-structured interview is to reveal the inner-workings of
the individuals experiences, imagination, memory, logic, and emotions, as
they have been shaped by and shape the other individuals, the group, and
the organizational structure/culture over time. The questions should be
personal - if you can find the information you are interviewing someone about
through other means (observation, reading, survey, etc.) you should access
that information before-hand and ask your interview respondent about their
personal experiences and understandings rather than about the factual
information itself.
i. Experiences, Experiences, Experiences
Understand the timeline of key moments in the respondents
participation in the organization (Semi-structured interviews should
elicit specific details and moments of experiences that happened in a
particular place and time and carried lasting meanings and impressions
for the respondent.)
ii. Links to Organizational Structure, Culture, and Events
Seek out links to organizational structure/culture over time (the
relationship between biography and history, as Mills writes).
iii. Opportunity and Constraint
Focus on the ways in which the respondent feels both enabled and
constrained (Sewell 2005) by their participation in the organization.
Prompt the interview respondent to share experiences when they have
been constrained by their participation in the organization, as well as
experiences in which they felt like they had opportunities for decision-
making and capability-expansion.
iv. The questions should allow for the presentation of multiple selves
within a single respondent both those that might exist in alignment
with the organizational structure/culture, as well as those that conflict
with it. (Semi-structured interviews should try to reveal complexities
and depth of real experiences, not certainties or generalities.)
SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 38

b. Each of the open-ended questions should focus on distinct topics/themes so as
to allow for initial responses, as well as follow-up questions and discussion
that overlap as little as possible with the other interview questions.
c. Each of the highly structured interview questions should focus on key details
of your research question. These questions are more like survey questions,
except that you will not provide specific response options.
d. These questions should allow for at least a 1-hour interview.
i. The interviewee should do whatever possible to adapt to the style of
the respondent so as to make them feel comfortable, connected, and
willing to share as many personal experiences, thoughts, and feelings
as possible.
ii. While attempting to develop and sustain a strong connection between
the researcher and the respondent, the interviewer should also attempt
to talk as little as possible (without sacrificing point i).

e. Important Note: As we have discussed in class, you should pay special
attention to designing your questions to encourage the interviewee to
discuss the way in which they experience double consciousness, veils, and
submission as they relate to particular lines of division, in the sense that
Du Bois describes in Chapters 1-3 of The Souls of Black Folk. You should
also encourage interviewees to discuss ways they may have resisted or
challenged those pressures, powers, and forces of alienation, as we
discussed when reviewing the articles of Katsiaficas et al. and Skinner et
al.

III. Transcription
a. You will record your interview using an MP3 or tape recorder. Apps to do
this are widely available for smart-phones (though you should test it
beforehand to make sure that it works and so you know where/how to position
the recorder so it picks up the interview clearly).
b. You will then use the recording to transcribe (type word-for-word) the entire
interview (including questions/comments of interviewer).

IV. Question, Hypothesis, and Analysis
[500 words]
a. A statement of your revised sociological research question, including any sub-
questions that are part of the overarching question.
b. Your hypothesis that explains the relationship between the phenomenon you
are trying to understand and the causes by which you think (based on your
existing evidence) it has been produced.
c. Explanation of your hypothesis in the context of your interview and at least
one theory that we have covered in the course. If you have only used one
theorist so far in assignments 3 and 4, this should be a different theorist. If
you have used at least two different theorists, then the one you use for this
assignment can be one of the same ones, or a different one.

SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 39

Response 5B


V. Praise What about the piece were you most compelled by? What do you think
was especially interesting or innovative in the authors approach to data
collection, conceptualization, and presentation? Be specific not general about
exactly what you are praising and why. 2 pieces of praise.

VI. Critique What about the piece did you feel came across as confusing, unclear,
unfocused, or analytically weak? Be specific not general about exactly what
you are critiquing and why. 2 pieces of critique.

VII. Suggestions What would you recommend adding or changing as the piece is

VIII. Questions What questions are you left with after reading the piece that you
think the author could address more explicitly in a future draft? Consider
questions that will help lead your group in a discussion about the presenters
work. 2 questions
SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 40

APPENDIX I

SOC 101
ORGANIATIONAL RESEARCH ASSIGNMENT #6A USING STATISTICAL METHODS TO DEVELOP AND
TEST HYPOTHESES
RESPONSE #6B RESPONDING TO STATISTICAL METHODS

DUE THURSDAY, DECEMBER 4
TH

Assignment 6A
In 1000 words please include the following components:

V. Layout of question, hypothesis, and method (300 words):
a. A statement of your revised sociological research question, including any sub-
questions that are part of the overarching question.
b. Your hypothesis that explains the relationship between the phenomenon you
are trying to understand and the causal mechanisms by which you think (based
on your existing evidence) it has been produced.
c. The statistical data you sought out in order to test (or formulate) this
hypothesis, and the source(s) of this data. (This section should include a
description of the methods used to collect the statistical data, whether the
methods were designed and conducted by you or someone else.)

VI. Presentation of statistical table(s), chart(s), and graph(s), with headings/captions that
ensure a reader can easily interpret the information is that is being presented.

VII. Textual description of the information in the table(s), chart(s), and graph(s) that is
pertinent to your research question and its relevant context. (200 words).

VIII. Explanation of how the information in the table(s), chart(s), and graph(s) has enabled
you to test or formulate the hypothesis (or parts of it) which you presented in part I.
Explanation of how the testing or formulation of this hypothesis helps you answer
your research question. (This section should include either a substantive explanation
or [at least] a brief note regarding how you are applying statistics critically, either in
the process of collecting or analyzing the data). (500 words).

SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 41

Response 6B


IX. Praise What about the piece were you most compelled by? What do you think
was especially interesting or innovative in the authors approach to data
collection, conceptualization, and presentation? Be specific not general about
exactly what you are praising and why. 2 pieces of praise.

X. Critique What about the piece did you feel came across as confusing, unclear,
unfocused, or analytically weak? Be specific not general about exactly what
you are critiquing and why. 2 pieces of critique.

XI. Suggestions What would you recommend adding or changing as the piece is

XII. Questions What questions are you left with after reading the piece that you
think the author could address more explicitly in a future draft? Consider
questions that will help lead your group in a discussion about the presenters
work. 2 questions

SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 42

APPENDIX J

SOC 101
AGENDA FOR ORGANIZATIONAL RESEARCH ASSIGNMENTS IN-CLASS PRESENTATIONS AND RESPONSES

Time Activity Outline and Instructions

SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 43

5
minutes
Review
Assignment
All members of the group should review the assignment that will be presented and note the specific comments
that the respondents would like to highlight
5
minutes
Present
Assignment
The presenter of the assignment should note the specific sections of the assignment that they would like to draw
particular attention to, either because they think the section is especially strong, or because it is an area they feel
they need particular support or suggestions to improve.
5
minutes
Present
Response
Respondent should highlight areas of strength, critiques, and questions and/or suggestions.
If you are part of a group of three, and the presenter is not being given a direct response, then go directly to
bullet-point 2 of the row below.
10
minutes
Discuss
Assignment
and
Response
First, the presenter has the opportunity to respond directly to the comments of the respondent.
After the presenter has had the opportunity to respond, the other members of the group have the opportunity to
add their comments, questions, and suggestions as part of an open discussion.

Repeat all of the steps above for each presenter.
SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 44

APPENDIX K

SOC 101
FINAL PROJECT/PORTFOLIO OUTLINE

DUE TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23
RD
AT 9:00AM
UPLOAD YOUR FINAL PROJECT/PORTFOLIO TO BLACKBOARD

Components of the Final Project/Portfolio
I. Introduction and Overview (~700 words)
a. Overview of organization, focus and rationale of inquiry, research questions, and
substantive theory (see Glaser and Strauss) that emerged from your analysis of
theory and data. (500 words)
b. General overview of the methods you used to collect and analyze your data. (200
words)

II. Analysis of Theory and Data (~1500 words)
a. Overview of theoretical frameworks (2-3) from the literature that helps you
analyze your data to arrive at your findings. (Unless otherwise indicated, this
section should include at least 1 theorist from list A.) (500 words)

A B
Marx
Weber
Durkheim
Sewell
Mills
Marcuse
Du Bois
Mead
Smith
Risnicoff de Gorgas
Leone and Little
Glaser and Strauss
Bullard
Grey
Torre and Fine
Skinner, et al.
Katsiaficas, et al.
Torre, et al.
Willis
Anyon
Zimmerman
Geertz
Freud
Torpey
Bernard
Emerson
Merriam
Fine and Ruglis
Lorde
hooks
Anzalda
Scott
Fanon

b. Data analysis and explanation of their connection to the key theoretical
frameworks you presented in point IIa. (1000 words)

III. Findings and Recommendations (~800 words)
a. Key findings (2-3) and recommendations (2-3) how your data and theoretical
analyses lead to specific, substantive theory (presented in your introduction [Ia])
regarding your organization, and recommendations for next steps that researchers
or practitioners in your organization can apply in order to expand and develop
their work in specific ways. (400 words)

IV. Socio-Autobiography 2
a. This will be discussed in greater detail on Tuesday, November 25
th
.
SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 45

b. Somewhere in your Socio-Autobiography, please include the following:
i. Your personal approach to this project throughout the semester,
ii. What lessons you learned about yourself and your strengths and weaknesses
as a researcher during the course of this project, and
iii. How you will draw upon the lessons you learned from this project and apply
them to specific and/or general future projects (academic, professional, and
personal). (400 words)
V. Appendices Separate appendices for each of your assignments (Socio-
Autobiography 1, Socio-Autobiography 2, Assignments 3A, 4A, 5A, 6A)

VI. Works Cited Site all sources that you include in any one of the above sections
including theoretical literature, methodological literature, organizational
literature (documents from or about the organization), interviews, etc. (Use APA
citation formatting - https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/)

SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 46

APPENDIX L

SOC 101
FINAL PRESENTATION OUTLINE

EITHER
DECEMBER 9
TH

OR
FINALS DAY - TBD

Components of the Final Presentation
I. 10 minutes
a. Do not read your presentation from a sheet of paper
b. Use visuals (especially in parts II and IV)
i. Photographs
ii. Interview excerpts (up to a paragraph)
iii. Field note excerpts (up to a paragraph)
iv. Tables/Charts/Graphs
c. When in doubt, use a handout
II. Brief overview of organization (~1 minute)
a. What is it?
b. What does it do?
c. Who works there?
d. Who does it serve?
e. Why did you choose it / What was your original connection to it?
f. Other relevant background information
III. Your research question (~1 minute)
a. Your original research question
b. How your research question changed and how the data led you to change it
IV. One important finding (~3 minutes)
a. Present your hypothesis
b. What data did you collect (in general) that could be used to confirm or disconfirm
your hypothesis and generate a substantive theory/finding?
c. Present in detail 2-3 pieces of your most compelling empirical data that support
this finding (a powerful photograph, interview excerpt, field note excerpt, or
chart/graph would be ideal)
V. What are the implications of this finding for the organization, for your own
thinking, and in connection with the theory from our course? (~4 minutes)
a. Connect your finding with one theory we studied in our class.
i. How can the theory be used to help you understand your data?
ii. How can your data be used to help develop or expand the theory?
b. Explain how your finding might be used by members (either employees or clients)
of the organization to consider their experiences in and with the organization in a
new way, and what potential change(s) this could generate.
c. Explain how your finding connects with your own growth and development as a
person and as a thinker/researcher/writer. Try to make a link between either the
research process or your finding and something you wrote about in one of your
socio-autobiographies.
SOC 101 | Fall 2014 | 47

APPENDIX M

Fall 2014 SOC 101 Syllabus Draft 1

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SOC 101 | FALL 2014 | 1

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