Sociology in a Changing World

Kornblum (sociology, City U. of New York) and Smith introduce students to sociology and its basic methods and subjects through the lens of social change, with an emphasis on contemporary social-scientific research and adding a stronger social justice perspective in this edition by including chapter features on how sociologists address social justice issues in research. It addresses changes such as the globalization of trade and commerce, the export of industrial production and jobs outside developed nations, the growth of metropolitan regions, the aging of society, rising energy consumption and global warming, new challenges to science and technology due to infectious diseases, and sexuality (a new chapter). It has new material on terrorism, the impact of Hurricane Katrina, and AIDS, and has been updated to reflect research and teaching trends. It adds or expands discussions of research methods, mental health care for veterans, the application of Darwin's theories to human inequality, the rejection of social Darwinism by the next generation of social scientists, the controversial statement by Harvard U. President Lawrence Summer about women's lack of success in science and math, hate crimes against Latino immigrants, the effects of video games on children's behavior, studies of street-corner groups, the costs of gang membership, the Madoff Ponzi scheme and other white collar crime, the "don't ask, don't tell" policy, Arizona law on illegal immigrants, the hippie and revolutionary movements, and the effects of colonialism and capitalism on the poor. Annotation c2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)