Sociology: Pop Culture to Social Structure

This book demonstrates sociology's relevance by illustrating sociological concepts and theories in a fun, hip way with examples from pop culture that you know and enjoy. The new title, SOCIOLOGY: POP CULTURE TO SOCIAL STRUCTURE, underscores this approach by reflecting the book's themes, which 1) apply sociological concepts to everyday pop culture phenomena, 2) illustrate how technological change drives social change through examples that are familiar to you, and 3) engage you in thinking critically by asking you where you fit in to the larger context of social patterns in the world. The book teaches you "how" to think sociologically, not just "what" to think, and emphasizes the importance of diversity and a global perspective. Movie reviews in a popular "Sociology at the Movies" boxes explore the sociological messages in recent movies such as The Social Network, Avatar, Milk, and many others. Up-to-date discussions of topics such as race, poverty, and religious practices are accompanied by exploration of contemporary issues related to our increasingly digital world, including examinations of how technological change shortens attention span, the Internet as an atomizing and a community-building force, and electronic surveillance and social control.