All posts by porterem

A Sociologist visits Occupy Wallstreet

Jonathan Wynn is an urban/cultural sociologist and blogger whose book The Tour Guide, Walking and Talking New York was recently published by the University of Chicago Press.

From the Everyday Sociology Blog:
A Sociologist Visits Occupy Wallstreet

Perhaps we will invite Dr. Wynn to stop by during SXSW, included in his research examining how city stakeholders have adopted “festivalization” as an urban cultural policy, and the affects of city branding on both locals and visitors, event organizers and participants.

2011-12 Brownbag Series off to a fine start

On Monday, October 3, 2011 Marcos Perez, Pamela Neumann and Katie Sobering discussed their summer field research in Argentina and Peru. Thanks to faculty and students who engaged the panelists in a lively conversation, prompting the expansion of brownbag format to allow for an hour or more of discussion after presentations. Read more

Vivian Shaw, Christine Wheatley and Ori Swed discussed their summer fieldwork in Japan, Mexico and Israel yesterday at a brownbag luncheon, initiating our Graduate Student Panel and Presentation series for Fall 2011 Read more

Stratification and the Multiplicity of Sociologies

Isaac Sasson

Introductory courses on stratification, at both the undergraduate and graduate level, typically include a discussion of the classic correspondence between Kingsley Davis & Wilbert Moore and Melvin Tumin that took place over the pages of ASR between 1945 and 1953. I was originally exposed to this theoretical debate, which may well be one of the most famous in the history of sociology, in an Introduction to Sociology class during my freshman year in college. I distinctly remember the underlying subtext demarcating Tumin’s conflictual arguments as superior to the functionalist approach of his contemporary peers. Structural-functionalism was dead to us before we even realized what it was.

Several years later I came across the same correspondence during a graduate seminar on stratification here at UT. The second time was only slightly different, as this time I read not only the two original articles but also Davis’ response to Tumin. This happened by pure coincidence – unintended by me or the professor who taught the seminar – as Davis’ response simply followed Tumin’s seminal paper in the very same issue of ASR. Intrigued by the continuing correspondence I went on reading the extra few pages, only a couple of mouse clicks away on JSTOR.

In any case, the slight difference of reading the response to the response transformed it, at least for me, from an almost “evolutionary” sequence of theories to a living, breathing, and contested correspondence. I have to admit, I found Davis’ response to be quite dull – except for one major argument. According to Davis, the disagreement with Tumin stems from a misinterpretation (or an alternative definition) of the concept of stratification. While Davis & Moore’s original article focuses on the question of stratification of social positions, Tumin’s article focuses on the stratification of individuals in society. Read More

Inside Higher Ed reports on Sociologists in Sin City

Inside Higher Ed found the juxtaposition of Las Vegas and Sociology irresistible:

Sociologists in Sin City

There is something both jarring and perfectly apropos about bringing thousands of sociologists to Sin City. As the ASA press release delicately observed, “Las Vegas [is] vibrant and fascinating from a sociological perspective” – but it’s not difficult to conjecture why the conference had never been held here before. The very aspects of Las Vegas that might make it fascinating to a sociologist — the emphasis on consumerism and decadence; the unapologetic obsession with (and exploitation of) female flesh; and the city’s most celebrated pastime gambling, whose appeal is particularly mystifying to some with a background in statistics — are also the sorts of things that tend to be off-putting to academics, especially (or at least) in the presence of their colleagues. Little wonder that ol’ Lost Wages is one of the least-educated cities in the country. (As David Dickens, professor of sociology at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas, likes to say: “Thank god for Fresno.”) And little wonder, too, that even those who have dedicated their careers to studying human society weren’t wholly enthused about being thrust into the heart of this particular society, however fascinating it might be.

Tuesday, August 23rd at ASA

Presenting UT SOC research:

Browne, Simone
Thematic Session. Towards a New Racial Studies
Scheduled Time: Tue, Aug 23 – 10:30am – 12:10pm
Presenter: “Flying While Black: Border Control, DNA and the Case of the Lips”

Cabrera, Sergio Antonio
Table 09. Culture as an Educational Tool
Section on Sociology of Culture / Section on Sociology of Culture Refereed Roundtable.
Scheduled Time: Tue, Aug 23 – 8:30am – 10:10am
Presenter on individual submission: “Neoliberal Consumer Citizenship and Relationship Management Marketing: A sociological analysis of marketing textbooks”

Section on Children and Youth Invited Session. Sociological Perspectives in Federally Funded Research on Children Unit: Section Invited
Scheduled Time: Tue, Aug 23 – 10:30am – 12:10pm
Session Submission Role: Panelist
Section on Children and Youth Paper Session. Social Context, Public Policy, and Child and Adolescent Well-being
Unit / Sub Unit: Social Context, Public Policy, and Child and Adolescent Well-being.
Scheduled Time: Tue, Aug 23 – 2:30pm – 4:10pm
Non-Presenter: “Child Care and Common Illness Among Preschoolers”

Kendig, Sarah M
Table 10. Family and Adolescence Section on Social Psychology Roundtable. (co-sponsored with the Sociology of Emotions)
Scheduled Time: Tue, Aug 23 – 10:30am – 12:10pm
Presenter: “Race/Ethnic and Class Differences in the Timing of First Sex and Adolescent Pregnancy: Considering Girls’ Mattering?

Minagawa, Yuka
Table 10. Comparative and Historical Criminology
Sub Unit: Section on Crime, Law, & Deviance Roundtable
Scheduled Time: Tue, Aug 23 – 8:30am – 10:10am
Presenter: “The Social Consequences of Post-Communist Structural Change: An Analysis of Suicide Trends in Eastern Europe”

Section on Sociology of Education Paper Session. New Perspectives on Gender Inequality in Education
Unit: Open Topic on Sociology of Education (4 Sessions).
Scheduled Time: Tue, Aug 23 – 10:30am – 12:10pm
Session Submission Role: Presider
Table 08. International and Comparative Perspectives on Educational Outcomes
Unit: Section on Sociology of Education Roundtable.

Perez, Marcos Emilio
Table 10. Income Inequality – Empirical Evidence
Unit: Section on Economic Sociology / Section on Economic Sociology Roundtable
Scheduled Time: Tue, Aug 23 – 12:30pm – 1:30pm
Presenter: “Opportunities for a Few: Pro-market Economic Policies and the Regressive Redistribution of Income”

Reczek, Corinne E.
Section on Medical Sociology Paper Session. Mechanisms of Health: Qualitative and Quantitative Perspectives
Scheduled Time: Tue, Aug 23 – 12:30pm – 2:10pm
Presenter: “The Promotion of Unhealthy Habits in Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Intimate Partnerships”

Shifrer, Dara
Section on Sociology of Education Paper Session. Exploring Racial-Ethnic Inequalities from Kindergarten to College
Open Topic on Sociology of Education (4 Sessions).
Scheduled Time: Tue, Aug 23 – 8:30am – 10:10am
Session Submission Role: Presider

Williams, Christine L.
Thematic Session. Gender Disparities in Careers across the Occupational Hierarchy
Scheduled Time: Tue, Aug 23 – 12:30pm – 2:10pm
Presenter: “Gender and the Neoliberal Career”

Happening Sunday, August 21st

Congratulations to Dr. Christine Williams, Sociology Department Chairperson and this year’s Sociologist for Women in Society Feminist Lecturer Award! Christine will be honored this evening at ASA.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by to say hello at the Department Alumni Night event last night! It was great to see some unexpected visitors and swap ASA stories. We will be bringing back some good ideas, so not everything that happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.

Sunday August 21st UTSOC Presentations and Roundtables

Augustine, Jennifer March
Section on Children and Youth
Table 05. Getting and Being Married
Section on the Sociology of the Family Roundtables
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 12:30pm – 1:30pm Session Submission Role:Table Presider

Bylander, Maryann
Regular Session. International Migration
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 8:30am – 10:10am
Session Submission Role: Presider

Danielle Dirks (PhD 2011, Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, Occidental College)
Regular Session. Law and Society
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 2:30pm – 4:10pm
Non-Presenter: “Tooled for Capacity: Subverting Justice for Juveniles in Texas’ Municipal Courts”
Student Forum Advisory Panel
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 10:30am – 12:10pm

Hamrock, Caitlin
Table 10. Achieved and Ascribed Characteristics at Work
Unit: Section on Organizations, Occupation, and Work Roundtable
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 10:30am – 11:30am
Presenter: “The Relationship Between Field of Degree and Field of Occupation: Does Education Socialize or Signal?”

Hayward, Mark D
Regular Session. Health and Well-Being
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 10:30am – 12:10pm
Non-Presenter: Race/Ethnic Differences in Health among Children Who Live with Parents or Grandparents, U.S. 1972-2009.

Hofmann, Erin
Regular Session. International Migration
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 8:30am – 10:10am
Presenter: “Global Changes and Gendered Responses: The feminization of migration from Georgia”

Hummer, Robert A
Regular Session. Racial and Ethnic Diversity in Population Processes in the United States
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 2:30pm – 4:10pm
Non-Presenter: “Temporal Changes in Self-Rated Health: APC Models of Racial Disparities”

Kendig, Sarah M
Table 03. Intra-Familial Investments Section on the Sociology of the Family Roundtable
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 12:30pm – 1:30pm Table Presider

Kuo, Janet
Table 06. Parenting Section on the Sociology of the Family /Roundtables
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 12:30pm – 1:30pm
Presenter: “Causal Effects of Father Involvement on Childrens’ Psychological Well-being in Two Biological-Parent Families in Taiwan”

Manglos, Nicolette Denise
Section on Sociology of Religion Paper Session. Comparative Religions at Home and Abroad
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 12:30pm – 2:10pm
Presenter: “Thresholds of Trust: Dynamics of Ethno-Religious Incorporation for Today’s Ghanaian Migrants”
Table 11. Religion and Political Action
Unit: Section on Sociology of Religion Roundtable
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 8:30am – 9:30am
Presenter on individual submission: “Religion and Political Engagement in Sub-Saharan Africa”

Paredes, Cristian Luis
Table 17. Global Ethnicity
Unit: Section on Racial and Ethnic Minorities Roundtables
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 2:30pm – 3:30pm
Presenter on individual submission: “The Structuring Effects of Racial Agency in Peru”

Pieper, Christopher
Table 12. Religion and Social Action
Sub Unit: Section on Sociology of Religion Roundtable
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 8:30am – 9:30am
Presenter: “What Would Jesus Protest?: A Map of Progressive and Conservative Christian Movement Dynamics, 1960-2000″

Regnerus, Mark D.
Thematic Session. The Cultural War and Red/Blue Divide: Re-examining the Debate Demographically and Behaviorally – Panelist
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 10:30am – 12:10pm

Robinson, Brandon Andrew – Brandon is a member of our Fall 2011 graduate cohort
Table 05. Collective Behavior and Social Movements
Unit: Section on Sociology of Sexualities Roundtable
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 2:30pm – 3:30pm
Presenter: “This is What Equality Looks Like? How Dutch LGBT Assimilation Marginalizes Gender Non-Conformists”

Rountree, Meredith
Regular Session. Law and Society
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 2:30pm – 4:10pm
Presenter: “I’ll Make Them Shoot Me: Accounts of Death Row Prisoners Advocating for Execution”

Stephan, Rita
Section on Peace, War, and Social Conflict Paper Session. Women and Peacebuilding
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 2:30pm – 4:10pm
Session Submission Role: Presider

Williams, Christine L.
Section on Organizations, Occupations, and Work Business Meeting
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 11:30am – 12:10pm
Session Submission Role: Participant

Yu, Wei-hsin
Section on Organizations, Occupation, and Work Paper Session. The New World of Work
Scheduled Time: Sun, Aug 21 – 12:30pm – 2:10pm
Presenter: “Better Off Jobless? Scar Effect of Contingent Employment in Japan”

Saturday ASA events

Happening Today:

Department Alumni Night from 9:30 -11:30 in the Augustus I & II, Emperor’s level of Caesar’s Palace

Saturday, August 20th UT SOC presentations:

Brown, Dustin C
Regular Session. Health Issues in Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered Studies
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 10:30am – 12:10pm
Presenter on individual submission: “Same-Sex Cohabitation and Self-Rated Health”

Charrad, Mounira Maya
Regular Session. Middle East and Muslim Societies
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 8:30am – 10:10am
Non-Presenter: “The Moroccan Gentle Revolution: Women’s Activism and 2004 Reforms of Islamic Law”
Section on Comparative/Historical Sociology Paper Session. Islam and the Modern World

Chen, Wenhong
Table 19. The Impact of Modern Technology – Refereed Roundtables.
Unit / Sub Unit: Section on Community and Urban Sociology
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 8:30am – 10:10am
Presenter: “The Social Capital Effects: Embedded Resources, Tie Strength, and the Digital Divides”

Ebot, Jane Ofundem
Table 02. Causes and Consequences of Health for Children
Unit / Sub Unit: Section on Sociology of Population Refereed Roundtable.
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 4:30pm – 5:30pm
Presenter: “There’s No Place Like Home: Urban-rural Differentials in Nutritional Status among Children in Ethiopia”

Frederick, Angela
Regular Session. Narrative, Biography, and Culture
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 8:30am – 10:10am
Presenter: “Bringing Narrative In: Storytelling, Political Ambition, and Womens’ Paths to Public Office”

Henderson, Andrea
Regular Session. Religion
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 8:30am – 10:10am
Presenter: “Race-based Discrimination, Religious Involvement and Mental Health among Black Americans”

Hopkins, Kristine
Regular Session. Immigrant Communities/Families II: Family Dynamics and Parenting
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 2:30pm – 4:10pm
Non-Presenter: “Acculturation and Parent-Teen Communication about Sex among Mexican-origin Families”

Lariscy, Joseph Tyler
Regular Session. Immigrant Communities/Families II: Family Dynamics and Parenting
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 2:30pm – 4:10pm
Presenter: “Acculturation and Parent-Teen Communication about Sex among Mexican-origin Families”

Masters, Ryan Kelly
Table 03. Theory and Political Ideology
Unit: Student Forum Session
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 10:30am – 12:10pm
Session Submission Role: Table Presider

Paxton, Pamela
Table 12. Gender and Politics
Unit: Section on Political Sociology Roundtable
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 4:30pm – 5:30pm
Non-Presenter: “Criminal Violence, Political Resources, and Women’s Political Victories”
Table 13. Civil Discourse and Civic Engagement
Unit: Section on Political Sociology Roundtable
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 4:30pm – 5:30pm
Presenter: “Checkbooks in the Heartland: Change Over Time in Voluntary Association Membership”

Reczek, Corinne E.
Regular Session. Health Issues in Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered Studies
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 10:30am – 12:10pm
Presenter: Same-Sex Cohabitation and Self-Rated Health
Section on Medical Sociology Paper Session. Mechanisms of Health: Qualitative and Quantitative Perspectives
Scheduled Time: Tue, Aug 23 – 12:30pm – 2:10pm
Presenter: “The Promotion of Unhealthy Habits in Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Intimate Partnerships”

Shifrer, Dara
Regular Session. Disability and Social Life
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 8:30am – 10:10am
Presenter: “Social Influences on the Attitudes and Behaviors of High School Students Identified with LD”
Section on Sociology of Education Paper Session. Exploring Racial-Ethnic Inequalities from Kindergarten to College

Shaw, Vivian
Table 02. Gender and Culture
Unit: Student Forum Sessions
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 10:30am – 12:10pm
Session Submission Role: Table Presider

Stephan, Rita
Regular Session. Middle East and Muslim Societies
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 8:30am – 10:10am
Presenter : “The Moroccan Gentle Revolution:Women’s Activism and 2004 Reforms of Islamic Law”

Stroud, Angela R.
Table 05. Gender and Violence
Unit: Section on Sex and Gender Roundtable
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 4:30pm – 5:30pm
Presenter on individual submission: “Gender, Violence and Concealed Handgun Licensing”

Young, Michael
Regular Session. Religion II
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 2:30pm – 4:10pm
Presenter: “Rebellion and Breakthrough: Evangelical Disruptions, Social Movements, and the Transformation of American Values”

Zarrugh, Amina
Table 05. Gender and Violence
Unit: Section on Sex and Gender Roundtable
Scheduled Time: Sat, Aug 20 – 4:30pm – 5:30pm
Presenter: “Revenge of the Virtuous Women”: Framing of Gender and Violence in Palestinian Militant Organizations”