Textbook which introduces students to a new, comprehensive understanding of sociological theory.

The works of Emile Durkheim have had an enormous influence on sociology. This book provides, first, a clearly written introduction to Durkheim's major works, looking at each of the major fields to which he contributed. Secondly, it examines the ways in which Durkheim has continued to provide inspiration in a variety of areas within sociology. It therefore focuses closely on live issues within the subject and shows the continuing relevance of Durkheim's work to issues of topical concern, such as the division of labour and class conflict, the state, race, education, law and deviance and religion. Thirdly, it provides an assessment of the interpretations of Durkheim as a 'radical' thinker, in contrast to the view of him as fundamentally conservative. It will provide a valuable introduction to students of one of sociology's founding fathers and will be of interest to those interested in sociology as a whole for its assessment of the contemporary relevance of Durkheim's thought for major issues.

Drawing on two decades of research into gay life in North America, Stephen O. Murray examines the emergence of gay and lesbian social life, the creation of lisbigay communities, and the political and social forces of resistance that have mobilized and nurtured a group identity. Murray also considers the extent to which there is a single "modern" homosexuality, the enormous range of gay behaviors, and more.

The Rewards of Punishment describes a new social theory of norms to provide a compelling explanation why people punish. Identifying mechanisms that link interdependence with norm enforcement, it reveals how social relationships lead individuals to enforce norms, even when doing so makes little sense. This groundbreaking book tells the whole story, from ideas, to experiments, to real-world applications. In addition to addressing longstanding theoretical puzzles—such as why harmful behavior is not always punished, why individuals enforce norms in ways that actually hurt the group, why people enforce norms that benefit others rather than themselves, why groups punish behavior that has only trivial effects, and why atypical behaviors are sometimes punished and sometimes not—it explores the implications of the theory for substantive issues, including norms regulating sex, crime, and international human rights.

Why is the United Nations not more effective on global environmental challenges? The UN Charter mandates the global organization to seek four noble aspirations: international peace and security, rule of law among nations, human rights for all people, and social progress through development. On environmental issues, however, the UN has understood its charge much more narrowly: it works for "better law between nations" and "better development within them." This approach treats peace and human rights as unrelated to the world's environmental problems, despite a large body of evidence to the contrary. In this path-breaking book, a leading scholar of global environmental governance critiques the UN's failure to use its mandates on human rights and peace as tools in its environmental work. The book traces the institutionalization and performance of the UN's "law and development" framework and the parallel silence on rights and peace. Despite some important gains, the traditional approach is failing for some of world's most pressing and contentious environmental challenges, and has lost most of the political momentum it once enjoyed. The disastrous "Rio+20" Summit laid this fact bare, as assembled governments failed to find meaningful agreement on any of the most pressing issues. By not treating the environment as a human rights issue, the UN fails to mobilize powerful tools for accountability in the face of pollution and resource degradation. And by ignoring the conflict potential around natural resources and environmental protection efforts, the UN misses opportunities to transform the destructive cycle of violence and vulnerability around resource extraction. The book traces the history of the UN's traditional approach, maps its increasingly apparent limits, and suggests needed reforms. Detailed case histories for each of the four mandate domains flag several promising initiatives, while identifying barriers to transformation. Its core implication: the UN's environmental efforts require not just a managerial reorganization but a conceptual revolution-one that brings to bear the full force of the organization's mandate. Peacebuilding, conflict sensitivity, rights-based frameworks, and accountability mechanisms can be used to enhance the UN's environmental effectiveness and legitimacy.

`The most up-to-date survey of the range of research in contemporary sociology, extremely useful to students, teachers, and researchers alike. Indispensable for collective and personal libraries' - Immanuel Wallerstein, Maison des Sciences de l'Homme, ParisThis unique Handbook provides state-of-the-art reviews of sociology conducted by prominent scholars. Drawing on dedicated knowledge and expertise, the book constitutes an unrivalled guide to the central theoretical and methodological perspectives in the discipline as a whole.The book is organized into six parts:o conceptual perspectiveso social and cultural differentiationo changing institutions and collective actiono demography, cities and housingo art and leisureo social problemsEach chapter includes a comprehensive review of the literature, covering the full range of work from contrasting traditions of thought and approaches.No existing work matches this Handbook for scholarly coverage and relevance. It is a primary resource for understanding the discipline. As such, it will appeal to lecturers, researchers and advanced graduate and undergraduate students in Sociology.

In this book Anthony Giddens addresses a range of issues concerning current developments in social theory, relating them to the prospects for sociology in the closing decades of the twentieth century. Composed of closely integrated papers, all written over the past few years, the book includes seven essays not previously published, plus two have not appeared in English before. In assessing the likely future evolution of sociology in particular, and the social sciences in general, the author both draws upon ideas established in his more abstract theoretical writings and examines critically competing traditions of thought. Those looking for an accessible introduction to Gidden's writing will find in this book a set of clear expositions of his basic ideas. By situating these ideas in relation to the critical assessment of the views of others, however, the author provides new sources of insight into the distinctiveness of his own claims.

Before there was economics, there was political economy, an interdisciplinary adventure boldly and critically seeking to understand capitalism. Over time, the social sciences evolved into specific disciplines-economics, sociology, political science-that less often questioned capitalist perspectives and the state. This accessible and hopeful book is a call to everyone-citizen, student, public intellectual-to revive the critical edge and ask if capitalism provides a society that promotes the well-being, indeed the survival, of humanity. It contrasts three traditions-neoclassicism, Keynesianism, and neo-Marxism-tracing the historical development of each and evaluating whether it views capitalism as the root cause of or the solution to the pressing problems now facing humanity, including war, poverty, racial and sexual inequality, and environmental crisis.