Textbook on contemporary social thought

Now with SAGE Publishing, and co-authored by one of the foremost authorities on sociological theory, the Eighth Edition of Modern Sociological Theory by George Ritzer and Jeffrey Stepnisky provides a comprehensive overview of the major theorists and theoretical schools, from the Structural Functionalism of early 20th century through the cutting-edge theories of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. The integration of key theories with biographical sketches of theorists and the requisite historical and intellectual context helps students to better understand the original works of contemporary thinkers. New to this Edition A new chapter focuses theories of race, racism, and colonialism, as well as theories about indigenous peoples and theories from the “Global South” that challenge the work of scholars from Europe and North America. New material on colonialization, classical women theorists, and race, as well as new timelines in history chapters. The chapter on Symbolic Interactionism now discusses work on the sociology of emotions. The concluding chapter now discusses affect theory and theories of prosumption, one of the newest developments in consumer theory. The chapter on Contemporary Theories of Modernity includes new section on the work of Charles Taylor. New perspectives on the work of Immanuel Wallerstein have been added to the chapter on Neo-Marxian theories. The opening historical sketch chapters now include a discussion of colonialism as one of the forces that shaped modern society; new material on the historical significance of early women founders; and a section on theories of race.

The seventh edition of "Modern Sociological Theory" by George Ritzer, one of the foremost authorities on sociological theory, gives readers a comprehensive overview of the major contemporary schools of sociological thought. Key theories are integrated with biographical sketches of theorists, and theories are placed in their historical and intellectual context. This helps students to better understand the original works and helps them appreciate the diversity of contemporary theory.

Written by award-winning scholar, Jonathan Turner, Contemporary Sociological Theory covers the range of diversity of theory in nine theoretical traditions, and variants of theoretical approaches in these traditions. The result is a comprehensive review of present-day theorizing in sociology covering functional, evolutionary, ecological, conflict, interactionist, exchange, structuralist, cultural, and critical theories and the major proponents of these theories. Moreover, for each theoretical tradition, it origins are examined in a separate chapter with an eye to how classical theorists influenced the work of key contemporary scholars. This book will serve as a valuable resource for those readers seeking in-depth and comprehensive coverage of contemporary traditions in their historical contexts. Unlike many texts, coverage is comprehensive and deep. The theories and their origins are examined in detail so that readers can fully understand the origins and present profile of theories in present-day sociology. Unlike many texts that skim over theories on the surface, this book seeks to unlock for the reader their underlying structure of each theory. The book is written in a modular format so that theories and traditions can be examined in any order, and in many diverse combinations. If desired, only the contemporary theories can be read without attention to their historical contexts, or the reverse is true if readers want to understand the historical origins of a particular theoretical tradition. Since Jonathan Turner is an active theorist in his own right, he brings to the book an appreciation of how theories are created as an insider rather than as only a commentator on theory. As such, he is able to bring out the underlying assumptions, structure, and form of a theory in new and interesting ways for casual readers and scholars alike.

Contemporary Sociological Theory and Its Classical Roots: The Basics is a brief survey of sociology′s major theorists and theoretical approaches, from the Classical founders to the present.

Combines the major writings of sociology's core contemporary theorists with a historical and theoretical framework for understanding these works. This text enables students to compare and contrast core concepts and ideas, stresses contemporary applications and examples, and provides a variety of visuals and pedagogical devices.

This volume is designed as a basic text for upper level and graduate courses in contemporary sociological theory. Most sociology programs require their majors to take at least one course in sociological theory, sometimes two. A typical breakdown is between classical and contemporary theory. Theory is perhaps one of the bro- est areas of sociological inquiry and serves as a foundation or framework for more specialized study in specific substantive areas of the field. In addition, the study of sociological theory can readily be related to various aspects of other social science disciplines as well. From the very beginning sociology has been characterized by alternative theoretical perspectives. Classical theory includes the European founding figures of the dis- pline whose works were produced during the later half of the nineteenth century and the first couple of decades of the twentieth century plus early American th- rists. For most of the second half of the twentieth century, a fairly high consensus has developed among American sociologists regarding these major founders, p- ticularly with regard to the works of Durkheim and Weber in analyzing the overall society and of Simmel in analyzing social interaction processes. Since the late 1960s and early 1970s the influence of Marx has also been recognized. Recent decades have also witnessed an increased emphasis on the important contributions of several pioneering feminist perspectives in the early years of sociology.

This book is a comprehensive overview of several major schools of sociological theory. Looking at various approaches from different cultural contexts, Abraham first explains conflicting views about the meaning of sociological theory itself, then analyzes the basic sociological concepts of "system," "structure," "function," and "conflict", and the methodology of sociological theory. Designed to familiarize students with contemporary schools of theory--including the most recent trends--the book clearly defines structural functionalism, conflict theory, symbolic interactionism, and phenomenological 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.

For one-semester, junior/senior-level courses in Contemporary Sociological Theory, or in a Classical and Contemporary Theory course. This text examines the assumptions and concepts of the five major sociological theories and the classical roots of the modern theories. It focuses specifically on functionalism, conflict theory, theories of rational choice, symbolic interactionism, and phenomenology.