Sociology

This text offers a straightforward approach to the fundamental concepts and principles of modern sociology. Combining principles with realistic applications, the book aims to demonstrate how sociology can be related to real life concerns and decisions, and how its methods can be applied to issues of public policy, problems and controversies. Cross-cultural findings and differing critical perspectives are incorporated into the text. This eighth edition has been updated and offers new chapters on groups and organizations, power, politics and government, and economy and work. It also adds examples from businesses around the world, spotlighting how the methods of sociology are used in the workplace and in modern technological situations. Most chapters have been revised to incorporate recent sociological thinking on issues such as gender, race and ethnicity, ageing and health. The book also explores critical theory and perspectives, outlining the sociological theory behind the principles.

JOHN J. MACIONIS (pronounced ma-SHOW-nis) was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He received his bachelor's degree from Cornell University and his doctorate in sociology from the University of Pennsylvania. His publications are wide-ranging, focusing on community life in the United States, interpersonal intimacy in families, effective teaching, humor, new information technology, and the importance of global education. He and Nijole V. Benokraitis have edited the companion volume to this text, Seeing Ourselves: Classic, Contemporary, and Cross-Cultural Readings in Sociology. Macionis has also authored Society: The Basics, the leading brief text in the field, and he collaborates on international editions of the texts: Sociology: Canadian Edition (with Linda M. Gerber, from Prentice Hall Canada), Society: The Basics, Canadian Edition (with Cecelia Benoit and Mikael Jansson, also from Prentice Hall Canada), and Sociology: A Global Introduction (with Ken Plummer, published by Prentice Hall Europe). Sociology is also available in various international and foreign language editions. In addition, Macionis and Vincent Parrillo have written the urban studies text, Cities and Urban Life (Prentice Hall). The latest on all the Macionis textbooks, as well as news, information, and dozens of Internet links of interest to students and faculty in sociology, can be fund at the author's personal Web site, http://www.macionis.com or http://thesociologypage.com. Additional information, as well as online study guides for the texts, is available at the Prentice Hall site, http://www.prenhall.com/macionis

John Macionis is Professor and Distinguished Scholar of Sociology at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio. During a career of almost twenty-five years at Kenyon, he has chaired the Anthropology-Sociology Department, directed the college's multidisciplinary program in humane studies, and presided over the campus senate and also the college's faculty.

In 1998, the North Central Sociological Association named Macionis recipient of the Award of Distinguished Contribution to Teaching, citing his work with textbooks and his pioneering use of new technology in sociology.

Professor Macionis has been active in academic programs in other countries, having traveled to some fifty nations. In the fall of 1994, he directed the global education course for the University of Pittsburgh's Semester at Sea program, teaching 400 students on a floating campus that visited twelve countries as it circled the globe.

Macionis writes, "I am an ambitious traveler, eager to learn and, through the texts, to share much of what I discover with students, many of whom know so little about the rest of the world. For me, traveling and writing are all dimensions of teaching. First and foremost, I am a teacher―a passion for teaching animates everything I do." At Kenyon, Macionis offers a wide range of upper-level courses, but his favorite course is Introduction to Sociology, which he schedules every semester. He enjoys extensive contact with students and each term invites his students to enjoy a home-cooked meal.

The Macionis family―John, Amy, and children McLean and Whitney―live on a farm in rural Ohio. Their home serves as a popular bed and breakfast where they enjoy visiting with old friends and making new ones. In his free time, John enjoys bicycling through the Ohio countryside, swimming, sailing, and playing oldies rock and roll on his guitar. He is currently learning to play the Scottish bagpipes.

Professor Macionis welcomes (and responds to) comments and suggestions about this book from faculty and students. Write to the Sociology Department, Palme House, Kenyon College, Gambier, Ohio 43022, or direct e-mail to MACIONIS@KENYON.EDU