Sociology

The mission of the Sociology program at MMC is to foster creative and rigorous research on the world’s most pervasive social phenomena. Through the cultivation of the sociological imagination, students achieve an understanding of the complex forces that shape the world and develop the skills necessary to analyze and change it for the better.

Sociology is organized around the study of complex forces that influence human behavior in modern societies and cultures. It emerged in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries as an effort to identify the underlying dynamics of urbanized industrial societies. From this period into the decades following World War II, its areas of inquiry highlighted social control, deviance and crime, the nature of social change, inequality, the economy, and religion. Today, sociology extends on research in these areas, but also explores race and ethnicity, sexuality and gender, science and technology, and culture, the media, and the arts.

Analysis of these issues is built on the discipline’s two pillars: theory and research. Sociology students at MMC are exposed to a variety of theoretical approaches and a range of qualitative and quantitative research skills. Outside of the classroom, the rich diversity of New York City serves as a laboratory for testing hypotheses and honing research skills.

With their emphasis on these skills and pressing areas of contemporary investigation, sociology faculty at MMC make a significant contribution to the major in Politics and Human Rights. In addition, the minor in Sociology supplements academic work in other areas by offering students exposure to the foundations of the discipline and encouraging advanced courses in social analysis.

Division:	Humanities and Social Sciences
Division Office:	Carson Hall 202
Phone:	646-393-4111
Division Chair:	Jennifer N. Brown, Ph.D. jbrown1@mmm.edu
Administrative Assistant:	Alexandra Dill adill@mmm.edu