GENERAL SOCIOLOGY

The main objective of the course in General Sociology is to provide students with the essential knowledge and main sociological concepts. In this way, the course introduces sociology as a scientific discipline that studies society in its relational and institutional dimensions. The student can be trained to explore social reality avoiding "taken for granted perspective" with different activities and seminars, workgroups and other possibilities to co-create the sociology course learning path.

The course is divided into three modules. The first is dedicated to the sociological fundamentals 

The second module is a monographic exploring a classic of the Italian sociological panorama: Luigi Sturzo

The third module aims at representing the current debate in the social sciences through the possibility for the student to choose from a list of OER (open educational resources) articles from class A scientific journals for the ERC sector 14 / C1 "Sociolgia Generale". The selection of the resources of the third module was carried out in compliance with the educational objectives of the social educator and community curriculum. The class mission is: giving to the students the specific language of the discipline, the fundamental concepts and theories.

For ERASMUS students, it will be possible to integrate (in accordance with the Lecturer) the list with items in English, French, Spanish. 

If the teaching is given in a blended or full-online mode, the necessary changes with respect to what was previously stated may be introduced, in order to respect the program indicated in the Syllabus

Good level of general culture and information on the main events and social facts that characterise current affairs and public debate in Italy and abroad

It is an advantage to have already studied sociological subjects

It is an advantage to have already studied social research methodology

Basic topics: - Introduction to sociology: object, method, research and typology of sociological theories; - Social elements and processes: culture, structure, socialization, social interaction, groups and organizations, deviance and social control, stratification and social classes, social and ethnic inequality; - Inequalities;

Main social institutions: family, education, religion,

Society and change: collective behaviour and social movements.

Monographic topics: - Social change and research methodology in the classics of sociology, authors and issues. ​

MODULE 1:

- N. J. Smelser, Manuale di sociologia, il Mulino, Bologna 2011 ; Capitoli: I; II; III; IV; V; VI; VII; IX, X; XIII; XIV; XV; XIX

MODULE  2:

- Luigi Sturzo, Sulle questioni sociali, Bonanno, Acireale-Roma 2011 pp, 7-95

MODULE  3:  

• (QUADERNI DI SOCIOLOGIA - ITA) https://journals.openedition.org/qds/ 

Davide Sparti, « Il disordine dell’interazione », Quaderni di Sociologia [Online], 81- LXIII | 2019, online dal 01 juin 2020, consultato il 29 septembre 2020. URL: http://journals.openedition.org/qds/3493; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4000/qds.3493

Enrica Amaturo e Biagio Aragona, « Per un’epistemologia del digitale: note sull’uso di big data e computazione nella ricerca sociale », Quaderni di Sociologia [Online], 81- LXIII | 2019, online dal 01 juin 2020, consultato il 29 septembre 2020. URL: http://journals.openedition.org/qds/3508; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4000/qds.3508

Maurizio Bonolis e Lorenzo Sabetta, « Verso una congiunzione funzionale delle due “etiche” weberiane », Quaderni di Sociologia [Online], 81- LXIII | 2019, online dal 01 juin 2020, consultato il 29 septembre 2020. URL: http://journals.openedition.org/qds/3483; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4000/qds.3483

Debora Mantovani e Giancarlo Gasperoni, « Il divario di genere nell’interazione fra genitori e docenti nelle scuole italiane », Quaderni di Sociologia, 74 | 2017, 53-76. URL: https://journals.openedition.org/qds/1703 ;

Carlo Barone, Giovanni Abbiati e Davide Azzolini, « Quanto conviene studiare? », Quaderni di Sociologia, 64 | 2014, 11-40. URL: https://journals.openedition.org/qds/391 ;

Giovanni Abbiati, Gianluca Argentin, Giulia Assirelli, Carlo Barone e Antonio Schizzerotto, « Orientamento educativo e disuguaglianze di fronte all’istruzione universitaria in Italia: risultati da un esperimento randomizzato », Quaderni di Sociologia, 74 | 2017, 7-31. URL: https://journals.openedition.org/qds/1698 ;

Luca Bianchi e Serena Liani, « Fidarsi della fiducia? », Quaderni di Sociologia, 74 | 2017, 127-140. URL: https://journals.openedition.org/qds/1709 ;

Michelangelo Pascali, « Estetica ed etica del “cibo-senza cibo” », Quaderni di Sociologia [Online], 74 | 2017; DOI : 10.4000/qds.1705 URL: https://journals.openedition.org/qds/1705 ;

Davide Azzolini e Anna Ress, « Quanto incide il background migratorio sulle transizioni scolastiche? », Quaderni di Sociologia, 67 | 2015, 9-27. URL: https://journals.openedition.org/qds/338 

• (SOCIOLOGIA ITALIANA - ITA) https://sociologiaitaliana.egeaonline.it/it/21/archivio-rivista/rivista/3448053  

​Scienza, coscienza e democratizzazione della conoscenza. La presenza pervasiva della scienza nella società (Science, awareness and knowledge democratisation: The pervasiveness of science in society), di Massimo Pendenza  -

Algoritmi, cigni neri e virus: la crisi della pianificazione sociale nella modernità avanzata (Algorithms, black swans and virus: the crisis of social planning in advanced modernity), di Roberto Lusardi, Stefano Tomelleri  -

The time of emergency. On the governmental logic of preparedness, di Luigi Pellizzoni 

Scienza, expertise e senso comune: dimensioni simboliche e sociomateriali della pandemia (Science, expertise and commonsense: Symbolic and socio-material dimensions of the pandemic experience), di Olimpia Affuso, Maria Carmela Agodi, Flavio Antonio Ceravolo

Politiche e sistemi sanitari al tempo della pandemia da Covid-19: una lettura sociologica (Health policies and systems at the time of Covid-19 pandemy: A sociological interpretation), di Guido Giarelli, Giovanna Vicarelli

Studiare le disuguaglianze di salute in tempo di pandemia: una cornice teorica (A theoretical framework for studying health inequalities in pandemic times), di Marco Terraneo

Comunicare la scienza al tempo del Coronavirus: tra domanda e offerta di informazione (Science communication at the time of the coronavirus at the intersection of information demand and offer), di Barbara Saracino

La rivincita della scienza sul senso comune? Gli orientamenti di fiducia degli italiani all’inizio dell’emergenza Covid 19 (A revenge of science on common sense? Italians’ attitudes and trust towards science at the beginning of the Covid-19 emergency), di Monia Anzivino, Flavio Ceravolo, Michele Rostan

Parlare della pandemia su Facebook: un’analisi comparata del contenuto su dati generati dagli utenti a Bergamo, Milano e Padova (Talking about the pandemic on Facebook: A comparative content analysis of users’ contents from Bergamo, Milan and Padua), di Giuseppe Tipaldo, Renzo Carriero, Fabio Bruno, Giada Pasquettaz, Sara Rocutto

Una nuova centralità? La famiglia al tempo della pandemia tra ordinarietà e straordinarietà (A new centrality? The family at the time of a pandemic within ordinary and extraordinary practices), di Caterina Satta

Bambin@ nel lockdown: dematerializzazione e alleanze dei corpi nello spazio pubblico dell’emergenza pandemica (Children in lockdown: Disembodiment and re-embodiment through new kinships and alliances in the public space of the pandemic experience), di Ilenia Picardi

La pubblicità al tempo del Coronavirus (Advertising at the time of the coronavirus), di Francesco Giorgino

Frammenti di un discorso sociologico. Ovvero come la pandemia mette alla prova le scienze sociali (Fragments of a sociological discourse. The pandemic as a challenge for the social sciences), di Assunta Viteritti

• (SOCIOLOGICA - ENG) https://sociologica.unibo.it/ 

Systemic Integration and the Need for De-Integration in Pandemic Times - Elena Esposito

Interactional Anomie? Imaging Social Distance after COVID-19: A Goffmanian Perspective - Vincenzo Romania

Testing and Being Tested in Pandemic Times - David Stark

Complex Social Networks are Missing in the Dominant COVID-19 Epidemic Models - Gianluca Manzo

Making Bonds of Solidarity from Economic Exchange. A Review Essay - Federico Bianchi

Pandemic Practices, Part One. How to Turn “Living Through the COVID-19 Pandemic” into a Heuristic Tool for Sociological Theorizing - Tobias Werron, Leopold Ringel

On #BlackLivesMatter and Journalism - Sarah J. Jackson

•  (ITALIAN SOCIOLOGICAL REVIEW - ENG)  http://www.italiansociologicalreview.com/ojs/index.php?journal=ISR&page=issue&op=view&path%5B%5D=34

1. The Polish Peasant in Europe and America. Some Remarks after One Hundred Years - Giuseppina Cersosimo

2. Understanding, Explaining and Interpreting the Process of Shaping a Woman’s Subjectivity on the Example of Bell Hooks Autobiography. A Study of Women’s Autobiographies in the Context of Thomas and Znaniecki’s Research -Aneta Ostaszewska

3. Female Citizenship in Poland in the Light of Florian Znaniecki’s Ideas - Justyna Tomczyk

4. William Thomas and the Growth of American Sociology Between the 19th and 20th Century - Raffaele Rauty

5. Definition of the Situation – a Misunderstood and Undervalued Concept. The Contribution of Literature - Rosalba Perrotta

6. The Chicago School of Sociology and Youth Research: The Legacy of W. I. Thomas. From the Polish Peasant in Europe and America to the Child in America - Maurizio Merico

7. Maintaining Close and Intimate Relationships by Migrant Peasant Families at the Beginning of the 20th Century - Anna Dolińska

8. The Concept of Values in Florian Znaniecki’s Early Work - Michal Kaczmarczyk

9. Narrating the Self between Heterodoxy and Tradition. The Use of Personal Documents in Late Modernity - Giuseppe Toscano

10. When I Hear the Word Migrant... Research on Images and Stereotypes with Sentence Completion Technique - Maria Fobert Veutro

11. Inspired by ‘The Polish Peasant’. Autobiographies of Successful Students with an Immigrant Background - Mariagrazia Santagati

12. What is the Relationship between Theory and Research? Current Points from The Polish Peasant - Silvia Cataldi, Gennaro Iorio

13. Scientistic Prejudice and Methodological Pluralism - Angela Maria Zocchi

14. An Ethnic Relations between Immigrant-based Groups in the Light of Florian Znaniecki’s Theory. (Ethnic Relations as a Type of Social Relations: Case Study on Polish-Ukrainian Relations in Diaspora Situation) - Anna Fiń

15. The Polish Peasant after One Hundred Years: An Approach from the History of Sociology - Martin Bulmer

For Students coming from other Countries: Other options can be considered if the student presents a sociological scientific article discussed and approved by the lecturer in different EU languages such as (but not limited to) English, French or Spanish. 

The course aims to encourage effective student participation through the scheduling of an in itinere test. Within the course there is an optional in itinere (pathway) test, i.e. a written assignment on topics contained in module 2. The in-progress test can be taken by all those enrolled, including those not attending the course. The result is evaluated in thirtieths and is valid for one academic year (i.e. in the following examination sessions of the 2019-2020 academic year). The result is communicated to each student individually during the oral examination and integrated into the final assessment. The validity of the 2019-2020 academic year examination expires with the December 2020 session. All tests from previous years are no longer valid. However, students enrolled in courses from previous years may take the in-progress test by agreeing on a possible alternative with the lecturer. The date of the in-progress test and how to book it will be announced during the course of the lectures and published in good time.

Students who have not taken the in-progress test (or the validity of their test has expired) must take the test for Module 2(s) during the ORAL examination.

With regard to Module 3, 3 papers must be selected from the list of resources indicated in the programme and summarised according to the reference structure (available at https://prezi.com/view/AdNgkpAceucUZgpIs5tS/) in a report and a PowerPoint presentation that must be linked thematically and semantically. This activity can be carried out either individually or in groups. If the student decides to produce the papers (report and PowerPoint) in a group, the number of essays to be selected increases by one unit as the number of the group increases (e.g. 1 student = 3 essays; 2 students = 4 essays; 3 students = 5 essays). There is no limit to the size of the group.

The examination consists of written and oral tests, held during a single roll call per the procedures laid down by the examination board. The written test consists of multiple-choice questions and focuses on the topics contained in the textbook (Module I). Each examination begins with a written test on the day indicated as the date of the roll call in the examination calendar and is followed by an oral test on the same day or days indicated by the examination board. The result of the written test is only valid for the oral test of the same roll call. Candidates who have not obtained a passing mark in the written test (18/30) are not recommended to attend the oral test. The non-attendance at the oral test of a student who has passed the written test with flying colours is considered by the committee as a withdrawal from the examination.

The oral test covers the entire subject programme, with questions from the written test on Module I to be integrated with those on the papers taken during the in itinere test on the text indicated in Module II (if the in-itinere test was not taken, the text may be presented orally), and finally the presentation of a paper taking into consideration 3 articles taken from the list of those available in Module III.

 Criteria for awarding marks:

• Adequacy of expression with regard to content and method
• Ability to rework knowledge
• Systematicity of treatment
• The breadth of thematic awareness and lexical correctness
• Capacity for critical investigation
• Ability to make interdisciplinary connections
• Ability to transfer theoretical knowledge to operational contexts 

How is the condition of individuals who, compared to others, do not enjoy the same access to social rewards such as money, power and prestige?