Readings Priority List

Since I wanted you to focus more on reading your books than reading class articles, I’m going to relegate most
of the articles to the least important categories, but make sure you have read the ones in the most important,
and important categories.

Most Important—
CV #30
CV#31
“Why are Young People Having So Little Sex?” By Kate Julian,
“Is Marriage really on the decline because of men’s cheap access to sex?” By Rose Hackman,
“Why are American men getting less marriageable” By Drake Baer,
“Cheap Sex and the Decline of Marriage” By Mark Regenerus
CV #36
CV #43
“How Our Housing ChoicesMake Adult Friendships More Difficult” By David Roberts
“The Case for Slowing Everything Down a Bit” by Ezra Klein

Important-- Know the General Subject Matter

CV #32
CV #33
CV #42
“An Ohio Community Confronts the Opiod Crisis Head On” By Jack Shuler

Least Important— (Don’t even worry about these.)

CV #44
CV #45
CV #46
CV #48
CV #49
CV #27
CV #28
CV #29
CV #5
CV #37
CV#38
CV #39
CV #40
CV #51
CV#52
CV #53
Book Reviews
Make sure you have a general understanding of the book presentations your classmates gave.

Book Review: Dream Hoarders by Richard Reeves—Liv, Bianca, Payton, and Samantha

Book Review: American Prison by Shane Bauer—Cheyanne, Marvin, Kristen, Taylor, and Alex

Book Review: Dreamland by Sam Quinones—Jenna, Cristian, and Kelly

Book Review Palaces for the People by Eric Klineberg—Rhiley, Madiha, and Kaylyn

Key Concepts/Vocabulary From Notes

1. Crime vs. Deviance
2. Internal and External Controls
3. Positive and Negative Sanctions
4. Formal or Informal Sanctions
5. Functionalist vs. Conflict vs. Symbolic Interactionist vs. Feminist Views of Crime and Deviance
6. Rehabilitation
7. Deterrance
8. Prison Industrial Complex
9. Mass Incarceration
10. Blocked Opportunities
11. Labeling Theory
12. Difference between victimization Data, Arrest Data, and Conviction Data
13. Victimless Crimes
14. How is justice system overburdened?
15. Examples of Medical and Cultural Pressure that affect drug use
16. Behavioral and Structural Interventions
17. Single Payer vs. Private for Profit (CV#43)
18. How do Americans get insurance?
19. Reasons why healthcare is expensive
20. Functionalist view vs. Conflict View vs. Symbolic Interactionist View of Healthcare
21. The Sick Role
22. Medicalization
23. Household vs. Family
24. Nuclear vs. Extended Family
25. Changes in Families Since the 1960s
26. Why did the divorce raise increase during the 1960s-1980s?
27. Functionalist vs. Conflict vs. Symbolic Interactionist vs. Feminist Views of Family
28. Instrumental and Expressive Roles
29. Sexual Double Standard
30. Sources of Social Change
31. Perspectives on Social Change—Reactionary, Conservative, Liberal, Radical, Rise and Fall
32. Social Movements
33. Reactionary, Conservative, Liberal, Radical, and Expressive Social Movements
34. Impairment vs. Disability
35. Ableism
36. American’s With Disabilities Act

SOCY 105 Social Problems: Essays

Dr. Rachel E. Sullivan
Spring 2019 Semester

1. Compare and contrast the Conflict, Functionalist, and Symbolic Interactinist perspectives on incarceration and the
criminal justice system. Make sure you include the key concepts related to each perspective (e.g. deterrence;
mass incarceration, prison industrial complex, rehabilitation, etc). Which perspective do you find to be more
compelling? Explain why you prefer that perspective.

2. Families have undergone many changes over the past 50 years. Pick two of the following theoretical
perspectives--Conflict, Functionalism, Symbolic Interactionism, and Feminism—and describe how a theorist
using your two frameworks would view the massive changes in family. Make sure you give specific examples of
social changes and describe how those trends would likely be viewed from that perspective.

3. In our class discussion we talked about reasons why healthcare is so expensive in the US. Name and describe 6
reasons why healthcare is so expensive in the US, then discuss what you think we could do to lower health care
costs.

4. In the essays by , “Is Marriage really on the decline because of men’s cheap access to sex?” By Rose Hackman,
“Why are American men getting less marriageable” By Drake Baer, “Cheap Sex and the Decline of Marriage” By
Mark Regenerus the authors debate why marriage is happening later and becoming less revered in American
culture. Describe the thesis of each article, and tell me which article you agree with most. Exlain why you find
that article most compelling?