Everyday Sociology Blog

Thinking Sociologically About Holidays

By Karen Sternheimer Did you or anyone you know find this last holiday season stressful? Sociology can help us understand some of the reasons why holiday celebrations might be difficult—and why people keep doing things the same way eac

Shopping and Crowds

By Jonathan Wynn I like crowds. I remember feeling emotionally overcome as part of the group when I was in the front row at a Radiohead concert in Madison Square Garden or at the greatest comeback in NFL history. Being caught up in the

The Failure of Grades

By Peter Kaufman I recently had to do the one thing that I dislike most about being a college professor: assign final grades. For me, giving out grades is definitely a necessary evil. I find it so frustrating that an entire semester of thi

The Sociology of Education: Can Professors Teach?

By Janis Prince Inniss If you fail a required class, you would have to repeat it to get credit, right? And what are some of the factors that influence your grades, what you learn, how well you learn, and whether or not you pass a class? A

Doing Sociology

By Peter Kaufman When students begin studying sociology one of the first questions they always ask (or have someone ask them) is: “What do you do with sociology?” What’s really being asked here is: What jobs can you get with a sociology d

Sociology vs. the Obvious

By Karen Sternheimer What is sociology? This question may seem obvious (especially—I hope—if you have taken or are taking a sociology class), but when I asked this question on a midterm years ago, I observed a troubling pattern. While th

Asking Sociological Questions

By Janis Prince Inniss If you’ve been a long-time visitor to our site—welcome back and thanks—you’ve hopefully gained some sociological insights into several topics. But you may still wonder what sociologists do. The main reason that I lo

Sociology Selects a Presidential Running Mate

By Karen Sternheimer Suppose you were in the unlikely position of choosing a running mate for your presidential bid. The right choice could help you become the most powerful person on earth. Make the wrong one and you risk becoming the p