Ron's teaching interests include gender, men and masculinity, intimate relationships, parenting, and introduction to sociology.   His research interests center around gender and violence and he is currently working on two externally funded grants designed to 1) decrease violence among sixth graders, and 2) create healthy relationships for eleven to fourteen year olds. Throughout his career he has published articles and chapters examining adjustment to chronic disease, pedagogy, and the impact of student engagement on achievement. His works include The Spirit of Sociology; Hell on Earth: Working and the American Dream; and The Inmate Experience.

Ron is married to Linda Matson and has four married children and eight grandchildren.  Their enthusiasm for learning, and for life, has fueled his career and will for years to come.

Topic 1 Introduction to the Discipline

Topic 2 Sociology as a Science

Part II The Organization of Society

Topic 3 Culture

Topic 4 Socialization

Topic 5 Social Structure and Social Interaction

Topic 6 Social Groups

Topic 7 Deviant Behavior and Social Control

Part III Social Inequalities

Topic 8 Social Class

Topic 9 Race and Ethnicity

Topic 10 Gender

Part IV Social Institutions

Topic 11 Family

Topic 12 Education and Religion

Topic 13 Politics and the Economy

Part V Social Change in a Modern World

Topic 14 Population and Ecology

Topic 15 Technology and Globalization

 * is new to this edition

Topic 1 Introduction to the Discipline

1          Invitation to Sociology by Peter Berger

2          The Sociological Imagination by C. Wright Mills

3          Careers in Sociology by W. Richard Stephens

Topic 2 Sociology as a Science

4*         Introduction to Sociological Theory by George Ritzer

5          Tell Them Who I Am:  The Lives of Homeless Women by Elliot Liebow

6*         Internet Research Ethics by Heidi A. McKee and James E. Porter

Topic 3 Culture

7          Body Ritual among the Nacerima by Horace Miner   

8*         College Culture, Hooking Up, and Women by Laura Hamilton and Elizabeth A. Armstrong

9*         Sociology and the Gene:  Revisiting Culture by Kate Ledger

Topic 4 Socialization

10        A Note on Extreme Isolation by Kingsley Davis         

11*       Growing Up Fast is Hard to Do by Frank F. Furstenberg Jr., Sheela Kennedy, Vonnie C. McLoyd, Ruben G. Rumbaut, and Richard A. Settersten, Jr.

12        Black Adolescents’ Racial Socialization Experiences by Madonna Constantine and Sha’kema Blackmon

Topic 5 Social Structure and Social Interaction

13*       The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life by Erving Goffman

14        The Saints and the Roughnecks by William J. Chambliss

15*       The Lucifer Effect:  Understanding How Good People Turn Evil by Phillip Zimbardo

Topic 6 Social Groups

16        The Amish by Donald B. Kraybill

17        Size Six:  The Western Woman’s Harem by Fatima Mernissi

18        Alcohol Consumption, Strength of Religious Beliefs, and Risky Sexual Behavior in College Students by Ronald L.Poulson, Marion A. Eppler, Tammy N. Satterwhite, Karl L.Wuensch, and Lessie A. Bass

Topic 7 Deviant Behavior and Social Control

19        Being Sane in Insane Places by D. L. Rosenhan

20        Fraternities and Collegiate Rape Culture by A. Ayres Boswell and Joan Z. Spade      

21        Buckle Bunnies:  Groupies of the Rodeo Circuit by DeAnn K. Gauthier and Craig J. Forsyth

Topic 8 Social Class

22*       The Culture of the New Capitalism by Richard Sennett

23*       Unmarried with Children by Kathryn Edin and Maria Kefalas

24        Wal-Mart and County-Wide Poverty by Stephan Goetz and Hema Swaminathan

Topic 9 Race and Ethnicity

25*       Structured Inequality in the U.S. by Adalberto Aguirre, Jr. and David V. Baker

26        Maid in L.A. by Pierrette Hondagneu-Sotelo

27        Undoing Racism in America:  Help From a Black Church by Erika Vora and Jay Vora.

Topic 10 Gender

28*       The Global Subordination of Women by Cynthia Fuchs Epstein

29        Sexual Harassment and Masculinity:  The Power and Meaning of “Girl  Watching” by Beth Quinn

30        Men as Success Objects and Women as Sex Objects by Simon Davis

Topic 11 Family

31        Inequality Starts at Home by Dalton Conley

32        Relationship Quality Dynamics of Cohabiting Unions by Susan L. Brown    

33        Peer Marriage:  How Love between Equals Really Works by Pepper Schwartz

Topic 12 Education and Religion

34      The Meaning of Meanness:  Popularity, Competition, and Conflict among Junior High School Girls by Don E. Merten

35*       Bad Boys:  Public Schools and Black Masculinity by Ann Arnett Ferguson

36*       Being Muslim, Being American after 9/11 by Omid Safi

Topic 13 Politics and the Economy

37        The Power Elite by C. Wright Mills    

38        Somebodies and Nobodies:  The Abuse of Rank by Robert W. Fuller

39*       The (Futile) Pursuit of the American Dream by Barbara Ehrenreich

Topic 14 Population and Ecology

40        Katrina:  The Perfect Wilding Storm by Charles Derber

41        The Social Ecology of Skid Row by John Bardo, Jeff Riemer, Ron Matson, and Bob Knapp

42        Pollution by Milton Saier

Topic 15 Technology and Globalization

43        The McDonaldization of Society by George Ritzer

44*       The Virtual World as Life:  Coming to a Screen Near You by Jamie F. Metzl

45*       The Global Crisis in Health by Peter Morrall

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