General Sociology
Code: 104771 ECTS Credits: 6| Degree | Type | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Communication in Organisations | FB | 2 |
Contact
- Name:
- Lluís Sáez Giol
- Email:
- lluis.saez@uab.cat
Teaching groups languages
You can view this information at the end of this document.
Prerequisites
There are no prerequisites to take the course.
Objectives and Contextualisation
The objectives of the course are:
1) To offer an introduction to the sociological perspective, to its main topics of analysis and to the ideas and concepts of the classic authors
2) Analyse the main characteristics of the contemporary social structure, the trends of change and the main factors of inequality within the framework of the globalization process
3) Addressing contemporary social movements in the context of globalization and providing the necessary theoretical and conceptual framework
Competences
- Act with ethical responsibility and respect for fundamental rights and duties, diversity and democratic values.
- Act within one's own area of knowledge, evaluating sex/gender-based inequalities.
- Display thorough knowledge of the contemporary world in its social, economic, political and cultural dimensions.
- Introduce changes in the methods and processes of the field of knowledge to provide innovative responses to the needs and demands of society.
- Students must be capable of applying their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional way and they should have building arguments and problem resolution skills within their area of study.
- Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
- Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
- Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
- Take account of social, economic and environmental impacts when operating within one's own area of knowledge.
- Work in compliance with professional codes of conduct.
Learning Outcomes
- Analyse a situation and identify its points for improvement.
- Analyse and describe the basic precepts of contemporary social structure and dynamics.
- Communicate using language that is not sexist or discriminatory.
- Develop critical thinking skills and generate original ideas on the current social context.
- Distinguish and interpret the specific logic of the various contemporary social movements.
- Identify situations in which a change or improvement is needed.
- Identify the main inequalities and discriminations in terms of sex/gender present in society.
- Identify the social, economic and environmental implications of academic and professional activities within one?s own area of knowledge.
- Include scientific standpoints that differ from one's own in the analysis of social actors and movements.
- Interpret and discuss documents on the main theories of sociology.
- Interpret the characteristics of the knowledge society and the role played in it by the different social actors and movements.
- Plan and conduct academic studies in the field of sociology.
- Present a summary of the studies made, orally and in writing.
- Propose viable projects and actions to boost social, economic and environmental benefits.
- Value the characteristics of the persons, groups or institutions that are actors of social change for reasons of ideology, race, gender, etc.
- Weigh up the impact of any long- or short-term difficulty, harm or discrimination that could be caused to certain persons or groups by the actions or projects.
Content
The course content will be sensitive to issues related to gender perspective and the use of inclusive language.
Part I.The sociological perspective
The perspective and the sociological imagination. Social structure and inequality. The process of socialization. Social institutions. Personal and collective identities. Power, domination and social order. Hegemony and counter-hegemony. Social change. The birth of sociology and modernity. The classic authors: Marx, Durkheim, Weber, Simmel, Freud.
Part II. Globalization and Social Structure
Social classes. Gender, sexuality and family. Racism, ethnicity, migration. Intersectionality and social reproduction. Neoliberalism. The process of globalization. States, international institutions and multinational firms. Globalization and global sociology.
Part III.Contemporary social movements
The concept of social movement. Basic concepts. Movements and social change. Revolutions. Time, space and social movements. The role of new technologies. The crises of 2008 and 2020 and the social movements of our time: the Arab spring, the 15M and the protests against austerity in southern Europe, Occupy, Black Lives Matters, the new feminist movement and the movement against climate change ...
Activities and Methodology
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type: Directed | |||
| Master classes | 31 | 1.24 | 2, 4, 9, 10, 5, 11, 15 |
| Type: Supervised | |||
| Seminars and discussion | 12 | 0.48 | 2, 4, 13, 9, 10, 5, 11, 15 |
| Type: Autonomous | |||
| External student work | 105 | 4.2 | 2, 4, 13, 9, 10, 5, 11, 12, 15 |
The course will be based on lectures and in-class application and deliberation activities.
The calendar will be available on the first day of class. Students will find all information on the Virtual Campus: the description of the activities, teaching materials, and any necessary information for the proper follow-up of the subject. In case of a change of teaching modality for health reasons, teachers will make readjustments in the schedule and methodologies.
Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.
Assessment
Continous Assessment Activities
| Title | Weighting | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Activities and participation in class | 10% | 0 | 0 | 2, 1, 3, 4, 13, 6, 9, 10, 5, 11, 15 |
| Coursework | 40% | 0 | 0 | 2, 1, 3, 4, 13, 8, 7, 6, 9, 10, 5, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16 |
| Exam | 50% | 2 | 0.08 | 2, 3, 8, 9, 10, 5, 11, 15 |
CONTINUOUS EVALUATION
The evaluation consists of three activities with the following evaluation criteria:
a)Exam (50%)
The qualification criteria of the exam will be based on the understanding of the key theoretical concepts studied.
b)Coursework (40%)
Detailed information on the group coursework to be done by students will be provided at the beginning of the course. The coursework will be done in groups.
c)Participation (10%)
Students participation in class activities and discussions. This section, due to its characteristics, will not be recoverable.
Note: To be weighted against the rest of the grades, both the exam and the coursework grade must be at least 4 out of 10.
Retake
Students will be entitled to the retake of the subject. They should present a minimum of activities that equals two-thirds of the total grading. If passed, the grade for each recovered section will be 5 out of 10.
SINGLE EVALUATION
The evaluation consists of two activities with the following evaluation criteria:
- An exam on class contents and readings (50%)
- Application coursework, individual or group (50%)
Note: To be weighted against the rest of the grades, both the exam and the coursework grade must be at least 4 out of 10.
Retake
Students will be entitled to the retake of the subject. They should present a minimum of activities that equals two-thirds of the total grading. If passed, the grade for each recovered section will be 5 out of 10.
NON-EVALUABILITY
If a student does not attend either exam session and/or does not complete the coursework, they will be considered "Not Evaluable".
PLAGIARISM
The student who performs any irregularity (copy, plagiarism, identity theft...) will be qualified with 0 in this assignment or exam. In case there are several irregularities, the final grade of the subject will be0.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
For this course, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies is permitted exclusively for support tasks, such as bibliographic or information searches, text correction, translations, or similar. Students must clearly identify any parts generated with these technologies, specify the tools used, and include a critical reflection on how AI has influenced the process and final outcome of the assignment. Failure to disclose the use of AI in this assessed activity will be considered a breach of academic integrity and may result in a partial or total penalty to the assignment grade, or more serious sanctions in severe cases.
Bibliography
General Bibliography
Aguilar, Salvador. 2001. Ordre i desordre, Barcelona: Hacer
Bottomore, Tom y Nisbet, Robert (eds.). 1988. Historia del análisis sociológico. Buenos Aires: Amorrortu
Castells, Manuel. 1997-8. La era de la información 3 vols Madrid: Alianza
Crompton, Rosemary. 1994. Clase y estratificación. Madrid: Tecnos.
Giddens, Anthony. 2009. Sociología (6a edició), Madrid: Alianza
Kerbo, Harold R. 1998. Estratificación social y desigualdad, Madrid: McGraw Hill
Martínez García José S. 2013. Estructura social y desigualdad en España, Madrid:Catarata.
Neveu, Erik. 2009. Sociología de los movimientos sociales. Barcelona: Hacer.
Sztompka, Piotr. 1993. Sociología del cambio social. Madrid: Alianza.
Tilly, Charles. 2009. Los movimientos sociales. Barcelona: Crítica.
Software
No applicable.
Groups and Languages
Please note that this information is provisional until 30 November 2025. You can check it through this link. To consult the language you will need to enter the CODE of the subject.
| Name | Group | Language | Semester | Turn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (TE) Theory | 7 | Catalan | second semester | afternoon |