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Since
the founding of the department, sociological theory has been one of the
principle areas of graduate specialization. The department offers training
in the development of explanatory theorizing—broadly conceived—while
also addressing approaches to theorizing in the past and present. Particular
emphasis is on the development of abstract theoretical models and propositions
from the work of classical theorists, from sets of research findings, and
from more recent theoretical approaches. The department requires that all
incoming students, whatever their background, take a two-course theory sequence.
The first core course addresses the early masters of sociological theory,
especially Herbert Spencer, Karl Marx, Max Weber, Geog Simmel, Emile Durkheim,
and George Herbert Mead. The second course offers an overview of contemporary
theories and theorists. In this second course, the list of theorists can
vary, but includes the key figures working within the main traditions of
present-day theory. Among the often-discussed theorists are Peter Blau,
Randall Collins, Pierre Bourdieu, Jurgen Habermas, Talcott Parsons, and
others from a variety of theoretical traditions. In addition to these two,
required core courses, those choosing to specialize in theory will take
seminars on special topics that are offered every year. |
