Publisher's Synopsis
`I really like the community based approach. It offers students examples they can actually get their minds around better than some of the more large scale or abstract discussions; and shows them practical applications that many are likely to see in their own careers′ - Heather Feldhaus-Smith, Bloomsburg University
Offering a sociological perspective on social problems, this book provides an awareness that our personal experiences with problems that may arise in families, the workplace, health and medicine, the media, cities and suburbs, or with drug abuse, poverty, crime, the environment, and war and terrorism are often caused by structural or social forces. Unlike other texts, the book offers a balanced view through examining both the problems and attempts to resolve these pervasive social issues.
Key Features:
- Chapters address consequences and responses to social problems with a particular focus on social policy, advocacy, and community innovation
- "Voices in the Community" sections provide testimony from individuals that express personal experiences of social problems both as victims and help-givers
- Themes of race, class, and gender are integrated throughout the book to provide a multicultural perspective on social problems
- "Putting It Together" exercises within chapters encourage students to do further analysis in their own communities, on their own campuses, or on the Web
- Discussions on social policies and solutions offered by federal and state law makers, community based agencies, and advocacy groups are included
- "Taking a World View" boxes in chapters provide a comparative perspective on related social problems in other countries
- Timely and relevant data is thoroughly interspersed in tables and maps throughout the book
- Visual essays have been developed for each chapter to highlight a particular social problem or solution. In some essays, real families and individuals facing the problems under study in the chapter are introduced.
- Companion student study site on the Web offers unique learning tools such as electronic flash cards, interactive quizzes, Web site resources, a community policy guide and projects, along with service learning activities to encourage student awareness of effective community responses to social problems
Social Problems is a timely text that ties into recent discussions within the discipline on the commitment to "public sociology." This book takes students out of the classroom, away from their texts, and into their communities. It will serve as a vital and invaluable text for students in social problems courses in sociology or social work.
