Sociology: Introductory Readings

This text offers a comprehensive, yet challenging, set of readings for students approaching the study of sociology for the first time. A strong emphasis has been placed upon readability and liveliness. The volume includes contributions from newspapers and weekly periodicals as well as extracts from academic journals and books. It is designed as a companion to the fourth edition of Giddens' Sociology but can also be used independently, or alongside other textbooks. It is strongly comparative and stresses the influence of globalizing trends in social life. The readings range from studies of face-to-face interaction through to the analysis of large-scale global systems. There are many new selections in this volume including those on the Internet, the information revolution, poverty, social exclusion and ecological problems. The readings are broken up into sections and each section is preceded by a summary of the content in order to facilitate the students' comprehension.