Sociology and Anthropology
Faculty
Hillary Crane, Ph.D.
Robert Gardner, Ph.D. (Chair)
Amy Orr, Ph.D.
Evan Shenkin, Ph.D.
Leslie Walker, Ph.D. (Linfield Anthropology Museum Coordinator)
Sociology
Sociology is the scientific study of society, including social relations, institutions, and behaviors. To possess a sociological imagination is to see the strange in the familiar – to analyze the taken-for-granted, common sense understanding of our social worlds. The department emphasizes social research methods and social theory as core building blocks of the sociological enterprise. The department has several areas of expertise, such as: race and ethnicity; political sociology (social movements, rural and urban society); environmental sociology; community; and sociology of education. The core concepts of inequality and stratification (in the United States and from a global perspective) are emphasized across the curriculum.
- Social Work/Human Services Track: Sociology is a great major for those who want to pursue a career in social work or other human services professions. Our graduates can be found in a wide range of human service career areas, including, but not limited to, social work, counseling, public health, social policy, social services, education, health care, criminology, victim’s services, and law enforcement. This track allows students to cater the sociology curriculum to their specific needs and career interests. For further information, please visit: www.linfield.edu/soan/social-work-human-services.html.
Anthropology
Anthropology, the study of humanity, is both broad in its approach and global in its scope. Drawing on a wide variety of subdisciplinary perspectives – archaeological, cultural, physical, and linguistic – the field of anthropology provides means for understanding and appreciating other cultures and, through a comparative lens, a fresh perspective on our own. The program is composed of several interest clusters within anthropology, including symbolic anthropology, museums and material culture, archaeology, language and culture, gender and sexuality, anthropology of religion, and medical anthropology.
- The Linfield Anthropology Museum (LAM): One of the few undergraduate student curated museums in the country, the LAM provides hands-on training in exhibit design, installation, registration, and artifact conservation; opportunities to participate in Summer Archaeology Field Schools provide fieldwork in historic and prehistoric archaeology at various sites.
Program Strengths
The joint SoAn Department emphasizes close student-faculty interactions and collaboration in research and social practice. Our program provides opportunities for pursuing:
- Theoretical and Applied Learning: Students are well trained in research methods and social theory- the building blocks of our respective fields- which prepare them for their senior thesis projects and applied capstone experience. In the fall of their senior year, senior thesis projects allow students to pose an original research question and collect and analyze their own data. Eligible students can carry this project further and complete a full-year senior honors thesis. In the spring of their senior year, students complete an applied capstone experience or internship that allows them to build experience applying their coursework to address community needs and cultivate professional networks with area non-profits, companies, and service agencies.
- Student-faculty Collaborative Research: Working closely with SOAN faculty, students have completed projects examining a variety of faculty research interests, including: local Hispanic and migrant communities, homeless and other underserved local populations, disaster affected communities, educational inequality, people coping with celiac disease, rural electrification in the Andes, and sustainable agriculture. Departmental majors frequently present papers based on independent and collaborative research at regional academic conferences as well as at an annual on-campus academic symposium.
- Interdisciplinary and International Perspectives: Sociology and Anthropology faculty and students actively participate in Linfield’s Gender Studies, Latin American Studies, Asian Studies, Linguistics and Environmental Studies Programs. Departmental faculty and students are especially active with Linfield’s strong International Studies program, which includes a dozen semester programs as well as rotating January Term and summer courses on site in Guatemala, Ecuador, India, Peru, Nicaragua, Mexico, New Orleans, Scandinavia, Taiwan and elsewhere.
MISSION STATEMENT
The mission of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology is to assist our students in and out of the classroom in developing their ability to think and act critically and responsibly about the world and the place of humans as social beings within it. The ability of department faculty to do this hinges on our active development of teaching, research and service ideals and commitments.
Awards, Honors, and Organizations
Sociology Awards
The Howd Sociology Award was made possible through a gift of Dr. Cloice Howd, Class of 1912, in honor of his wife, Martha Wilson Howd, B.A. in Sociology, Class of 1931. The award is given annually to an outstanding sociology senior.
Anthropology Awards
The Gebauer Anthropology Award was created in 1971 to honor Dr. Paul Gebauer, B.A. Linfield, 1943, DD Linfield, 1952, for 30 years a missionary in the British Cameroons and former professor of Anthropology at Linfield. The award is given annually to an outstanding anthropology senior.
Departmental Honors
At graduation, a student who has successfully completed a senior honors thesis or curated an approved museum exhibit is eligible to receive a degree in the major with departmental honors.
Alpha Kappa Delta
The Department of Sociology and Anthropology maintains an active chapter of the international sociology honor society. Membership is open by invitation to any interested student in sociology or anthropology with appropriate academic qualifications.
Lambda Alpha
The Department of Sociology and Anthropology maintains an active chapter (Oregon Delta) of the international anthropology honor society. Membership is open by invitation to any interested student in anthropology or sociology with appropriate academic qualifications.
Pi Gamma Mu
Pi Gamma Mu is an international honor society that recognizes academic achievement among juniors and seniors in the social sciences. Membership is open to students who have completed at least 20 hours in the social sciences and meet the specified requirements for GPA and class ranking.
Courses
A list of the department’s infrequently taught courses can be found on the Registrar’s webpages.
Paracurricular Courses
SOAN 040 COMMUNITY SERVICE (1 credit)
Community service activity, helping with such social services as nursing home care, tutoring, family recreation programs, juvenile corrections, special day schools. Requires 40 hours of service. May be repeated for credit.
Prerequisites: Consent of instructor.
(EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING)
SOAN 085 EXPLORING SOCIOLOGY AND ANTHROPOLOGY (2 credits)
Paracurricular course designed for newly declared sociology and anthropology majors. Discussion of opportunities available to students, career options, meetings with SOAN faculty and senior majors, and completion of 30 hours of community service activities outside of class. Course taken during first fall semester after declaring the major (preferably in the sophomore year).
Prerequisites: Declared major in sociology or anthropology; consent of instructor.
(EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING)
Sociology & Anthropology Courses
SOAN 101 UNDERSTANDING OUR SOCIAL WORLD (4 credits)
An introduction to the sociological perspective. Emphasis on major concepts, theories and methods used by sociologists to understand human groups and societies. Explores how individuals shape and are shaped by interactions and large scale social forces, including deviance, crime, inequalities of race, class, and gender, education and social change. Students who earned credit for SOCL 101 may not enroll in this course.
Prerequisites: Freshman or sophomore standing or consent of instructor.
(INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES, U.S. PLURALISM)
SOAN 106 INTRODUCTION TO LINGUISTICS (3 credits)
An introduction to linguistics, the scientific study of human language. Consideration of languages as systems of sounds, forms, structures, meanings, and symbols. Attention will also be given to the biological, psychological, social, anthropological, and cultural aspects of language and language use. No background in languages other than English is required (although such background will be helpful and welcomed). (Listed as GLCS 106 and SOAN 106.)
Total Course fees: $20.00
Typically offered: Spring Semester, Even Years
(INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES)
SOAN 111 CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY (4 credits)
Anthropological study of culture and society; world cultures and their variation in social, political, and economic organization, belief systems and world view, material culture and the arts, patterns of adaptation. Assumptions, concepts, and methods of anthropologists. Students who earned credit in ANTH 111 may not enroll in this course.
Prerequisites: Freshman or sophomore standing or consent of instructor.
(GLOBAL PLURALISM, INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES)
SOAN 113 INTRODUCTION TO ARCHAEOLOGY (4 credits)
Introduction to archaeological method, theory and practice; explorationof the use of archaeological techniques to understand human behavior,past and present; collection and interpretation of archaeological data tounderstand culture and the human relationship with the natural world;activities including archaeological mapping, site location, use of satelliteimagery, soil analysis and stratigraphic interpretation, laboratory analysisand basic statistical interpretation of data; guest speakers and class fieldtrips may be arranged. Students who have previously taken ANTH 112 may not enroll in this course. Course does not fulfill the requirements of the sociology major or minor.
Total Course fees: $50.00
(NATURAL WORLD)
SOAN 198 SPECIAL TOPICS: JAN TRM TRAVEL (4 credits)
Topics vary according to faculty availability and interest. Past topics have included Down and Out in America; Prehistory and History of Ireland; Tradition and Change in Romania; Nepal - Sustainable Development and Social Change; City and Countryside in Transition - Nicaragua; Strangers in Strange Lands; City and Countryside in Transition - India; How Children Learn: Scandinavian Schools, Society, and Culture. Offered only as student interest and university resources permit. May be repeated for credit with different topics.
Prerequisites: IDST 098 previous fall.
Typically offered: January Term
SOAN 201 CRIME, DEVIANCE, AND SOCIAL CONTROL (4 credits)
A sociological approach to the study of crime and deviance. Emphasis on the social construction of crime/deviance, social causes of criminal/deviant behavior, and mechanisms used to control and punish those who break laws and violate social norms. Exploration of issues such as violent behavior, white- and blue-collar crime, drug use, gangs, and disparities in the criminal justice system. Course does not fulfill the requirements of the anthropology major or minor. Students who earned credit in SOCL 201 may not enroll in this course.
(INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES, U.S. PLURALISM)
SOAN 203 HUMAN ADAPTIVE STRATEGIES (4 credits)
Social scientific findings and ways of understanding humanity's place in nature and our current ecological predicament; causes and consequences (environmental, demographic, economic, political, and cultural) of humankind's transition from food foraging to Neolithic and now industrial adaptive strategies; scientific, policy and cultural implications and aspects of these changes and interactions through case studies at global, regional and local scales. (Listed as ENVS 203 and SOAN 203.)
Total Course fees: $60.00
Typically offered: Spring Semester, Even Years
(GLOBAL PLURALISM, INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES)
SOAN 205 GENDER AND SOCIETY (4 credits)
Comparison of historically and culturally situated conceptualizations of gender, gender identity, and gender inequality. Significance of gendered meanings and their symbolic representation in society and social institutions regarding distributions of social, economic, and political power. (Listed as GENS 205 and SOAN 205)
(INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES, U.S. PLURALISM)
SOAN 210 SPORT, PHILOSOPHY AND SOCIETY (4 credits)
Role of sport in contemporary political, economic, and social issues; sport as cultural representation; sport and deviance; sport and socialization; sport and the reproduction of social inequality (race, class, gender, and sexual orientation); sport and imperialism. (Listed as PHIL 210 and SOAN 210)
(ULTIMATE QUESTIONS)
SOAN 221 RELIGION, SOCIETY AND CULTURE (4 credits)
Examines religion and religious belief as a social phenomenon. Focuses on the relationship between society and religion, and the role that religion plays in individuals' lives, with special emphasis on the larger social and cultural context of religious belief and expression in the United States. Topics to be considered include: belief and its institutionalization, religion as a social form, forms of religious organization, religion and social change, politics and religion, fundamentalism, religion in popular culture, secularization, and the shifting boundaries of religious and non-religious activity.
(INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES, ULTIMATE QUESTIONS)
SOAN 222 IMPERIALISM IN LATIN AMERICA (4 credits)
Social organizations and cultures of Latin America. The intersection of race, class, and gender divisions in international development and underdevelopment. How social, political, and economic processes shape the life chances of diverse communities in Latin America. The underlying drivers of migration to the United States and the future of U.S. immigration policy.
(GLOBAL PLURALISM, INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES)
SOAN 224 DEATH IN SOCIETY AND CULTURE (4 credits)
Introduction to how culture shapes our ideas about death and dying. Cross-cultural comparison of grieving, funerary and mortuary rituals. Examination of the effects of colonialism and globalization on practices and beliefs surrounding death, and the ways in which social, medical, political and commercial systems intersect at the end of life.
(GLOBAL PLURALISM, INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES)
SOAN 225 PEOPLES AND CULTURES OF NORTH AMERICA: THE NATIVE AMERICANS (4 credits)
Indigenous people of North America: prehistory and patterns of adaptation, culture areas and the diversity of cultural configurations prior to European colonization, history of Indian-white relations, Native Americans today.
(VITAL PAST)
SOAN 227 ARCHAEOLOGICAL FIELD METHODS (4 credits)
Theories and methods of archaeology. On-site training in methods of survey, excavation, lab- oratory analysis, and report writing. Integration of archaeological data within a larger anthropo- logical and environmental framework.
Prerequisites: SOAN 113, or consent of instructor
SOAN 229 LOVE, SEX, AND DEATH IN CHINESE CULTURE (4 credits)
Drawing on insights from anthropology, sociology, history, religion, gender and cultural studies, course will examine changing Chinese societies and also cover orientalism, Chinese medicine, and the family in addition to the main topics of love, sex, and death.
Total Course fees: $40.00
(GLOBAL PLURALISM, INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES)
SOAN 232 MEDICINE AND CULTURE (4 credits)
Cultural bases of illness and curing; ethnographic examination of how non-Western societies perceive and treat illness and how knowledge of non-Western practices can be used to critique and inform the management of our own health problems. Meanings of sickness, nature of relationships between patients and healers, and effects of culture on health.
(GLOBAL PLURALISM, INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES)
SOAN 235 EDUCATION AND SOCIETY (4 credits)
Introductory-level course focusing on theoretical approaches to education, educational inequality (class, race/ethnicity, and gender), adolescent behavior and subcultures, the relationship between education and other institutions, and educational reform. Course does not fulfill the requirements of the anthropology major or minor.
(INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES, U.S. PLURALISM)
SOAN 250 ENVIRONMENT, SOCIETY, AND CULTURE (4 credits)
Relationship between social groups and natural and human-built environment, human-induced environmental decline, sustainable alternatives, environmentalism as social movement, public environmental opinion, environmental racism and classism. Social dimensions of built environment including urban sprawl, development, place, space, community, and urban design. (Listed as ENVS 250 and SOAN 250)
Typically offered: Spring Semester, Odd Years
(INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES)
SOAN 251 MUSIC SUBCULTURES, SCENES, AND COMMUNITIES (4 credits)
Sociological and anthropological investigation of music subcultures in modern society. Focus on the social and cultural significance of popular and folk music genres with a particular emphasis on sociological theories of representation, identity, community, subculture, tradition, authenticity, and social change. Emphasis on social institutions, social interaction, and their interrelationship.
(CREATIVE STUDIES)
SOAN 255 MUSEUMS: OBJECTS & ARTIFACTS (4 credits)
Introduction to the modern museum and museum work. Historical context and types of museums. Collecting, interpreting, and preserving objects of artistic, cultural, and scientific value. Field trips to museums and laboratory training in association with the Linfield Anthropology Museum. Includes laboratory. Course does not fulfill the requirements of the sociology major or minor. Students who received credit for ANTH 255 may not enroll in this course.
Total Course fees: $50.00
(CREATIVE STUDIES)
SOAN 265 RACE & ETHNICITY (4 credits)
Racial and ethnic minorities in the United States. Historical knowledge of role of race in formation of U.S.; current state of dominant-minority relations.
(INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES, U.S. PLURALISM)
SOAN 270 LATINAS AND LATINOS IN THE UNITED STATES (4 credits)
Examination of major Latina/o subpopulations, including immigration history, population trends, general socio-cultural tendencies. Specific topics of migration and border studies, gender and family, labor and gender, Latina/o politics and policy, poverty, identity and citizenship issues arising among various Latina/o subgroups as they experience and affect U.S. society and culture.
(INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES, U.S. PLURALISM)
SOAN 280 UNDERSTANDING FAMILIES (4 credits)
Examines the family as a social institution, both domestically and globally. Addresses historical and cultural perspectives, with emphasis on family diversity, variations in family form and life style, and the interdependence between family and other institutions. Analysis of major family issues, as well as forces for change in the family. (Listed as GENS 280 and SOAN 280)
(INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES, U.S. PLURALISM)
SOAN 287 CAREER EXPLORATION INTERNSHIP (2-5 credits)
Internship specifically devoted to career exploration in the areas of sociology, criminal justice, social work, or anthropology. Supplemented with appropriate readings and reports. May be repeated for credit.
Prerequisites: Approval of departmental internship supervisor.
(EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING)
SOAN 298 SPECIAL TOPICS: JAN TRM TRAVEL (4 credits)
Topics vary according to faculty availability and interest. Past topics have included Down and Out in America; Prehistory and History of Ireland; Tradition and Change in Romania; Nepal - Sustainable Development and Social Change; City and Countryside in Transition - Nicaragua; Strangers in Strange Lands; City and Countryside in Transition - India; How Children Learn: Scandinavian Schools, Society, and Culture. Offered only as student interest and university resources permit. May be repeated for credit with different topics.
Prerequisites: IDST 098 previous fall.
Typically offered: January Term
SOAN 304 SOCIAL MOVEMENTS AND SOCIAL JUSTICE (4 credits)
Social movements in cross-cultural perspective. An examination of why some political, economic, gender, and racial justice movements succeed, while others fail. Analysis of diverse approaches to understanding regional, national, global, and historical contexts of social movements, as well as new human rights and environmental justice struggles in the 21st Century.
SOAN 307 SOCIAL RESEARCH METHODS (4 credits)
For future researchers and consumers of research. Research design and methods; data collection; qualitative and quantitative data analysis techniques; research ethics; reading and writing research reports.
Prerequisites: SOAN 101 or 111.
(QUANTITATIVE REASONING)
SOAN 330 COMMUNITY AND SOCIETY (4 credits)
Examines the social science concept of community and its context in rural, urban, and suburban life. Focus on the intersection of rural and urban cultures. Issues covered include racial and cultural diversity, globalization in rural communities, urban-rural migration, community identity and change, community building, and community survival. Experiential component focusing on local region.
Prerequisites: SOAN 101 or 111.
(INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES)
SOAN 341 LANGUAGE & CULTURE (4 credits)
Anthropological study of the relationship between language and culture, sociolinguistics (situating language in cultural context), and language patterns that shape culture.
Prerequisites: SOAN 111 or SOAN 106 or GLCS 106.
(GLOBAL PLURALISM, INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES)
SOAN 354 SYMBOLS IN SOCIETY AND CULTURE (4 credits)
Study of world cultures as systems of symbols and the process by which people give meaning to their world and their action in it. Critical examination of theoretical models used in the analysis of a variety of semantic domains: ritual, myth, media, popular culture, folklore, politics, and the self.
SOAN 355 MUSEUMS: EXHIBITING CULTURES (4 credits)
Anthropology museums in their historical and sociological context. Critical examination of artifact collections, exhibits, and exhibiting theories as representative of cultural values and social conflicts. Museums and the politics of culture. Field trips to Northwest museums and preparation of Linfield Anthropology Museum exhibits. Course does not fulfill the requirements of the sociology major or minor.
Total Course fees: $50.00
Prerequisites: SOAN 111; SOAN 255 recommended.
(CREATIVE STUDIES)
SOAN 361 GENDER, SEXUALITY AND THE BODY (4 credits)
Gender, sexuality, and the body as focus for both independent and interrelated areas of scholarship using several theoretical perspectives; examination of ethnographic materials from a wide variety of cultural contexts. (Listed as GENS 361 and SOAN 361.)
SOAN 370 SOCIETY, STATE & SOCIAL POLICY (4 credits)
Analysis of the complexities of social policy in the U.S. Strategies for examining social policy; role of government and outside forces in forming policy. Several current policies discussed.
Prerequisites: SOAN 101 or 111.
(INDIVID/SYSTEMS/SOCIETIES, U.S. PLURALISM)
SOAN 385 SEMINAR: SOCIAL THEORY (4 credits)
Junior-level seminar focusing on the major intellectual currents leading to the development of the sciences of culture, society, and human social behavior.
SOAN 398 SPECIAL TOPICS: JAN TERM TRAVEL (4 credits)
Topics vary according to faculty availability and interest. Past topics have included Down and Out in America; Prehistory and History of Ireland; Tradition and Change in Romania; Nepal - Sustainable Development and Social Change; City and Countryside in Transition - Nicaragua; Strangers in Strange Lands; City and Countryside in Transition - India; How Children Learn: Scandinavian Schools, Society, and Culture. Offered only as student interest and university resources permit. May be repeated for credit with different topics.
Prerequisites: IDST 098 previous fall.
Typically offered: January Term
SOAN 439 PEER INSTRUCTION (2-4 credits)
Opportunity for outstanding students to assist faculty in the classroom and laboratory. May not be repeated for credit.(S/U)
Prerequisites: Application and consent of instructor.
(EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING)
SOAN 480 INDEPENDENT STUDY (1-5 credits)
Study of special topics not available as courses; requires approval of a supervising instructor and the department chairperson. For advanced students.
Prerequisites: Approval of supervising instructor and department chair.
SOAN 487 INTERNSHIP/APPLIED CAPSTONE SEMINAR (2-10 credits)
Participation in applied project or internship in career fields in or related to sociology, criminal justice, social work, or anthropology. Upon completion, students will submit reports and make public presentations. Weekly meetings to monitor progress, discuss career goals, and prepare professional portfolio, including resume. Required spring of senior year.
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing or consent of instructor.
(EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING)
SOAN 490 RESEARCH/THESIS (4 credits)
SOAN 490 Research/Thesis - Intensive research on a topic of special interest to the student, leading to a thesis.
Prerequisites: SOAN 101 or 111, SOAN 307, and SOAN 385.
(MAJOR WRITING INTENSIVE)
SOAN 491 HONORS THESIS (2-5 credits)
Continuation of SOAN 490 for students invited to write an honors thesis.
Prerequisites: SOAN 490; senior standing; and instructor approval.
Typically offered: Spring Semester, Annually
SOAN 498 SPECIAL TOPICS: JAN TRM TRAVEL (4 credits)
Topics vary according to faculty availability and interest. Past topics have included Down and Out in America; Prehistory and History of Ireland; Tradition and Change in Romania; Nepal - Sustainable Development and Social Change; City and Countryside in Transition - Nicaragua; Strangers in Strange Lands; City and Countryside in Transition - India; How Children Learn: Scandinavian Schools, Society, and Culture. Offered only as student interest and university resources permit. May be repeated for credit with different topics.
Prerequisites: IDST 098 previous fall.
Typically offered: January Term