Social Justice Studies, Gender Studies

This course surveys the history of American women from diverse communities, from the fifteenth century through the modern women’s movement to the present. It addresses such topics as traditional gender roles; their transformation through war, industrialization, reform movements, and cultural modernity; and relationships between women of different races and ethnicities. The course will pay particular attention to the development of internal and external definitions of freedom and equality and to women’s influence on the social, economic, political, and cultural development of the United States.

This course explores the works of Lesbian and Gay writers of the essay, novel, short fiction, drama, and poetry. The course develops students’ close reading, analytical writing skills, and promotes an appreciation and a critical understanding of the sociohistorical, cultural, and aesthetic contexts that shape representations of Lesbian and Gay experiences in literature.

This course is a historical study and survey of the multiple and varied images of women in film. Students will screen and analyze films over seven decades, beginning with the 1930s. Students will also read, discuss, and write about women's roles in these films. The focus is to analyze the representation of women in each film screened, to discuss how character roles have changed over time, and to examine occupation, dress, and rules of behavior.

Cultural Anthropology is the study of human society and culture, analyzing both similarities and differences amongst cultural groups. This course will introduce students to important socio-cultural concepts used by cultural anthropologists including material culture, social organization, religion, kinship, ritual and symbolic systems, race, ethnicity, and language amongst others. Students will examine how cultural anthropologists understand the notion of culture in the study of human behavior in different regions of the world. The ethnographic method as a key methodology will be stressed throughout this course.

This course presents a cross-cultural survey of the position of men and women within an anthropological framework. It assesses, in a comparative fashion, the biological basis of sexual differentiation and the cultural interpretation of these differences through "gender roles." Comparative materials from tribal, non-western, non-industrial, and western cultures will be used to illustrate the variety of gender roles and expectations. The course focuses on cultural institutions as fundamental in creating, defining, and reinforcing gender roles. Economics, politics, the arts, ethnicity, race, religion, kinship, world view, language, and other issues which influence choices, opportunities and limitations tied to gender will be examined.

Exploring the role, influence, effects, and significance of gender on our everyday communication interactions, this course critically analyzes issues of gender and communication by examining the theoretical perspectives used to explain gender phenomena, gender socialization, and male and female interactions and stereotypes. With an emphasis on improving communication skills, we will explore the relationship between gender and communication as it pertains to the nature of gender(s), the language of gender, and gender differences in verbal and nonverbal communication.

This course focuses on the identification and analysis of processes and challenges of communication as affected by different cultures, especially as it affects communication among the various cultures found within the United States (e.g. African American, Asian American, Latino/a, Middle Eastern, Native American, European American and Gay/Lesbian cultures) and among the various cultures throughout the world. The course focuses on the principles of communication theory as they apply to the intercultural setting with an emphasis on the effects of differences in beliefs, values, attitudes, socio-political organization, role expectations, language and nonverbal behavior, etc.—all of which are interrelated.

This course applies economic theory to study women's decisions regarding labor force participation, unpaid household production, and marriage and fertility. Other topics to be considered include: the gender wage gap, women's educational attainment, and economic differences for women across race, socioeconomic status, and marital status. ECON 8 is the same course as WGS 8. Students may earn credit for one but not both.

This course is a historical overview of media representations of race, ethnicity, and gender in the United States. Intersectionality of race and ethnicity with gender and other forms of difference are highlighted. Using readings from selected texts and clips from various forms of media, students critically analyze media representations and critical events in the histories and cultures of one or more of the following four historically defined racialized core groups: Native Americans, African Americans, Latina/o Americans, and/or Asian Americans. By actively engaging with anti-racist issues, students help build a diverse, just, and equitable society beyond the classroom.

This course provides insight into and preparation for establishing relationships as the basis for a successful and fulfilling individual, marital and family life. Included are values clarification, communication techniques, current views of male and female roles in society, mate selection, sexual involvement and adjustment, family planning, and child rearing. Special emphasis is placed on the need for compromise and adjustment in a marriage and family unit in our rapidly changing society. This course will use lecture, discussion, and experiential formats in exploration of these topics.

This study of sexual behavior begins with anatomy and physiology, reproduction and other biological topics. Pre- and post-natal development, gender differentiation and psychosexual development are discussed to provide the background for considering the diversity of adult sexuality. In regularly scheduled small group meetings, the student is given an opportunity to explore and compare his or her own psychological and behavioral dynamics with the different values, beliefs, and practices of other individuals and other cultures.

This course is an introduction to statistical thinking and processes, including methods and concepts for discovery and decision-making using data. Topics include descriptive statistics; probability and sampling distributions; statistical inference; correlation and linear regression; analysis of variance, chi-squared, and t-tests; and application of technology for statistical analysis including the interpretation of the relevance of the statistical findings. Students apply methods and processes to applications using data from a broad range of disciplines.

This course surveys various psychological research methods with an emphasis on research design, experimental procedures, descriptive methods, instrumentation, as well as collection, analysis, interpretation and reporting of research data. Research design and methodology are examined in a variety of the sub disciplines of psychology. Ethical considerations for human and animal research are explored. Students are introduced to critical thinking and the application of the scientific method to psychological questions. The course contains both lecture and practical experiences via the formulation and completion of original research conducted in small groups. Various descriptive and inferential statistical approaches are explored and utilized to evaluate data.

This course introduces students to the fundamental principles and methods of sociological research design and implementation. Students examine the key varieties of evidence--including qualitative and quantitative data, data-gathering and sampling methods, logic of comparison, and causal reasoning. The work of several scholars is evaluated and students create their own research project related to a sociological issue.