I. General Information

1. Course Title:
Sociology of the Family

2. Course Prefix & Number:
SOCL 1472

3. Course Credits and Contact Hours:

Credits: 3

Lecture Hours: 3

Lab Hours: 0

4. Course Description:

This course examines contemporary issues facing families in the United States. Students will examine key topics in the sociology of families such as marriage, cohabitation, divorce, teen pregnancy and family violence. Attention will also be given to the variations in families by race, class, gender, and sexual orientation. Students will refine their sociological imaginations.

5. Placement Tests Required:

Accuplacer (specify test):

Reading College Level CLC or Reading College Level

Score:

6. Prerequisite Courses:

There are no prerequisites for this course.

9. Co-requisite Courses:

There are no corequisites for this course.

II. Transfer and Articulation

1. Course Equivalency - similar course from other regional institutions:

St. Cloud Technical and Community College, SOCI 1350 Sociology of Marriage and Family, 3 credits
St. Cloud State University, SOC 472 Sociology of the Family, 3 credits
Bemidji State University, SOC 2220 Sociology of Marriage and Family, 3 credits

III. Course Purpose

2. MN Transfer Curriculum (General Education) Courses - This course fulfills the following goal area(s) of the MN Transfer Curriculum:
Goal 5 – History and the Social and Behavioral Sciences

IV. Learning Outcomes

1. College-Wide Outcomes

College-Wide Outcomes/Competencies	Students will be able to:
Demonstrate written communication skills	assess in writing, peer reviewed academic journal articles.
Demonstrate reading and listening skills	read assigned materials in the textbook and various handouts.
Apply abstract ideas to concrete situations	apply sociological perspectives and theories to everyday life experiences.
Discuss/compare characteristics of diverse cultures and environments	cross culturally evaluate marriage and family arrangements.

2. Course Specific Outcomes - Students will be able to achieve the following measurable goals upon completion of the course:

• Articulate the processes by which social forces affect individuals through the institution of the family (MnTC Goal 5);
• Apply founding theoretical traditions and concepts in sociology to the family as an institution (MnTC Goal 5);
• Explain how social structure affects human action and social life at the micro, meso, and macro levels (MnTC Goal 5);
• Articulate the processes through which groups, formal organizations, and social networks influence human thought and action (MnTC Goal 5);
• Explain how hierarchy, power and authority impact family dynamics (MnTC Goal 5);
• Explain the relationship between the self and society (MnTC Goal 5); 
• Articulate how the self is socially constructed, maintained and transformed at multiple levels through the family as an institution (MnTC Goal 5);
• Explain how sexual norms have changed over time in the United States by focusing on current trends in the family (MnTC Goal 5); and
• Identify the different forms of family relationships in terms of sexual partners, children, siblings, and elderly caregivers. (MnTC Goal 5).

V. Topical Outline

Listed below are major areas of content typically covered in this course.

1. Lecture Sessions

1. An Introduction to Family
• Defining marriage and family
• Current trends
2. How to Study the Family
• Social science
• Studying marriages and families
3. The Role of Gender
• Sex, gender, patriarchy
• Gender roles and marriage and family
4. Sex and Fertility
• Sexual norms and cultural universals
• Teen and unmarried pregnancy and birth
5. Family Variation
• Families in the United States
• Families around the globe
6. The Effects of Work and the Economy
• Effects of work on families
• Working women
7. Stress, Violence, and Abuse in Marriages and Families
• Domestic abuse
• Managing domestic abuse
8. Separation and Divorce
• Divorce statistics
• Divorce risk factors
9. Single-Parent Families, Remarriage, and Stepfamilies
• Types of single-parentfFamilies
• Remarriage and step-families
10. Enduring Marriages and Families
• Factors that affect commitment
• Characteristics of effective marriages and families