KRISHNAKANTAHANDIQUISTATEOPENUNIVERSITY M.A. PROGRAMME SOCIOLOGY The M.A. programme consists of a total of four semesters and a total of sixteen courses. Each semester has four courses. To complete the M.A. programme a learner is required to complete 4 X 4 = 16 Courses spreading over 4 semesters covering 2 academic years. The first, second and third semesters are compulsory. Each course is of 6 credits and a student is required to 24 credits in a semester. Hence, student is required to complete 24 X 4 = 96 credits to complete the M.A. course. SEMESTER I Paper Distribution under Semester System COURSE 1: INTRODUCTORY SOCIOLOGY COURSE 2: SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES I COURSE 3: POLITICAL SOCIOLOGY COURSE 4: SOCIOLOGY OF INDIAN SOCIETY I SEMESTER II COURSE 5: COURSE 6: COURSE 7: COURSE 8: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES II SOCIOLOGY OF INDIAN SOCIETY II SOCIAL STRATIFICATION SEMESTER - III COURSE 9: ENVIRONMENTAL SOCIOLOGY COURSE 10: GENDER AND SOCIETY COURSE 11: RURAL SOCIOLOGY COURSE 12: SOCIOLOGY OF DEVELOPMENT SEMESTER IV COURSE 13: FIELDWORK AND DISSERTATION COURSE 14: SOCIOLOGY OF NORTHEAST INDIA COURSE 15: SOCIAL DEMOGRAPGY COURSE 16: INDUSTRIAL SOCIOLOGY (ELECTIVE) COURSE 17: SOCIOLOGY OF HEALTH AND ILLNESS (ELECTIVE)
SEMESTER I COURSE 1: INTRODUCTORY SOCIOLOGY Unit-I: Meaning, Natureand Scope of Sociology Unit-II: Basic Concepts: Society, Culture, Social Groups, Norms, Value, Role, Status, Association, Institution, Organization Unit III: Social Stratification, Social Change and Mobility Unit IV:Social Institutions:Family, Marriage, Kinship, Religion,Polity and Economy. COURSE 2: SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES I Unit I: Emergence of Sociological theories: Influence of Enlightenment and Industrial revolution. Unit II: Karl Marx: Dialectal Materialism; Capitalism and Community Production; Class and Class Conflict. Unit III: Max Weber: Theory of Social Action; theory of authority and power; religion and social change. Unit IV: Emile Durkheim: Sociology as Science; the Division of Labour and Forms of Solidarity; theory of Suicide and Religion; Systems of Classification. Course 3: Political Sociology Unit I: Meaning and Scope of Political Sociology Unit II: Relationship between political systems and other social systems. Unit III: Pressure Group, Interest group and Political parties. Unit IV: Power, Authority and Legitimacy: Weber, Pareto, C. Wright Mills, Gramsci
COURSE 4: SOCIOLOGY OF INDIAN SOCIETY I Unit I: Development of sociology of India; Unit II: Approaches to the study of Indian society: Indological (Ghurye), Functional (Srinivas, Dube), Marxist (D.P.Mukherjee, A.R. Desai and R.K.Mukherjee), Sublatern (Ambedkar, Hardiman and Ranjit Guha). Unit III: The Caste System: a) Characteristics and Origin of caste system, Caste and Varna, Jajmani System, Concept of Dominant Caste, Mobility in the Caste system b) Characteristics of Tribe, Tribe-Caste Interaction c) Constitutional Provisions towards positive discrimination: Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe and Backward Classes. Unit IV: Challenges of NationBuilding, Communalism and Development. SEMESTER II COURSE 5: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Unit I: Philosophical foundations of social research; Problems of Subjectivity and Objectivity. Unit II: Contemporary perspectives: Post-modernism, Post-structuralism, Hermeneutics. Unit II: Types and Methods of Research. a) Types of research b) Methods of research c) Elements of research design Unit IV: Preparation of Research Design a) Formulation of research problem b) Formulation of hypothesis c) Selection of the universe d) Data collection and analysis e) Report writing.
COURSE 6: SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES I Unit I: Functionalism a) Systemic view of Society: Parsons and Merton b) Critique of Functionalism, Neo-functionalism Unit II: Structuralism a) Radcliffe-Brown, Levi Strauss. b) Critique of Structuralism, Structuration, Post-structuralism Unit III: Conflict Perspective a) Simmel and Coser b) Dahrendorf c) Collins. Unit IV: Subjective View of Society a) Symbolic Interactionism: Mead, Blumer b) Ethnomethodology: Garfinkel COURSE 7: SOCIOLOGY OF INDIAN SOCIETY II Unit I: Language, Religion and Region in India Unit II: Family, Marriage and Kinship: Forms and regional variations Unit III: Social organization of Agriculture a) Organisation of Production b) Agrarian Reforms Unit IV: Social Movements in India a) Social Reform Movements b) Religious movements c) Backward Class and Dalit movements d) Agrarian and Peasant movements.
COURSE 8: SOCIAL STRATIFICATION Unit I: Social Stratification and Social Inequality; Forms and Bases of Social Stratification. Unit II: Theories of Social Stratification a) Conflict Perspective b) Multi-dimensional Perspective c) Functionalist Perspective d) Evolutionary Perspective Unit III: Social Mobility a) Meaning and Types b) Process and Evaluation of social mobility Unit IV: Hierarchy and Stratification in Contemporary India. SEMESTER - III COURSE 9: ENVIRONMENTAL SOCIOLOGY Unit I: Environment and Ecology Unit II: Classical Sociological thoughts on Environment (Marx, Weber, Durkheim), Emergence of Environmental Sociology. Unit III: Environment and Development: The emerging conflict with special reference to some specific case study), Alternative models of development Unit IV: Environmental Justice and Policy
COURSE 10: GENDER AND SOCIETY Unit I: Meaning and Social Construction of Gender and its Sociological Significance; Unit II: Concept of Patriarchy; Feminism: Radical, Liberal, Multicultural. Unit III: Gender abuse: Domestic violence, Rape, Abortion, Female infanticide, Widowhood, Harassment and exploitation, Laws pertaining to violence of women. Unit IV: Changing Status and Role of women in Indian society; Statutory Provisions safeguarding women s rights in India. COURSE 11: RURAL SOCIOLOGY Unit I: Introduction: Meaning, nature and scope of Rural sociology. Unit II: Little Community, Peasant society, Folk-urban Continuum Unit III: Indian Rural Society a) Basic Features of the Indian Rural Society b) Challenges of transformation in contemporary rural society Unit IV: Rural power structure a) Panchayati Raj, Local Self Government b) Community Development Programme COURSE 12: SOCIOLOGY OF DEVELOPMENT Unit I: Meaning of Development; Difference between Growth and Development; Various Concepts of Development: Economic, Human, Social, Sustainable. Unit II: Perspectives on Development a) Modernization b) Ecological, Liberal and Marxian perspective on development c) Critiques of development
Unit III: Theories of Development a) Dependancy b) Neo-liberalism c) World System Unit IV: Development and Culture; Role of Globalization; The Indian Experience. SEMESTER IV COURSE 13: FIELDWORK AND DISSERTATION This course shall carry a total of 100 marks of which 70 marks shall be for dissertation and 30 for viva-voce. The learner shall take up field work and based on it prepare a dissertation on any topic of sociological significance. COURSE 14: SOCIOLOGY OF NORTHEAST INDIA Unit I: Northeast India: Social, Cultural and Geographical aspects. Unit II: Understanding the Significance of the term northeast. Unit III: Traditional Society and Economy: Emerging Trends (Pre-colonial, Colonial and Post-Colonial Phases) Unit IV: Issue of identity assertion and Homeland Politics Unit V: Development in the Region: Issues and Concerns. COURSE 15: SOCIAL DEMOGRAPHY Unit I: Meaning and Significance Social Demography Unit II: Meanings and aspects of Fertility, Mortality, Migration; Age and Sex Structure of Population. Unit III: Theories of Population: Ancient Thoughts, Pre-Malthusian, Malthusian, Demographic Transition,
Unit IV: Demographic Structure of India with special reference to Assam/Northeast Unit V: Population Policies in India. COURSE 16: INDUSTRIAL SOCIOLOGY (ELECTIVE) Unit I: Meaning and Significance of Industrial sociology Unit II: Characteristics of an Industrial Society and Post-Industrial Society Unit III: Industrial Organizations - Formal and Informal Unit IV: Industrial Conflict: a) Nature of Industrial Conflict b) Trade Unions and Collective Bargaining c) Concept of Joint Management Unit V: Indian Industry a) Industrialisation in India b) Organized and Unorganized sectors c) Industrial Disputes and Industrial Policies in India COURSE 17: SOCIOLOGY OF HEALTH AND ILLNESS(ELECTIVE) Unit I: Introduction tosociology of Health and Illness; Health: Definition and dimensions of health Unit II: Culture and Disease, Disease and social control, Medical Pluralism/ Alternative medicines Unit III: Physician patient relationship, Hospital as a social organization Unit IV: Social Epidemiology, Community Health: Community health problems in India Unit V: Women and health,health as a fundamental right; health policies in India..
Reading Barry, A-M.& Yuill, C (eds) (2002) Understanding Health: a sociological introduction. Sage Bury, M. (1997) Health and Illness in a Changing Society. Routledge Bury, M. and Gabe, J. (eds) (2004) The Sociology of Health and Illness: a reader. Routledge. Cockerham, W. C. 1997 Readings in Medical Sociology.Prentice Hall.New Jersey. Conrad, P. et al. 2000 handbook of Medical Sociology.Prentice hall. NJ. Davey, B. and Seale, C. (eds) (2002) Experiencing and Explaining Disease, 3rdedn. OUP Lupton, D. (2002) Medicine as Culture. 2ndedn. Sage Purdey,M. and Banks, D. (eds) (2001) The Sociology and Politics of Health: a Reader Routledge Scambler, G (ed) (2003) Sociology as Applied to Medicine, 5thedn. W.B.Saunders Schwatz, H. 1994 Dominant Issues in Medical Sociology. McGraw Hill. NY. White, K (2002) An Introduction to the Sociology of Health and Illness. Sage