Sociology 2280 (click to access class web site)
Technology and Society

The basic objective of this course is to provide a comprehensive survey of the development of sociological theories of societal development and change, focusing on technology as a social construct rather than as objectively independent force. An additional objective of this course is to survey the current information and research on the specific impact of modern technology on contemporary society in order to understand the personal and social structural dimensions of technological change; including the implications for social identity, communication, work, inequality, power, deviance and social control. These issues will be analyzed within the context of the interactivity of society and technology, and the changing nature of socially constructed reality.

This is a Web-based class. Students in the Internet-only section are not required to attend "live" sessions, but are welcome to come, anyway (in-person or via Collaborate). Students in this section who cannot attend the live class sessions are expected to view the Collaborate recordings of each Monday and Wednesday class session. See Collaborate for information on "online attendance" and accessing recordings of class sessions.