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Second Thoughts
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Second Thoughts
Sociology Challenges Conventional Wisdom

Seventh Edition


June 2019 | 400 pages | SAGE Publications, Inc
Introducing students to core sociological concepts by debunking popular misconceptions 

Is it true that "numbers don't lie?" Is America "the land of equal opportunity?" Is marriage a "dying institution?"  Oft-repeated adages like these shape our beliefs about the society we live in. Each essay in Second Thoughts reviews a conventional wisdom familiar to both instructors and students. The authors introduce relevant sociological concepts and theories in order to explain, qualify, and sometimes debunk that conventional wisdom.

This unique text encourages students to step back and sharpen their analytic focus.  23 engaging essays reveal the complexity of social reality and demonstrate the role of sociology in everyday life.
 
Preface
 
Acknowledgments
 
About the Authors
 
Introduction: The Sociological Perspective
 
METHODS
 
Essay 1 • Numbers Don’t Lie
 
CULTURE
 
Essay 2 • Winning Is Everything
 
Essay 3 • Children Are Our Most Precious Commodity
 
SOCIAL STRUCTURE
 
Essay 4 • Love Knows No Reason
 
Essay 5 • Stress Is Bad for Your Well-Being
 
Essay 6 • The “Golden Years” Are Tarnished Years
 
SOCIALIZATION AND IDENTITY
 
Essay 7 • What’s in a Name? That Which We Call a Rose by Any Other Name Would Smell as Sweet
 
Essay 8 • Beauty Is Only Skin Deep
 
STRATIFICATION
 
Essay 9 • The More We Pay, the More It’s Worth
 
Essay 10 • Money Is the Root of All Evil
 
Essay 11 • You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby
 
Essay 12 • America Is the Land of Equal Opportunity
 
DEVIANCE, CRIME, AND SOCIAL CONTROL
 
Essay 13 • Violence Is on the Rise in the United States—No One Is Safe
 
Essay 14 • There’s Nothing We Can Do About the Weather
 
Essay 15 • There Ought to Be a Law
 
Essay 16 • Honesty Is the Best Policy
 
SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS: MARRIAGE AND FAMILY
 
Essay 17 • The Nuclear Family Is the Backbone of American Society
 
Essay 18 • Marriage Is a Failing Institution
 
SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS: THE ECONOMY
 
Essay 19 • Welfare Is Ruining This Country
 
Essay 20 • Immigrants Are Ruining This Nation
 
SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS: MEDIA AND TECHNOLOGY
 
Essay 21 • Technology Is Taking Over Our Lives
 
SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS: EDUCATION
 
Essay 22 • Education Is the Great Equalizer
 
SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS: RELIGION
 
Essay 23 • We Are One Nation Under God
 
Conclusion: Why Does Conventional Wisdom Persist?
 
Glossary
 
References
 
Index

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