The International Handbook of Sociology

`The most up-to-date survey of the range of research in contemporary sociology, extremely useful to students, teachers, and researchers alike. Indispensable for collective and personal libraries' - Immanuel Wallerstein, Maison des Sciences de l'Homme, Paris This unique Handbook provides state-of-the-art reviews of sociology conducted by prominent scholars. Drawing on dedicated knowledge and expertise, the book constitutes an unrivalled guide to the central theoretical and methodological perspectives in the discipline as a whole. The book is organized into six parts: o conceptual perspectives o social and cultural differentiation o changing institutions and collective action o demography, cities and housing o art and leisure o social problems Each chapter includes a comprehensive review of the literature, covering the full range of work from contrasting traditions of thought and approaches. No existing work matches this Handbook for scholarly coverage and relevance. It is a primary resource for understanding the discipline. As such, it will appeal to lecturers, researchers and advanced graduate and undergraduate students in Sociology.

Table of Contents:
PART ONE: INTRODUCTION Of Consensus, Tensions and Sociology at the Dawn of the 21st Century - Stella Quah and Arnaud Sales PART TWO: CONCEPTUAL PERSPECTIVES The Moving Frontier of the Social Sciences - Mattei Dogan Rational Choice Theory in Sociology - Thomas Voss and Martin Abraham A Survey Feminist Theory and Critical Reconceptualization in Sociology - Rhoda Reddock The Challenge of the 1990s The Challenge of Modernity/Postmodernity to the Classical Heritage in Sociology of Religion - Ivan Varga PART THREE: SOCIAL AND CULTURAL DIFFERENTIATION The Fourth Generation of Comparative Stratification Research - Donald J Treiman and Harry B G Ganzeboom The `Rediscovery′ of Ethnicity - Christine Inglis Theory and Analysis PART FOUR: CHANGING INSTITUTIONS AND COLLECTIVE ACTION Sociology of the Family - Barbara H Settles Global Advances and Challenges International Political Sociology - Richard G Braungart and Margaret M Braungart Institutional Change in Armed Forces at the Dawning of the 21st Century - David R Segal and Nehama E Babin Social Movements - Bert Klandermans Trends and Turns Late Modern Institutions and Collective Action - Pierre Hamel, Henri Lustiger-Thaler and Louis Maheu PART FIVE: DEMOGRAPHY, CITIES AND HOUSING Conceptual and Methodological Advances and Challenges in Demography - Dudley L Poston Jr Urban Sociology - John Walton The Sociology of Housing - William Michelson and Willem Van Vliet PART SIX: ART AND LEISURE Sociology of the Art - Antoine Hennion and Line Grenier New Stakes in a Post-Critical Time The Collapse of the Leisure Society? - Gilles Pronovost New Challenges for the Sociology of Leisure Theoretical Advances in the Sociological Treatment of Tourism - Graham Dann PART SEVEN: ON SOCIAL PROBLEMS Unravelling Alienation - Deborah Kalekin-Fishman From an Omen of Doom to a Celebration of Diversity Medical Sociology at the Millennium - William C Cockerham Mental Health and Illness Research - Rumi Kato Price, Clyde R Pope, C A Green and S C Kinnevy Millennium and Beyond Recent Advances and Challenges in Sociotechnics - Jon Alexander Future Research and Sociological Analysis - Eleonora Barbieri Masini