Social Problems (14th Edition)

Cover......Page 1
Title Page......Page 7
Copyright Page......Page 8
CONTENTS......Page 11
BOX FEATURES......Page 19
PREFACE......Page 21
1 SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON SOCIAL PROBLEMS......Page 26
What Is a Social Problem?......Page 28
The Functionalist Perspective......Page 30
The Conflict Perspective......Page 34
The Interactionist Perspective......Page 37
The Natural History of Social Problems......Page 40
The Media and Social Problems......Page 41
Research on Social Problems......Page 42
Demographic Studies......Page 43
Field Observation......Page 44
Social Experiments......Page 45
Social Policy......Page 46
Going Beyond Left and Right......Page 48
2 PROBLEMS OF HEALTH AND HEALTHCARE......Page 52
Healthcare as a Global Social Problem......Page 53
The Scope of Healthcare Problems in America......Page 56
Unequal Access to Healthcare......Page 57
The High Cost of Healthcare......Page 59
Inadequate Protection......Page 66
Women and Healthcare......Page 70
The Disabled and Handicapped......Page 71
Ethical Issues......Page 72
AIDS—A Modern Plague......Page 74
AIDS and Global Poverty......Page 77
AIDS Orphans......Page 78
Explanations of Healthcare Problems......Page 79
Class and Class Conflict......Page 80
Institutions and Healthcare......Page 81
Health and Social Interaction......Page 82
The Single-Payer Nations......Page 83
Healthcare Reform in the United States......Page 84
Key Provisions of the Bill......Page 85
Going Beyond Left and Right......Page 86
3 PROBLEMS OF MENTAL ILLNESS AND TREATMENT......Page 90
Mental Illness as a Social Problem......Page 92
Perspectives on Mental Illness......Page 94
Suicide and Mental Illness......Page 95
Defining Mental Illness......Page 96
Classification of Mental Disorders......Page 98
Diagnosis or Label?......Page 100
Inequality, Conflict, and Mental Illness......Page 101
Social Class and Mental Disorder......Page 102
Mental Disorder and Urban Life......Page 104
Other Factors......Page 105
Methods of Treatment......Page 107
Changes in Mental-Health Treatment and Care......Page 108
Treatment Institutions......Page 109
Deinstitutionalization and Homelessness......Page 113
Social Policy......Page 115
Future Prospects......Page 117
Going Beyond Left and Right......Page 119
4 ALCOHOL AND OTHER DRUGS......Page 122
Drug Abuse......Page 124
Abuse, Addiction, and Dependence......Page 125
Alcohol Use and Abuse......Page 128
Who Drinks?......Page 129
Drinking Among Young People......Page 131
Alcohol-Related Social Problems......Page 133
Treatment of Alcoholism......Page 135
Commonly Abused Drugs......Page 137
Patterns of Drug Abuse......Page 142
Drug Use, Crime, and Violence......Page 145
Drug Use and AIDS......Page 146
Treatment of Drug Abuse......Page 147
Social Policy......Page 148
Drug Law Reform......Page 149
Harm Reduction: Policy and Sentencing Reforms......Page 150
Future Prospects......Page 151
Going Beyond Left and Right......Page 152
5 CRIME AND VIOLENCE......Page 156
The Nature of Crime......Page 160
Police Discretion......Page 161
Problems of Accuracy......Page 163
Types of Crimes and Criminals......Page 164
Violent Personal Crimes......Page 165
Occasional Property Crimes......Page 168
Occupational (White-Collar) Crimes......Page 169
Corporate Crimes......Page 171
Public-Order Crimes......Page 173
Organized Crime......Page 174
Conventional and Professional Crimes......Page 175
Juvenile Delinquency......Page 177
Hate Crimes......Page 178
Gangs and Violence......Page 180
Recent Trends......Page 183
Biology, Violence, and Criminality......Page 184
Gender and Crime......Page 185
Age and Crime......Page 186
Sociological Explanations of Crime......Page 187
Controlling Crime......Page 192
Retribution-Deterrence......Page 193
Rehabilitation......Page 196
Prevention......Page 198
Social Policy......Page 199
Arrest and Incarceration......Page 200
Organized Crime......Page 202
Public-Order and Juvenile-Justice Reforms......Page 203
Gun Control......Page 204
Future Prospects......Page 206
Going Beyond Left and Right......Page 207
6 POVERTY AMID AFFLUENCE......Page 210
The Rich......Page 213
The Poor......Page 215
Poverty and Social Class......Page 218
The Poverty Line......Page 220
Who Are the Poor?......Page 221
Event Poverty......Page 227
Concomitants of Poverty......Page 230
Healthcare......Page 231
Housing and Homelessness......Page 232
Structural Explanations......Page 234
Cultural Explanations......Page 236
Reform of “Welfare as We Know It”......Page 237
Welfare Policies and Growing Inequality......Page 242
Future Prospects......Page 243
Going Beyond Left and Right......Page 244
7 RACISM, PREJUDICE, AND DISCRIMINATION......Page 248
The Continuing Struggle for Minority Civil Rights......Page 250
The Social Construction of Minorities......Page 252
Defining Racism, Prejudice, and Discrimination......Page 254
Prejudice and Bigotry in the Individual......Page 256
Prejudice and Bigotry in Social Structures......Page 257
Cultural Factors: Norms and Stereotypes......Page 258
Institutional Discrimination......Page 260
Education......Page 262
Housing......Page 265
Employment and Income......Page 267
Justice......Page 269
Political Discrimination......Page 270
Some Consequences of Prejudice and Discrimination......Page 272
Social Policy......Page 273
Affirmative Action......Page 274
Education for Equality......Page 276
Future Prospects......Page 277
Going Beyond Left and Right......Page 278
8 GENDER AND SEXUALITY......Page 282
Traditional Sex Roles......Page 285
Gender Versus Sexual Identity......Page 286
Homosexuality......Page 287
Power and Male Hegemony......Page 292
Sexism and Employment......Page 294
Sexual Harassment......Page 296
Socialization......Page 299
Education......Page 300
Language and the Media......Page 302
Organized Religion......Page 303
The Legal System......Page 304
Sources of Homophobia......Page 305
The Women’s Movement......Page 307
Changes in the Educational System......Page 308
Changes in the Legal System......Page 309
Reproductive Control......Page 310
Gay Rights......Page 311
Future Prospects......Page 312
Going Beyond Left and Right......Page 313
9 AN AGING SOCIETY......Page 316
Aging as a Social Problem......Page 318
Perspectives on Aging......Page 320
The Elderly in America Today......Page 321
Age Stratification......Page 322
Who Are the Elderly?......Page 324
Ageism......Page 326
Physiological Aspects of Aging......Page 327
Psychological Dimensions of Aging......Page 328
Social and Cultural Dimensions of Aging......Page 329
Victimization of the Elderly......Page 330
Healthcare and the Aged......Page 331
Economic Discrimination......Page 332
Family Problems......Page 334
Retirement......Page 335
Death......Page 336
Healthcare Reform and the Elderly......Page 338
Future Prospects......Page 340
Going Beyond Left and Right......Page 342
10 THE CHANGING FAMILY......Page 346
The Nature of Families......Page 348
Adequate Family Functioning......Page 349
Effects of Women’s Employment......Page 350
The Black Family......Page 353
Divorce......Page 356
The Impact of Divorce......Page 358
Cohabiting Couples......Page 360
Births to Unmarried Women......Page 361
Teenage Pregnancy......Page 362
Homeless Families......Page 364
Child Abuse......Page 367
Spouse Abuse......Page 368
Divorce Law......Page 370
Efforts to Reduce Teenage Pregnancies......Page 372
Future Prospects......Page 373
Going Beyond Left and Right......Page 375
11 PROBLEMS OF EDUCATION......Page 378
Sociological Perspectives on Education......Page 380
Conflict Approaches......Page 381
Interactionist Approaches......Page 382
Educational Attainment and Achievement......Page 383
Education and Equality: The Issue of Equal Access......Page 387
Black Students......Page 388
Hispanic Students......Page 389
Preschool Programs......Page 390
Desegregation......Page 391
Schools as Bureaucracies......Page 393
Classroom and School Size......Page 394
School Choice......Page 395
The Technological Fix......Page 396
Teachers’ Unions......Page 397
School Violence......Page 398
Race to the Top: The Obama–Duncan Strategy......Page 400
Educational Conservatism and Back to Basics......Page 401
Access to Higher Education......Page 402
Future Prospects......Page 403
Going Beyond Left and Right......Page 405
12 PROBLEMS OF WORK AND THE ECONOMY......Page 408
The American Free-Enterprise System: Key Trends......Page 410
Global Markets and Corporate Power......Page 411
Multinational Corporations......Page 412
Global Factory, Global Sweatshops......Page 413
From Manufacturing to Services......Page 414
Women in the Global Labor Market......Page 416
Technology and Specialization......Page 418
Problem Aspects of Work......Page 419
The Changing Nature of Employment......Page 420
Alienation......Page 425
Occupational Safety and Health......Page 426
Problems of Debt Entanglement......Page 428
Financial Risk, Corporate Crime, Economic Bust......Page 431
Social Policy......Page 433
Future Prospects......Page 434
Going Beyond Left and Right......Page 435
13 POPULATION AND IMMIGRATION......Page 438
The World’s Population......Page 439
Measures of Population Growth......Page 441
The Demographic Transition......Page 442
Rising Expectations......Page 444
Food and Hunger......Page 446
ZPG......Page 448
Population Control in LDCs......Page 449
The U.S. Population......Page 451
Immigration to the United States: A Brief History......Page 453
Recent Trends in Immigration to the United States......Page 454
Urban Concentration of Immigrants......Page 456
Undocumented Immigrants......Page 457
Social Policy......Page 462
Immigration Reform?......Page 464
Going Beyond Left and Right......Page 466
14 TECHNOLOGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT......Page 470
The Nature of Technology......Page 471
Technology and Global Inequality......Page 472
Autonomous Technology......Page 474
Automation......Page 475
Whistleblowers......Page 476
Identity Theft—A Global Crime Wave in Cyberspace......Page 477
Bureaucracy and Morality......Page 478
Technology and Institutions......Page 480
Technology and the Natural Environment......Page 482
Environmental Stress......Page 483
Origins of the Problem......Page 484
Air Pollution......Page 485
Water Pollution......Page 489
Solid-Waste Disposal......Page 490
Other Hazards......Page 494
The United States and the World Environment......Page 496
Social Policy......Page 498
Appropriate Technology......Page 499
Going Beyond Left and Right......Page 500
15 WAR AND GLOBAL INSECURITY......Page 504
Terrorism, Global and Domestic......Page 506
Measuring Terrorism in the United States......Page 507
Origins of Terrorist Groups......Page 508
Terrorism and Religion......Page 509
Terrorism’s Impact on Society......Page 510
War and Its Effects......Page 512
Indirect Effects of War......Page 513
Effects of Nuclear War......Page 514
Controlling Warfare......Page 515
War on Terrorists and the Rule of Law......Page 516
Theories About War and Its Origins......Page 517
Clausewitz: War as State Policy......Page 519
Marx and Lenin on War......Page 520
Institutional and International Perspectives......Page 521
Social Policy......Page 524
Arms Control: A Promise Unfulfilled......Page 525
Dealing with Terrorism......Page 526
Going Beyond Left and Right......Page 529
D......Page 532
M......Page 533
S......Page 534
W......Page 535
BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 536
PHOTO CREDITS......Page 555
TEXT CREDITS......Page 556
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