Social Studies
MN

Sociology

Enriching social scientific understandings of the complex problems societies face today.

There's Research on That! Women at Work: When Self Help Isn't Help Enough

Sociologist Penny Edgell gathers research on why pop culture’s self-help mantras do little to change women’s experiences in the workplace: “trying to solve a problem of structural sexism with a good night’s sleep, a self-help book, and a smile is a losing proposition.”

Office Hours Podcast: Joyce Bell on Social Work and the Black Power Movement

Sociologist Joyce Bell, author of The Black Power Movement and American Social Work, discusses the activist legacy and community organizations that grew out of the 1960s and ’70s Black Power movement.

Atheists Remain Most Disliked Religious Minority in the U.S.

Ten years ago University of Minnesota sociologists conducted research showing that, among a long list of racial and religious minority groups, atheists were the most disliked group of people in the United States. Last month they followed up with new research that shows that Americans still have negative opinions of atheists and the non-religious–and now…

Morality Built Upon Atheism?

Salon.com digs into research from U of M sociologists Penny Edgell, Joseph Gerteis, and Doug Hartmann that shows atheists remain America’s most disliked “religious” group.

All Work and No Play with Children Make Moms Less Happy Parents

A team of researchers from Cornell University, the University of Minnesota, and Minnesota Population Center have used time diary data to find that mothers are less happy than fathers with their parenting duties.

Panel: Knowledge Production and Public Engagement

A panel discussion, moderated by the Humphrey School’s Larry Jacobs, explores and responds to New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof’s critique of the social sciences as creating a “culture of exclusivity.” U of M faculty panelists include Doug Hartmann, Kathryn Pearson, Tim Brennan, Joann Miller, and Joe Soss.

Discovery: Gender-based Violence against Men in Darfur

U of M sociologist Gabrielle Ferrales and alumni Hollie Nyseth Brehm and Suzy McElrath author new study on sexual violence against men and boys in the Rwandan genocide. “Although this violence is in some ways about physical domination, it is primarily meant to symbolically dominate and denigrate both the victims and surviving community members,” writes J. Sigru Wahutu.

To Open Borders by Opening Eyes

Sociologist Cawo Abdi believes that we can have a population educated to be global citizens and that together we can create justice and a sense of belonging for everyone. “There’s no life without hope,” she says.