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Minor Maatschappelijke orde en sociaal welzijn

ECTS: two modules of 15 each
Code: MISO

Objective

The objective of this minor is to familiarize students with the field of Sociology.

Content for 15 credits, minor package 1, semester 1a

Students acquire knowledge of the field, the social problems that interest sociologists, the history of the discipline, and ongoing research programs in Groningen (the courses Introduction to Sociology and Primary Social Order). These courses provide insight into how the social order of primary relationships determines our behavior. Additionally, we include questions about how social orders change in research (Social and Institutional Change - English).

Content for 15 credits, minor package 2, semester 1b

This part focuses on how sociological research itself has changed over time (by reading classical sociological texts in the course of the same name). Furthermore, it examines how the primary order interferes with that of organizations (Organization and Society - English) and with that of the market (Social Welfare).

Deadlines

First, register for the minor, and then you can enroll in the courses.

Registration is possible from 24 May 2024, to 5 July 2024 (12:00 CEST,
5 July 23:59 CEST).

9 July - 21 July (23:59 CEST): Register for the individual courses of your choice.

On 23 July 2024, courses with remaining capacity will be opened for all students who want to take them as part of a personal minor or elective.

If you did not pass one or two courses last year and were enrolled in this minor, you may send an email to the Student Service Desk BSS. In this email, describe which course(s) you need to retake. They will then enroll you.

If you decide not to follow the minor, please deregister as the capacity is limited!

If you were enrolled in this minor last year and still need to complete one or more courses this year, contact the Student Service Desk BSS: owbalie.gmw@rug.nl.

Sign up Questions

For more information, please contact Rosa Visser.

Study programme
Compulsory courses
Course code
ECTS
Semester
SOMIN01
5
1a
SOMIN02
5
1a
SOMIN03
5
1a
SOMIN04
5
1b
SOMIN05
5
1b
SOMIN06
5
1b

Course description

Inleiding in de sociologie

ECTS: 5

De cursus is een introductie in het vakgebied van de sociologie en tot de studierichting Sociologie van de RUG in het bijzonder. Aan de hand van maatschappelijke problemen krijgen studenten inzicht in de werkwijze van sociologen. Daarbij staat een “macro-micro-macro” benadering centraal, waarin het onderzoeken van vraagstukken op maatschappelijk niveau wordt gerelateerd aan theorieën over individueel gedrag. Hierin wordt aandacht besteed aan de rol van verschillende sociale ordes (markt, overheid, primaire relaties en organisaties) en de relatie met onderzoeksprogramma’s behorende bij de opleiding. De stof wordt gepresenteerd in hoorcolleges, in combinatie met bewerking van opdrachten ter plekke.

Primaire orde

ECTS: 5

De Primaire Sociale Orde is, naast de markt, de andere vorm van ‘spontane sociale orde’. Tot de PSO worden informele sociale interacties gerekend. De vanzelfsprekendheid van deze activiteiten maakt dat de Primaire Sociale Orde een bijna vergeten vanzelfsprekendheid vormt. Nadere analyse leert echter dat schijn bedriegt, en de PSO meer problematisch is dan doet vermoeden. In het vak Primaire Sociale Orde, wordt deze sociale orde nader beschreven, afgebakend en uitgediept.

Vanuit verschillende perspectieven wordt de Primaire Sociale Orde belicht:

  • vanuit andere sociale ordes: relaties, sturingsmechanisme en wisselwerking
  • vanuit historisch perspectief: ontwikkeling van PSO
  • vanuit opbrengsten: betekenis van PSO
  • vanuit falen: maatschappelijke problemen en de keerzijde van PSO
  • vanuit toekomst perspectief: ontwikkelingen en nieuwe arrangementen
Social and institutional change

ECTS: 5

As a result of globalization and the success of the Internet; companies, organizations, and societies face new challenges of coordination, and cooperation. The complexity of these challenges is illustrated by the difficult negotiations for an international treaty to limit climate change. On the other hand, the success of Internet services such as wikipedia, and couchsurving proofs that coordination, and cooperation can be established even between strangers and on a global scale.

This course focuses on the effects of social institutions, i.e. norms (e.g. cultural conventions) and formal rules (e.g. law), on problems of coordination and cooperation in social groups, organizations, and societies. We will pay attention to how social institutions emerge, how they change, and how they affect the behavior of individuals and collectives. We will explore the conditions under which institutions have desired or undesired effects. Special attention will be paid to the role of the state in a market economy, and the effect of cultural norms on economic development.

To this end, we will discuss classical (Weber, Durkheim, Smith) and contemporary theories (e.g. political economy, game theory, and complexity science) that have been used to explain social institutions. Students will be introduced to methods of analyzing social institutions and will be introduced to alternative approaches to changing the behavior of individuals. In particular, we will debate the design of incentive programs, institutional design (reputation systems, peer-punishment systems, signaling institutions, meritocracy), and nudging.

Klassieke sociologische teksten

In de cursus worden klassieke teksten uit de sociologie gelezen. Deze teksten worden gelezen aan de hand van opdrachten, die vervolgens in een werkcollege worden besproken. In de cursus worden teksten besproken van de grondleggers (Marx, Weber, Durkheim) en uit een aantal belangrijke stromingen uit de sociologie (functionalisme, symbolisch interactionisme, historische sociologie). Voor de opdrachten leest de student behalve de klassieke tekst ook teksten over de achtergrond van de auteur of stroming, en reflecteert hij over de waarde van deze teksten in de analyse van actuele maatschappelijke problemen.

Sociale welvaart

In dit vak wordt het welvaartsbegrip vanuit twee perspectieven belicht: het economische en het sociologische. De vragen die hierbij centraal staan zijn wat volgens beide perspectieven de randvoorwaarden zijn die de welvaartsproductie bepalen en via welke sociale mechanismen deze randvoorwaarden invloed hebben op de sociale welvaart.

Bij het economische perspectief komt de traditionele welvaartseconomische benadering aan bod, alsmede door economen geformuleerde kritiek op de gevolgen van economische ontwikkeling voor de sociale en natuurlijke omgeving.

Bij het sociologische perspectief gaat het om het ontwikkelen van een zelfstandig sociologisch welvaartsbegrip aan de hand van onderzoek naar individueel geluk, sociaal kapitaal en sociale netwerken en interpersoonlijk vertrouwen. Studenten werken mee aan de ontwikkeling van dit welvaartsbegrip door middel van het schrijven van een essay.

Organisation and society

Since the beginning of the 20th century, the number of organizations has grown exponentially. This holds for all types of organizations, ranging from for-profit enterprises, non-profit associations, public agencies, to non-governmental entities. These corporate actors meanwhile are key agents in any modern society. For example, the top 200 corporations control more than a quarter of the world´s economic activity. Of the 100 largest ´economies´ in the world, more than 50 are multinational firms. Wal-Mart´s corporate revenues exceed the GDP of Sweden or Austria, and those of General Motors equal the GDP of Turkey. Individuals continuously have to deal with organizations: citizens interact with state authorities, consumers with enterprises, employees with employers.

Organizations not only affect all areas of social, political, and economic life, but also have a huge impact on the desires, beliefs, and opportunities of individuals, including their health and their social relations. Consequently, any analysis of modern societies – the origin and solution of its social problems ranging from social inequality to occupational health, as well as its successes in creating welfare through innovation – will remain incomplete unless it considers organizations.

The main objective of the course Organization and Society is to provide insight into the critical processes and activities in organizations that shape modern societies.

The discussions in the course will center around four primary outcomes:

  • inequality
  • persistence
  • change
  • embeddedness.


To explain these outcomes, the course focuses on a handful of critical mechanisms in organizations, ranging from discrimination to socialization and learning and organizational theories that explain how these mechanisms relate to primary outcomes.

At the end of the course, course participants will be able to reconstruct how organizations:

  • reproduce and challenge social inequality;
  • contribute to the persistence of traditions, habits, values and practices;
  • coordinate and mobilize individuals to enable social change;
  • influence access to opportunities and the creation and spreading of innovation through their embeddedness in networks of relations.
Last modified:21 October 2024 08.13 a.m.
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