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The Sociology of Childhood
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The Sociology of Childhood

Fifth Edition
June 2017 | 504 pages | SAGE Publications, Inc
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William A. Corsaro's groundbreaking work, The Sociology of Childhood, Fifth Edition discusses children and childhood from a sociological perspective - providing in-depth coverage of social theories of childhood, the peer cultures and social issues of children and youth, and children and childhood within the frameworks of culture and history.
 
Preface
 
About the Author
 
PART ONE: THE SOCIOLOGICAL STUDY OF CHILDHOOD
 
1. Social Theories of Childhood
Sociology’s Rediscovery of Childhood

 
Traditional Theories: Socialization

 
Interpretive Reproduction: Children Collectively Participate in Society

 
Language and Cultural Routines

 
From Individual Progression to Collective Reproductions

 
Summary

 
 
2. The Structure of Childhood and Children’s Interpretive Reproductions
Assumptions of the Structural Perspective

 
Childhood, Children’s Activities, and Interpretive Reproduction in Peer Culture

 
Summary

 
 
3. Studying Children and Childhood
Macrolevel Methods

 
Microlevel Methods

 
Nontraditional Methods in Studying Children

 
Ethical Issues in Researching Children’s Lives

 
Summary

 
 
PART II. CHILDREN, CHILDHOOD AND FAMILIES IN HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL CONTEXT
 
4. Historical Views of Childhood and Children
Philippe Ariès’s Centuries of Childhood

 
The Debate Regarding Grand-Stage Theories of the Family and Childhood

 
The New History of Childhood

 
Summary

 
 
5. Social Change, Families and Children
Examining Changes in Families From the Children’s Perspective

 
Children’s Everyday Lives in Families

 
The Effects of Recent Socioeconomic Changes on Families, Children, and Childhood in Western Societies

 
The Effects of Recent Socioeconomic Changes on Children and Childhood in Developing Societies

 
Summary

 
 
PART III. CHILDREN'S CULTURES
 
6. Children’s Peer Cultures and Interpretive Reproduction
Examining Peer Culture from Children’s Perspective

 
Central Importance of Peer Culture in Interpretive Reproduction

 
Symbolic Aspects of Children's Cultures

 
Material Aspects of Children’s Cultures

 
Children, Parents, and Consumer Culture

 
Summary

 
 
7. Sharing and Control in Initial Peer Cultures
Central Themes in Children’s Initial Peer Cultures

 
Friendship, Sharing, and Social Participation

 
Autonomy and Control in Peer Culture

 
Summary

 
 
8. Conflict and Differentiation in the Initial Peer Culture
Conflict and Peer Relations

 
Social Differentiation in Initial Peer Cultures

 
Summary

 
 
9. Pre-Adolescent Peer Cultures
Peer Cultures in Preadolescence

 
Friendship Processes in Preadolescent Peer Cultures

 
Autonomy and Identity in Preadolescent Peer Cultures

 
Disputes, Conflict, Friendships, and Gender

 
Generation M: Electronic Media in the Lives of Preadolescents and Adolescents

 
Effects and Process of Media Use in the Lives of Preadolescents and Adolescents

 
Summary

 
 
PART IV. CHILDREN, SOCIAL PROBLEMS, AND THE FUTURE OF CHILDHOOD
 
10. Children, Social Problems, and the Family
Changing Family Structures and Children's Lives

 
Work, Families, and Childhood

 
Divorce and Its Effects on Children

 
Child Abuse in the Family

 
Summary

 
 
11. Children, Social Problems and Society
Poverty and the Quality of Children’s Lives

 
Teen Pregnancy and Nonmarital Births

 
Violence, Victimization, and the Loss of Childhood

 
The Profound and Inspiring Resilience of Children and Youth in Highly Challenging Life Circumstances

 
Summary

 
 
12. The Future of Childhood
The Major Challenges

 
Some More Modest Proposals to Enrich Children’s Lives

 
Conclusion

 
 
Glossary
 
References
 
Index

“I like the fact that this text makes an in-depth examination of the socially-constructed nature of childhood, and illustrates how this phase of the life course has been defined differently in different time periods, which has impacted the expectations for, responsibilities of, communications with, and valuing of children during different time periods.”

Jan Buhrman
Illinois College

Sample Materials & Chapters

Chapter 7

Chapter 11

For instructors