Population

Department of Sociology
University of California, Irvine
2009-10
Overview

In an era of rising inequality, where consumption and suffering are growing apace, the study of population processes remains critical to understanding the world around us.  Births, deaths, marriage, and migration remain crucial indicators of social change.  The study of population covers not only basic measurements of population change, but also the roots and ramifications of those changes.

Sociologists approach the study of population by focusing on the social processes and implications of demographic change.  They ask such questions as why the marriage age is rising, why people divorce, why the birthrate has declined, why the population has moved to suburbs, why mortality rates vary by race and socioeconomic status, and how these changes affect social organization.  To address these and other questions, research and graduate training in the population cluster focus on grounding students in both sociological theory and statistical methodology.

Examples of current faculty research

• New estimations of the unauthorized immigrant population
• Historical mortality and morbidity in the U.S. population
• Migration and social integration in contemporary China
• Cross-national analyses of the household division of labor
• Older people in U.S. immigrant families
• Decision-making among dual-career couples
• Global city networks
• Educational inequality among immigrant groups
• Racial and ethnic differences in residence
  
  

FACULTY

Population

Frank Bean International migration, demography, racial and ethnic relations, economic sociology, family	Joy Pixley life course, work & family, sex stratification, gender roles, research design
Susan Brown* International migration, educational inequality, social demography, urban sociology	David Smith World systems analysis, urbanization, development, comparative-historical sociology, dependent development in East Asia
Cynthia Feliciano Race/ethnicity/minority relation, migration and immigration, education	Judy Treas Family, Social Demography, Aging, Social Stratification
Andrew Noymer demography, health, networks	Wang Feng Contemporary demographic, economic, and social processes; social inequality in socialist states; contemporary Chinese society
* Cluster coordinator

 

For this year's schedule of Demographic and Social Analysis Talks, click here.

 

FIELD EXAMS & GRADUATE COURSES

The following courses are among those satisfying prerequisites for field exams in Population

Population (required); offered annually.
Demographic Methods (required); offered annually.
Age, Generations, and the Life Course
Educational Inequality
Sociology/Demography of Health and Illness
Family and Households
Global Urbanization
Inequality in a Social Context
Immigration and Community
Mexican Migration and U.S. Policy

Graduate courses in population in 2009-2010 (subject to change):

Fall

Population (Brown)
Demographic Methods (Wang Feng)
Family Research Practicum (Bohzendahl)
Mexican Migration and U.S. Policy (Bean)

Winter

Sociology and Demography of Illness and Health (Noymer)
Social Networks and Demography (Faust and Brown)

Spring

Social Gerontology (Treas)

 

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