Theories of Social Change

Pre-requisites: To enroll in this course students must have successfully passed the exams for Intro to Sociology and History of Social Theory.

Course objectives: The goal of this course is for students to gain systematic knowledge of an important sector of sociological theory, through exposure to alternative methods and interpretations of social change.

Course description: During the course, students will engage with the most significant theorists and theories on the subject of studying social change. Fundamental ideas and tenets of social change (change, growth, development, progress etc) will be explained and learned. Classical theories on social change will be examined (evolutionism, social cycle theory) as well as more modern approaches (modernization, dependency theory, world systems theory etc). Along with studying authors relevant to this subject, students will engage in discussion around key issues and problems related to social change (about the role of ideas, great influences, social movements etc).

Learning Outcomes: Upon completing this course students will be capable of understanding and explaining theoretical standpoints on social change as well as practical/actual processes of change.

Literature/Reading:

• P. Sztompka, The Sociology of Social Change, Blackwell, 1994
• Denis Smit, Uspon istorijske sociologije, Zavod za udžbenike i nastavna sredstva, 2001
• M. Popović, M. Ranković, Teorije i problemi društvenog razvoja, BIGZ 1981
• S. Tartalja, Začarani krug, Mladost, 1976
• N. Elijas, Procesi civilizacije, Izdavačka knjižarnica Zorana Stojanovića,
• K. Polanji, Velika transformacija, Filip Višnjić, 2003