Communities and Social Dynamics
Code
711081054
Academic unit
Faculdade de Ciências Sociais e Humanas
Department
Sociologia
Credits
6
Weekly hours
4
Teaching language
Portuguese
Objectives
1. Knowledge and understanding of the main theoretical frameworks of sociological comminity studies.
2. Acquisition and development of analytical skills required for the study of today´s communities, both those that are locally circumscribed and those without territorial boundaries (e.g. digital and dyasporic communities);
3. An understanding of the renewall of concepts and theories on communities as social networks and sociability and socialization spaces;
4. The ability to analyse communities also as privileged objects for the observation of innovative dynamics and social movements.
5. The ability to communicate in an accurate and and significant way sociological approaches to communities as research objects.
Prerequisites
Subject matter
A. BASIC CONCEPTS AND THEORIES
Community and utopia: the scholarly tradition
The Gemeinschaft-Gesellschaft dichotomy: Comte, Marx, Pareto, Durkheim, Tönnies e Parsons
Rural communiites and peasant societies
Urban communities and transnational networks
B. FROM THE END OF \"FORDISM\" TO \"SOCIAL INNOVATION\"
Communities and social capital: personnal communities and social networks; the strength of weak ties or the network society
Communities and the end of the welfare state - \"social economy\" and \"social innovation\"
The limits of the \"innovative community\"
C. THEMATIC APPROACHES
Community and diversity: migrations, networks and enclaves as sources of social and cultural diversity and complexification
Virtual communities: belonging through communication; knowledge communities
Youth subcultures: reggae and rastafarianism
Bibliography
Teaching method
Classwork consists of theoretical lectures and practical classroom exercises. The latter consist of oral presentations and discussion by the students (i) of texts on empirical research; and (ii) of their ongoing literature reviews and essays on the problematization of relevant research topics. There will be tutorial overseeing of the students´ problematization essays as well.
Evaluation method
Evaluation and weighting for the final grade: continuous evaluation of the student´s participation in practical classes - relevance of the student´s interventions and contribution to the quality of the discussion in practical classes will be taken into account (10%); presentation in class of a short critical essay on a text about an empirical research (15%); presentation and discussion of a literature review and problematization essay on a relevant topic for research (15%); written problematization essay (20%); two written tests in class (40%).