Sociology at Glasgow Caledonian University

The Division of Social Sciences

The Division of Social Sciences, together with the Division of Law, constitutes the academic locus of the School of Law and Social Sciences and is one of the largest Divisions in the university. The Division is home to a number of academic disciplines; History, Politics, Sociology, Social Policy, and Geography. For organisational purposes, these disciplines are divided into three Subject Groups which provide appropriate cognate homes. These are:

The groups are the key players in the everyday operational activities of the division and both learning and teaching and research activities are developed through and monitored by the subject groups. The Division consist of 35 academic staff and currently employs 14 research staff. It also has an Editorial/Information Officer, and is home to six full-time and six part-time PhD students. The Division has an active research culture and submitted under 2 units of assessment (Sociology and History) during the last Research Assessment Exercise (RAE). Sociology was graded at a 3a and History was awarded a 4. As a result both groups are recipients of grants from the funding body to support the growth and development of research and scholarship.

The Sociology and Social Policy Subject Group

Teaching

Sociology has been taught as an integral part of the BA (Hons) Social Sciences programme at Glasgow Caledonian University from its initial approval in 1973. There is a considerable range of expertise amongst the Sociology staff and the group is committed to delivering a high quality learning experience to the students who opt to take sociology modules. While teaching on other university programmes represents around 40% of the total teaching commitment of the Sociology Subject Group, most of the advanced Level modules taught by Sociologists are available on the BA (Hons) Social Sciences programme, which is the main focus of staff teaching activities. The group contributes 28 modules to the programme.

The Social Sciences programme is very much a co-operative venture between sociologists and colleagues from the other contributory disciplines. Students may study Sociology as a single honours subject, or as a joint or minor subject though only the first of these two choices would make an appearance in the title of student’s award. A significant number of students elect to pursue a course of study that will give them a formal qualification in sociology. Between 2000 and 2004 a total of 171 students graduated with a sociology qualification of which 28 qualified with a single honours and 143 with a joint honours degree. All students emerging with a sociology award will have had a sustained engagement, through the modules that they have encountered and successfully completed, with sociological perspectives, theories and debates. Modules provide opportunities for students to develop their sociological understanding through engagement with literature, staff and their peers.

The sociology subject group has also hosted the Masters in Applied Social Sciences. This has been replaced in academic year 2006/7 with a Masters in Research that will involve two distinct pathways. M.Res Contract Social Research: This option enhances vocational skills for career researchers who may not otherwise have undertaken comprehensive training in social research. It provides sponsoring employers and students with a clear and comprehensive programme of vocationally relevant learning: M.Res Applied Social Research: An additional focus of on policy and practice is the distinctive component of this option, which is targeted at researchers generally employed in the public, voluntary and private sectors. This option allows students to bridge the academic and applied research traditions of enquiry in the area of public and social policy. A third pathway in PhD preparation has been approved and will be brought on stream when resources permit.

Research

The Sociology and Social Policy Group (SSPG) concentrates its research activities around the broad theme of social and legal justice with a strong emphasis on social inclusion. The group is home to a significant number of research projects and has attracted funding from prestigious bodies including, the ESRC, ESF, Scottish Executive and the EU. Members also address key issues in sociological theory and engage with a social policy agenda that is relevant to contemporary Scotland and beyond. Many are also active in public and voluntary sector organizations as advisors, trustees and researchers, working to enhance knowledge transfer and influence policy and practice.

The SSPG has contributed to national and international debates on a range of topics including gender, ethnicity, disability and equality; sociology of the body; care; work life balance; comparative health; gender, organizations and violence, sentencing policies; football supporters organizations; lifestyles and gender; aging and society; Islam and politics in Iran and Afghanistan, as well as the more general subjects of the environment, human geography, cultural, health and media studies. Applied research includes work with voluntary sector organizations, charities, government departments and other agencies. The objective of this work is to enhance the links between research and policy and practice developments. The SSPG hosts the Scottish Poverty Information Unit (SPIU) which has a distinguished record of studying and providing information about social exclusion and promoting social inclusion. The Sociology group is also a collaborating partner in the Centre for Research on Families and Relationships (CRFR), makes a major contribution to the Centre for Equality and Diversity and collaborates with the Centre for Ethics in Public Policy and Corporate Governance , and hosts the virtual network Global Research on Organizations, Violations and Everyday Life (GROVE; www.grovenetwork.org).

Current Funded Research Projects