Introduction to Sociological Theory: Theorists, Concepts, and their Applicability to the Twenty-First Century

The revised third edition of the text that combines classical and contemporary theories of sociological theory

Thoroughly revised and updated, the third edition of an Introduction to Sociological Theory offers an in-depth introduction to classical and contemporary theories, and demonstrates their relevance to offer a clear understanding of a broad range of contemporary issues and topics. As with the previous editions, the text continues to combine carefully selected primary quotations from a broad range of theorists with extensive discussion and illustrative examples from a diverse range of countries, helpful timelines of important and thematically relevant events, biographical notes, contemporary topic boxes, analytical photos, and chapter glossaries. 

The text addresses topics such as the persistence of economic and social inequality, Brexit, post-truth society, same-sex marriage, digital surveillance and the on-demand gig economy. Written in an engaging style, Introduction to Sociological Theory offers a comprehensive introduction to the pluralistic breadth and wide-ranging applicability of sociological theory. This updated edition of the authoritative text:

• Contains both classical and contemporary theories in a single text
• Builds on excerpts from original theoretical writings with detailed discussion of the concepts and ideas under review
• Includes new examples of current empirical topics such as Brexit, Donald Trump’s presidency, China’s growing economic power, global warming, intersectionality, social media, and much more
• Offers additional resources including a website that contains multiple choice and essay questions, a thoroughly refreshed set of PowerPoint slides for each chapter with multimedia links to content illustrative of sociological processes, a list of complementary primary readings, a quotation bank, and other background materials

Written for undergraduate courses in contemporary and classical sociological theory, the third edition of an Introduction to Sociological Theory continues to provide a comprehensive, in-depth, and empirically engaging, introduction to sociological theory.

MICHELE DILLON, PhD, is Professor of Sociology at the University of New Hampshire, USA and has many years of experience teaching sociological theory to undergraduate and graduate students. She has authored five books on religion and social change, many articles and book chapters and is the editor of a handbook.