We are a generalist sociology department with a wide variety of research interests. Recent books and articles by faculty members have addressed the creation of global capitalist markets, comparative adolescent sexuality, Viagra, democratization, the revival of the labor movement, workplace discrimination, grammars of death, white collar criminal conspiracies, comparative family policy, comparative racial inequality, the socialization of Chinese adopted children, Latin American social movements, women's workforce and men’s household labor participation, and many other topics.

The graduate program is loosely organized around a series of intellectual clusters that reflect ongoing faculty research interests. These include Culture and Identity; Crime, Law and Deviance; Gender, Sexuality and Family; Politics, Movements and Globalization; Race, Immigration and Citizenship; Social Demography; Social Networks; Work, Organization and Economy.  The undergraduate program is one of the most popular on campus. Both programs are undergoing significant curriculum enhancements this year. The department is at once committed to excellent education, basic research and to be a leader in the project of public sociology.