Debra J. Umberson

Description

This course offers a broad multidisciplinary overview that introduces students to the study of health and society. Basic topics include health patterns, health behavior, medical care, and health policy in social, demographic, cultural, economic, political, and ethical contexts. Basic methodological approaches to studying these topics will be covered. This course will include guest lectures by representatives of various disciplines. This course is a requirement for the new college of liberal arts major in Health and Society (HS) which is scheduled to launch in fall, 2014.

Required Texts

Conrad, Peter. 2009. The Sociology of Health and Illness: Critical Perspectives. 8th edition. NY: Worth Publishers.

Skloot, Rebecca. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. NY: Crown, 2010.

Grading Policy

1. Three in-class exams. Format will include multiple choice questions and short answer or essay questions. Each exam is worth 100 points.
2. Essay assignment. Five page, double-spaced essay to address the question: “What is the cause of obesity in America: Society or man?” Students will view the movie SuperSize Me and read three related articles that represent an alternate point of view. The essay will summarize and compare these viewpoints in addressing the key question. Essay is worth 100 points.

(Each exam, essay, and final grade: 90-100, A; 80-89, B; 70-79, C; 60-69, D; 59 or below, F. Plus/minus system used.)

Special Emphasis:

JHSB Graduate Student Editorial Board

Publishing & reviewing on sociology of health and illness

COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course is designed for graduate students with an interest in publishing and reviewing research in the area of sociology of health and illness. This course addresses: (1) how to write and publish an article in an academic journal, (2) the review process and instruction on how to review articles for scholarly journals, and (3) special topics related to the editorial process.

Goals:

1. Deepen substantive expertise with immersion in the most recent cutting edge research in medical sociology.
2. Engage in critical and constructive discussion of the field of medical sociology.
3. Develop skills and knowledge to facilitate the successful submission of a research article for editorial review and publication. Learn what reviewers are looking for in a research article.
4. Develop skills that qualify you to evaluate and review articles for scholarly journals.  
5. Learn about the editorial process involved in publishing research articles in Journal of Health & Social Behavior (JHSB).
6. Prepare your own paper for editorial review. This will include the opportunity to have the student editorial board review your paper and discuss the paper in class.

This course may be taken for a grade, pass/fail, or by audit. Please contact the instructor if you would like to have additional information: umberson@prc.utexas.edu

SOC 397D • Publishing Papers in Sociology (unique #46380)

Special Emphasis:

JHSB Graduate Student Editorial Board

Publishing & reviewing on sociology of health and illness

Professor Debra Umberson

Wednesdays 12-2:30, Main Building 1703
Office hours: Wednesdays 2:30-3:30

COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course is designed for graduate students with an interest in publishing and reviewing research in the area of sociology of health and illness. This course addresses: (1) how to write and publish an article in an academic journal, (2) the review process and instruction on how to review articles for scholarly journals, and (3) special topics related to the editorial process.

Goals:

1. Deepen substantive expertise with immersion in the most recent cutting edge research in medical sociology.
2. Engage in critical and constructive discussion of the field of medical sociology.
3. Develop skills and knowledge to facilitate the successful submission of a research article for editorial review and publication. Learn what reviewers are looking for in a research article.
4. Develop skills that qualify you to evaluate and review articles for scholarly journals.  
5. Learn about the editorial process involved in publishing research articles in Journal of Health & Social Behavior (JHSB).
6. Help to shape and improve JHSB as a print and online mechanism for disseminating cutting edge research on the sociology of health.

This course may be taken for a grade, pass/fail, or by audit. Please contact the instructor if you would like to have additional information: umberson@prc.utexas.edu

MISSION STATEMENT OF JHSB

The Journal of Health and Social Behavior is a medical sociology journal that publishes empirical and theoretical articles that apply sociological concepts and methods to the understanding of health and illness and the organization of medicine and health care. Its editorial policy favors manuscripts that are grounded in important theoretical issues in medical sociology or the sociology of mental health and that advance our theoretical understanding of the processes by which social factors and human health are interrelated.

JHSB GRAD STUDENT EDITORIAL BOARD

Individual Editorial Assignments

• Web/Pod Editor
• Podcast Editor
• Graphics Editor
• Policy Brief Editor
• Social Media Editor
• Abstracts Editor
• Teaching Contents Editor
• Copy Editor
• Editor In Chief

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Final grades will be based on:

• Weekly participation and journal development: 25%
• Editorial reviews: 25%
• Research paper: 50%

Weekly participation and journal development:

• Journal development. Share responsibility for one of JHSB’s major online or print areas, such as development of policy briefs, abstracting, graphics and images, teaching resources, web development, media coverage, development of social media, strategizing for reduced review time and increasing journal visibility and impact. 
• Participate in weekly editorial board meetings. Participate in editorial discussions and observe decision-making and revision processes.

Editorial reviews:

• Prepare reviews of article submissions to supplement those of experts in the field. Students should expect to review 4 to 5 articles over the course the semester (approximately one article every two to three weeks).

Prepare a research paper for editorial review:

• Prepare your own paper for editorial review. This can be a new paper or a paper that has already been reviewed by a journal. The goal is to revise your paper, submit it for publication, and to have your article accepted for publication. The course is designed to demystify the review process and convey the ingredients for success in publishing your work. You will be benefit from editorial review (by your classmates) and concrete suggestions for revising your paper.

FRIENDLY REMINDERS

• Deadlines. The course functions as both an academic seminar and as a working editorial board. We will often be working under tight deadline pressure and we will often disagree about the appropriate course of action.
• Confidentiality. What happens in seminar, stays in seminar -- students must keep authors’ names, reviewers’ names and other identifying information strictly confidential.
• Grading. You will be evaluated on the basis of your overall contributions to the seminar and to JHSB. You may take the course on a pass/fail or letter-grade basis.
• Attendance. You are expected to attend each weekly meeting. 

SOC 397D • Publishing Papers in Sociology (unique #46380)

Special Emphasis:

JHSB Graduate Student Editorial Board

Publishing & reviewing on sociology of health and illness

Professor Debra Umberson

Wednesdays 12-2:30, Main Building 1703
Office hours: Wednesdays 2:30-3:30

COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course is designed for graduate students with an interest in publishing and reviewing research in the area of sociology of health and illness. This course addresses: (1) how to write and publish an article in an academic journal, (2) the review process and instruction on how to review articles for scholarly journals, and (3) special topics related to the editorial process.

Goals:

1. Deepen substantive expertise with immersion in the most recent cutting edge research in medical sociology.
2. Engage in critical and constructive discussion of the field of medical sociology.
3. Develop skills and knowledge to facilitate the successful submission of a research article for editorial review and publication. Learn what reviewers are looking for in a research article.
4. Develop skills that qualify you to evaluate and review articles for scholarly journals.  
5. Learn about the editorial process involved in publishing research articles in Journal of Health & Social Behavior (JHSB).
6. Help to shape and improve JHSB as a print and online mechanism for disseminating cutting edge research on the sociology of health.

This course may be taken for a grade, pass/fail, or by audit. Please contact the instructor if you would like to have additional information: umberson@prc.utexas.edu

MISSION STATEMENT OF JHSB

The Journal of Health and Social Behavior is a medical sociology journal that publishes empirical and theoretical articles that apply sociological concepts and methods to the understanding of health and illness and the organization of medicine and health care. Its editorial policy favors manuscripts that are grounded in important theoretical issues in medical sociology or the sociology of mental health and that advance our theoretical understanding of the processes by which social factors and human health are interrelated.

JHSB GRAD STUDENT EDITORIAL BOARD

Individual Editorial Assignments

• Web/Pod Editor
• Podcast Editor
• Graphics Editor
• Policy Brief Editor
• Social Media Editor
• Abstracts Editor
• Teaching Contents Editor
• Copy Editor
• Editor In Chief

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Final grades will be based on:

• Weekly participation and journal development: 25%
• Editorial reviews: 25%
• Research paper: 50%

Weekly participation and journal development:

• Journal development. Share responsibility for one of JHSB’s major online or print areas, such as development of policy briefs, abstracting, graphics and images, teaching resources, web development, media coverage, development of social media, strategizing for reduced review time and increasing journal visibility and impact. 
• Participate in weekly editorial board meetings. Participate in editorial discussions and observe decision-making and revision processes.

Editorial reviews:

• Prepare reviews of article submissions to supplement those of experts in the field. Students should expect to review 4 to 5 articles over the course the semester (approximately one article every two to three weeks).

Prepare a research paper for editorial review:

• Prepare your own paper for editorial review. This can be a new paper or a paper that has already been reviewed by a journal. The goal is to revise your paper, submit it for publication, and to have your article accepted for publication. The course is designed to demystify the review process and convey the ingredients for success in publishing your work. You will be benefit from editorial review (by your classmates) and concrete suggestions for revising your paper.

FRIENDLY REMINDERS

• Deadlines. The course functions as both an academic seminar and as a working editorial board. We will often be working under tight deadline pressure and we will often disagree about the appropriate course of action.
• Confidentiality. What happens in seminar, stays in seminar -- students must keep authors’ names, reviewers’ names and other identifying information strictly confidential.
• Grading. You will be evaluated on the basis of your overall contributions to the seminar and to JHSB. You may take the course on a pass/fail or letter-grade basis.
• Attendance. You are expected to attend each weekly meeting. 

 See attached file

Course Description: 

This seminar is designed to help students understand of the nature and causes of gender stratification in industrial societies. In this seminar we examine both theoretical and empirical issues regarding gender inequality in the labor market. Topics to be discussed include changes in female labor force participation, gender segregation in the workplace, gender gaps in earnings and promotions, as well as gender differences in career processes. Because many articles we will read involve statistical analyses, students are expected to be able to read and understand quantitative sociological research at the level of SOC385L or the equivalent. While a large proportion of the readings are based on research in the United States, international comparisons of women’s economic roles also constitute an important part of this seminar. In particular, we address how social institutions that vary from one country to another shape men’s and women’s economic opportunities and thus the degree of gender inequality in the society.    Students are expected to attend class regularly and read the assigned readings prior to the class period during which we will discuss the material. Active participation in class discussions is also required. 

Texts:

The required texts for this course includes books and articles from peer-reviewed sociological journals. The list below shows some of the books required for this course:  

Goldin, Claudia. 1990. Understanding the Gender Gap: An Economic History of American Women. Oxford University Press.

Charles, Maria. and David B. Grusky. 2004. Occupational Ghetto: The Worldwide Segregation of Men and Women. Stanford University Press.

Ogasawara, Yuko. 1998. Office Ladies and Salaried Men: Power, Gender, and Work in Japanese Companies. University of California.