ShelfLife@Texas

As millions of Americans brave shopping malls this holiday season, they will inevitably come across a migraine-inducing temper tantrum in the toy aisle, or perhaps a belligerent argument between a customer and a cashier.

Why are these scenarios ubiquitous in retail stores throughout America?

This is one of many questions about mall culture Christine Williams, professor of sociology, explores in “Inside Toyland: Working, Shopping and Social Inequality” (University of California Press, 2005), which reveals the unsavory realities of race, gender and
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As our nation’s new President-Elect Barack Obama prepares to make his transition to the White House, millions of Americans wait in anticipation to see how he will turn the weakening economy around and make good on his promise for “a new dawn of American leadership.”

Three books by professors from the College of Liberal Arts, offer keen insight into the challenges our new president will face. From scandals in the White House to party polarization to the issue of race
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Why do so many evangelical teens become pregnant? This week’s New Yorker tackles this question in the story “Red Sex, Blue Sex,” which draws upon research from the book “Forbidden Fruit” by UT sociologist Mark Regnerus.

“Forbidden Fruit: Sex & Religion in the Lives of American Teenagers,” published last year by Oxford University Press, tells the story of the sexual values and practices of American teenagers, paying particular attention to how participating in organized religion shapes sexual decision making.

Watch Regenerus discuss
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