Sociology Dismissing Religion? The Presentation of Religious Change in Introductory Sociology Textbooks

This paper explores whether the field of sociology harbors a dismissive attitude towards religion. Specifically it examines whether introductory sociology textbooks present the classic secularization theory over the more recent religious economies explanation of religious change. The classical secularization thesis suggests that religion is declining in importance in modern societies and may disappear completely. The religious economies perspective proposes that religion has actually become more influential and dynamic over time. While both theories are well represented in the sociology of religion literature, we explore whether generalist sociology textbooks reflect this reality. This article provides a content analysis of 31 introductory sociology textbooks published between 2003 and 2006. We assess the presence and promotion of the above theories in these textbooks. Our analysis reveals that 20 (65%) of the 31 textbooks in our study present only secularization theory, while seven (23%) of the textbooks cover both secularization theory and religious economies theory. We assess the ramifications of such a lopsided arrangement and conclude by encouraging a more open dialogue on this issue.     

Discourse, interaction, and testimony: The making of selves in the U.S. Protestant dispute over homosexuality

Ethnography helps to elaborate Foucault's conception of power at work to produce subjects through micro-level interactions. I examine interactions among Protestants as they discuss homosexuality in two sites, an ex-gay movement seminar and a pro-gay liberal congregation. In two opposed groups, the genre of testimony produced an authentic-seeming truth, working performatively to produce group boundaries, to legitimate authority and hierarchies in the group, and to tacitly define certain categories as abject, unlivable. That groups can produce this effect in spite of their intentions illustrates how certain forms of social power inhere in language and work through everyday talk.     

THERAPIST-CONDUCTED CONSULTATION: USING CLIENTS AS CONSULTANTS TO THEIR OWN THERAPY

Using qualitative research methodology, the authors developed an in-session therapeutic procedure called the therapist-conducted consultation (TCC) which is designed to enhance the therapist-client collaborative relationship. In the TCC, the therapist and client(s) relinquish their traditional roles and discuss the client's treatment. During this process, clients are invited to (a) share their perspective of treatment, (b) assess whether treatment is meeting their goals, and (c) suggest how treatment could change to improve their experience. The three-stage model of the TCC that resulted from the research is presented with a case example.     

Acculturation,Social Support,and Family Conflict: Korean–American Adolescents’ Perceptions

Numerous studies have examined the nature of parent–adolescent relationships within mainstream families; but few have focused on conflicts in the Korean immigrant population. In addition, there has been no attempt to develop and test a theory-driven model of social service practices for the immigrant families. Thus, the current study developed and tested a structural equation model based on three latent variables, which are acculturation, social support system, and family conflict. This study offers a first step by investigating the overall nature and outcome of conflict between parents and adolescents. The analysis with data taken from 304 Korean American adolescents, ages 14–18, revealed that a social support system was the most significant means of predicting immigrant family conflicts. A number of practice applications, based on the results, along with implications for future study were discussed, and proved a great need for a support system.     

Year of immigration and socioeconomic status: A comparative study of three Asian populations in California

This study is the first attempt to search for the relationship between socioeconomic characteristics and year of immigration among Asian populations in the United States for the purpose of examining the feasibility of the ‘late arrival hypothesis’ that late arrival accounts for one's low socioeconomic status at the place of destination. In order to discuss additionally how differences in socioeconomic characteristics among Asian ethnic groups occur, Japanese were selected as an early immigrated Asian population, Korean as an intermediately immigrated one, and Vietnamese as a late immigrant. The data for this study are from the 5 percent public use sample of the 1980 Census of Population for the State of California.     

Essential components of curricula for preparing therapists to work effectively with lesbian, gay, and bisexual clients: a Delphi study

The purpose of this study was to determine the knowledge, experiences, and values that therapists should possess to provide quality therapy services to lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) persons and their families. Using the Delphi method, consensus from a panel of experts on LGB topics was obtained on the components that training curricula should ideally include to prepare therapists adequately to work with this population. Panelists provide suggestions for important therapist values and qualities, key theoretical orientations, common issues of LGB clients and their support persons, key components of assessment and interventions, ethical and legal issues, and recommended materials. The panelists stress self-of-the-therapist work and development of a systemic perspective as critical aspects of training. The role of sexuality was deemphasized. Recommendations to training programs based on these findings are provided.     

Foreclosing Fluidity at the Intersection of Gender and Sexual Normativities

Binary gender and sexuality are socially constructed, but they structure thought at such a deep level that even those critical of sexism and homophobia can unwittingly reproduce them, with consequences felt most profoundly by those whose gender/sexual identity defy binary logic. This article outlines a generic pattern in the reproduction of inequality we call foreclosing fluidity, the symbolic or material removal of fluid possibilities from sexual and gender experience and categorization. Based on 115 responses from people who are both sexually and gender fluid and a reading of existing sociologies of gender and sexualities from a fluid standpoint, we demonstrate how lesbian/gay/straight, cisgender, and transgender women and men—regardless of intentions—may foreclose fluidity by mobilizing cisnormative, transnormative, heteronormative, and/or homonormative beliefs and practices. Examining patterns of foreclosing fluidity may provide insight into (1) the further incorporation of fluid people and standpoints into symbolic interactionism, and (2) the reproduction and persistence of sexual and gender inequalities.