A Formal Restatement of Durkheim's "Division of Labor" Theory

Despite frequent references in the sociological literature to Durkheim's theory about the division of labor, sociologists have made few attempts to test it. The paucity of attempts and the very debatable outcomes thereof are due largely to Durkheim's use of the traditional discursive mode of theory construction. A discursively stated theory's logical structure is likely to be obscure, and for that reason alone tests of it are difficult and controversial. Rather than perpetuate the exegetical tradition in sociological treatments of the subject, this paper restates Durkheim's theory in accordance with a particular formal mode. That restatement identifies the theory's shortcomings and problems. But the eight premises imply only one testable theorem, and the theorem's predictive accuracy appears minimal unless "population concentration" is substituted for "density" in the first axiom. Nonetheless, the restatement clearly shows how extension of the theory (additional postulates) could further its testability.     

FACILITATING INTIMACY: INTERVENTIONS AND EFFECTS

The Present study investigated by effects of two sets of marital interventions taken from Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) and Cognitive Marital Therapy (CMT) on level of marital intimacy, dyadic trust, and dyadic adjustment. It was hypothesized that both EFT and CMT would have a positive effect on levels of intimacy, trust, and adjustment as compared to a wait-list control group and that there would be a differential effect in favor of EFT as compared to CMT. Thirty-six couples free of marital distress and seeking to enhance theor intimate relationship were randomaly assigned to EFT, CMT, or a wai-list control group. Therapists' interventions were monitored and found to be faithfully implemented. Groups were equivalent on demographic variables and the quality of the therapeutic alliance. Both EFT and CMT group posttest means were found to be significantly higher than controls on the self-report measures of intimacy, Observational measures of intimacy revealed differential effects in favor of EFT as comopared to CMT at posttest. At a 10-week follow-up, EFT group means were significantly higher than CMT on self-reported intimacy and adjustment.     

Reports of Conferences,Institutes, and Seminars

In the span of four weeks, from late March to early April 2008, three important technical services conferences were held: the Electronic Resources & Libraries Conference, the New England Technical Services Librarians Conference, and the North Carolina Serials Conference.     

Antiracist Education in Theory and Practice: A Critical Assessment

“Antiracist Education in Theory and Practice: A Critical Assessment” As a set of pedagogical, curricular, and organizational strategies, antiracist education claims to be the most progressive way today to understand race relations. Constructed from whiteness studies and the critique of colorblindness, its foundational core is located in approximately 160 papers published in peer-reviewed journals in the past 15 years-identified through a comprehensive search of Academic Premier Search, EBSCOMegaFile, Education Abstracts, JSTOR, and SOCIndex. A critical assessment of these papers concludes that antiracist education is not a sociologically grounded, empirically based account of the significance of race in American society. Rather, it is a morally based educational reform movement that embodies the confessional and redemptive modes common in evangelical Protestantism. Inherently problematic, whether or not antiracist education achieves broader acceptance is open to debate. Presented at the joint meeting of the Midwest Sociological Society/North Central Sociological Association, Chicago, IL, April 7, 2007