Consciousness and the Study of Society: Towards a New Perspective on Sociology introduces students to the fundamentals of sociology while also emphasizing the idea that perceptions based on one’s level of consciousness shape the world in which we live.

The text is organized into five distinct sections. The chapters in Unit 1 discuss the theoretical, analytical, and methodological groundwork for the study of sociology, including a brief consideration of the human constitution. Unit 2 examines the basic ideas that underscore sociology including culture, society, socialization, and how we make sense of everyday life. In Unit 3, students learn about issues of social identity that can perpetuate social differentiations and, at times, conflict between groups. These chapters cover social stratification and class, race, ethnicity, gender, deviance and social control, and sexuality. Unit 4 investigates the six primary social structures that provide the foundation of any society: family, politics, economics, religion, education, and health and medicine. The final unit looks to the future, proposing that upheavals in our current society will lead to an evolution of our society and a new cycle of human experience.

Compelling, comprehensive, and designed to help students better understand themselves and the world around them, Consciousness and the Study of Society is an excellent textbook for foundational courses in sociology.