The Blackwell Dictionary of Sociology

This new edition of Allan G. Johnson's one-volume sociology dictionary includes 75 new entries, as well as an expanded biographical section, extensive revisions and updates, and a more thorough cross-referencing. Written by a sociologist who is also an accomplished writer and teacher, it is aimed primarily at students, but will also be of use to professionals looking for an introduction to core concepts outside their area of expertise. Its combination of clear prose, engaging examples, a single author's voice, and its minimal assumptions about the average reader's prior knowledge of sociology and its related fields, makes this a unique and valuable reference work. About this Book.

Dictionary Entries A-Z.

Biographical Sketches: A Selected Sociological Who's Who.

Index.

"All praise to Allan Johnson for this fine second edition of the very best portable dictionary of sociology. Clear and knowing, it skillfully anatomizes the concepts basic to a sociological understanding of social life. It belongs in every college and public library and in many a personal library as well." Robert K. Merton, Columbia University

"Here is a book that every academic library and every department of sociology should own. The author's short opening essay is clear and valuable [and he] has chosen his vocabulary items well. Every word I looked up was there. His essay definitions are good, and closely representative of the discipline, [and] he precisely grasps the distinctive elements of each concept." Contemporary Sociology

" It is a portable dictionary that will help undergraduates and others interested in understanding the central concepts of sociology by offering them a representative sampling of some specialized areas within the field and some important concepts from related disciplines-such as Authority, Feminism and Teleoogical Explanation. This is unique in one respect. The others are edited collections of entries composed by many writers, but Johnson wrote this entire work in an effort to present the whole conceptual framework with one continuos voice." Booklist, Chicago, Illinois

"Inexpensive, with an attractive format, this dictionary would be helpful for sociology students and would make a good, if not essential, addition to library collections." P. Flaherty, Eastern Kentucky University

"Intended to serve as a guidebook, this dictionary is so well written that it could also be read cover to cover. All public libraries should have a copy of this work in their reference sections." Libraries Unlimited, American Reference Books

Allan G. Johnson is Professor of Sociology at Hartford College for Women. His previous publications include The Forest and the Trees: Sociology as Life, Practice, and Promise (1997), The Gender Knot: Unraveling Our Patriarchal Legacy (1997), and Human Arrangements (fourth edition, 1996). This second edition of Allan G. Johnson's one-volume dictionary includes 75 new entries, as well as an expanded biographical section, extensive revisions and updates, and more thorough cross-referencing. The combination of clear prose, engaging examples, a single author's voice, and minimal assumptions about the average reader's prior knowledge of the field, makes this a distinctive and valuable reference work.

Johnson defines amorphous and fuzzy sociological concepts in a lively and sensible way and his book provides an introduction to what it means to think sociologically. For a deeper understanding of social life, and of the only discipline dedicated to making sense of it in all its diversity, this Dictionary is a perfect guide.