Abstract
Sociology exists in a dynamic academic environment that influences how students view and evaluate the discipline. This essay explores the changing academic context of sociology through the author’s experience as a professor and department chair over a span of four decades. Increased co-curricular programming, changing student goals, and more competitive disciplinary neighbors present sociology departments with new challenges in attracting students. Central to these challenges is the erosion of sociology’s once distinctive niche in the academic ecology. Questions and suggestions are explored regarding adaptive strategies that might enable sociology to find a niche wherein it can thrive.
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Clark, R.A. The Changing Academic Ecology of Sociology: Learning to Live With More Frogs in the Pond. Am Soc 39, 155–163 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12108-008-9040-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12108-008-9040-3