Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

Introduction to sociology: Social order, the making of society; Social disorder, the unmaking and remaking of society; Sociological research methods -- Social structure: Microstructure, the social world of the self; Macrostructure, the social world of groups; Megastructure, the social structure of globalization -- Processes of social control: Culture; Socialization; Deviance; Collective behavior and social movements -- Social inequality: Social class and stratification; Race and ethnicity; Gender -- Social institutions: Family; Religion; Political economy; Education -- Social change: Health and medicine; Sociology of sexuality; Population; Technology, science and environment.

The authors "sketch social structure in ascending levels proceeding upward from individual experience. Microstructure encompasses social networks and statuses and roles, structures enmeshed in the everyday experience of individuals. Macrostructure encompasses all varieties of groups, from clubs of computer hackers, through organizations such as IBM, all the way up to the supergroup of society itself. Megastructure encompasses structural relations connecting whole societies"--Pref.