SOCIAL SCIENCE / Sociology / General

Written by leading social scientists, this ambitious volume asks what individuals’ “handling” of bodies reveal about inequality, social order and cultural change in societies.

Written by experts in interpretive sociology, this volume examines semiotic models in a sociological context. Contributors offer case studies to demonstrate ‘how to do things’ with semiotics. Synthesizing a diverse and fragmented landscape, this is a key reference work for understanding the connection between semiotics and sociology.

Paul Spicker's new book takes the three founding principles of the French Revolution - Liberty, Equality, Fraternity - and examines how they relate to social policy today. The book considers the political and moral dimensions of a wide range of social policies, and offers a different way of thinking about each subject.

This book considers what makes us happy, using a new approach that directly addresses the circumstances under which highly subjective well-being is experienced, often with surprising results. 

This student-friendly textbook uses theoretical perspectives to bring to life social theories relating to health and illness. including binge drinking, obesity, the prominence of therapy and the search for happiness.

This book is the first to theorise and define the social harm concept beyond criminology and seeks to address these omissions and in doing so provide a platform for future debates, in this series and beyond.

This unique book offers a timely analysis of the impact of rapidly advancing knowledge about the brain, mind and behaviour on contemporary public policy and practice. It analyses the global spread of research agendas, policy experiments and everyday practice informed by ‘brain culture’.

Race Policy and Multiracial Americans looks at the impact of multiracial people on race policies—where they lag behind the growing numbers of multiracial people in the USA and how they can be used to promote racial justice. This much-needed book is essential reading for anyone interested in race relations and social justice.

Academics from a range of disciplines join with political activists to explore the meaning of politics and citizenship in contemporary society and the current forms of political (dis)engagement, providing a timely interdisciplinary dialogue and interrogation of contemporary political practices.

This ground-breaking study of the baby boomer generation reflects the intersection of time, ageing, body and identity to give a nuanced and enlightened understanding of the ageing process.

Drawing on the popular Economic Social and Research Council (ESRC) seminar series, this book examines social issues and anxieties, and the solutions to them, through the concept of moral panic.

What does it mean to age in an ageist society? Applying interdisciplinary perspectives about everyday life to vital issues in older people’s lives, this is a critical guide to inform thinking and planning our ageing futures.