Sociology

The course aims to transfer the knowledge and skills students on the history, theory and processes characterizing the Social Policy field, following a path that will proceed from theory to practice. The purpose is to provide an overview, as complete as possible, of what has happened and is happening in an industry that characterizes public policy in the twentieth century, has gone through and is still going through a period of profound changes, connected on the one hand, the globalization of planetary processes (that are making obsolete the national legislation in a world where the production processes and industrial dynamics are supranational) and, secondly, the internal dynamics of the same sector (with adjustments regulatory implemented to make the system adequate to the changes in society: demographic dynamics; family dynamics, gender relations, and so on). The course will be divided into two parts: - The first will be devoted to the history and evolution of social policies until their configuration in the contemporary division into four segments typically identified as characteristic: social security, health, labor and social welfare; - The second part will allow the student to confront another approach, more pragmatic (as typical of Anglo-Saxon culture), where social problems are described in relation to the classical sociological approaches: functionalism, conflict and interactionism. Attention will therefore focus on description of the social problem such phenomena disvelano the intricate relationship between the processes of social exclusion and those of impoverishment. In fact, the social problem They are revealed in all their virulence especially in the most deprived contexts: economically, socially and culturally. Consequently, the deprivation manifests itself as a cause and effect of these. The one and the other will affect and fertilize each other, raising questions about their simple analytical decoding and revealing the complexity of the work of the sociologist

No previous knowledge is required to be able to understand the lessons and follow the program. However, surely, the knowledge of modern and contemporary history, the possession of the basic skills of sociological theory constitute knowledge that will facilitate understanding and speed up learning.

The examination texts will be 2, one for each part of the course. For the first part of the text adopted it is: 1) handouts produced by the lecturer (in progress) 2) Ferrera M., Le Politiche Sociali, Il Mulino, Bologna, 2019 For the second part of the text adopted it is: 1) T. J. Sullivan, Social Policy. A sociological approach to social problems, Pearson, 2014 During the lessons, the teacher will indicate texts for further study

The lessons will be frontal, accompanied by the presentation of slides to help the student memorize the most important points.

Attendance is not mandatory, but it is encouraged and recommended.

There will be an oral exam on the program. Those who wish, to get an idea of ​​their preparation, can participate optionally in the exemptions, one for each part of the program.

The lessons will be frontal, accompanied by the presentation of slides to help the student memorize the most important points.