Since the publication in the 1980s of the seminal essay by Chandra Mohanty, "Under Western Eyes," feminist scholarship has sought to decolonize knowledge by decentering the Global North and rejecting the universalization of Western experiences. Differences in experiences across cultures and nations became a focal point of feminist inquiry. Universal claims engendered suspicion, leading many to reject analysis of larger systems such as "patriarchy." The avoidance of ethnocentrism also became a priority. How do we achieve these goals? In other words, how do we decolonize feminist knowledge?

This course offers a friendly and practical introduction to data science for social science. Mathematical notation used in the course will be minimized. The course focuses on learning computing and programming tools for managing and analyzing data, as well as understanding the conceptual foundations behind different approaches to data analysis. By the end of the course, students should be able to summarize and visualize data, evaluate causal claims, use linear regression for data analysis, quantify uncertainty, and work with professional tools such as R and RStudio.

This is the second class of the quantitative methods field sequence in the PhD. in Politics; it is meant to be taken after POL 572. The class covers causal inference and program evaluation methods at a graduate level, as well as advanced topics in statistics such as nonparametric estimation and partial identification. POL 572 is a prerequisite of this class.

Introduction to Sociology looks at the social forces--some strikingly obvious, some hidden yet powerful--that shape our lives and the world around us. Our choices as individuals are almost always enmeshed in deeper social structures, such as perceived racial categories, the geography of job opportunities, and who we know and don't know. Sociology gives us diverse conceptual and methodological tools to help us uncover these social structures and understand how they shape our lives. This course introduces some of sociology's best-known tools and insights they've revealed so far.

This course will introduce you to the conservative tradition in sociology. The course does not deal with conservative movements. Our focus, instead, is on an intellectual tradition: styles of thought and ways of understanding the social world. We will explore this from the late 19th century through today. Our course is centered around five main themes: (1) Conservatism within the classical sociological tradition; (2) a focus on the case of "The Ghetto" and the experiences of Black Americans in urban America; (3) the conservative embrace of and concerns about capitalism; (4) the sociology of the family; (5) religion in social life.

Bruce Springsteen embodies the contradictions and complexities of U.S. politics. He is a progressive who sings about a demographic that is now a core element of President Donald Trump's base. He chronicles life in the U.S. focusing on a range of topics from loneliness, community, and freedom, to teen pregnancy, street car racing, and immigration. Class sessions will highlight one or more songs and academic literature to learn what sociology can teach about the issues raised by Springsteen's music. The seminar will be an opportunity to interrogate a vision of America - a country driven by politics but that is more then the sum of its politics.

This course is an introduction to the logic and practice of social science research. The goal is to provide methodological training that will enable students to design and execute successful independent research projects. We review a range of approaches used by sociologists to answer research questions, including field experiments, surveys, observation, in-depth interviews, and mixed method research.

Most research in sociology is quantitative, and it is important for students to be able to critically evaluate published quantitative research. Ideally, students should also be able to conduct empirical research involving statistical methods. This course provides the foundation for both goals. The course focuses specifically on how to determine, apply, and interpret statistical methods appropriate for answering a sociological research question given a particular set of data. Basic probability theory is introduced as a building block of statistical reasoning, and a variety of commonly-used statistical methods are covered in the course.

Why do people move across borders, and what happens when they do? Migration has shaped our world for centuries, and today, it is at the center of heated debates in politics, the media, and academic research. In this course, we will explore the forces driving human mobility - like economic opportunity, social networks, conflicts - and what happens when migrants settle in new places. We will take a global view and ask big-picture questions: How do people make decisions about moving? How do policies shape migration flows? How do politics influence these policies?

This course examines economic phenomena from a sociological perspective. We first consider conceptual tools that sociologists have used to understand economic life and connections between economy and society. We then apply these concepts to a rich array of topics including labor markets, worklife, firms, commodification and consumption, credit and finance, social stratification and inequality, and contemporary transformations of capitalism

This course focuses on the structural and institutional foundations of racial discrimination in the United States. It emphasizes the contributions of sociologists. The course gives a historical overview followed by an investigation of key legislative actions and economic factors inhibiting racial equality. Subsequent topics include migration and immigration; urban development; and residential segregation. The end of the course reviews resistance movements and policies aimed at addressing systemic racism, including restorative justice and reparations.

This course seeks to help students understanding the basic elements of the ethnographic method and how it can be applied to the analysis of various public policy settings. We will focus on the suitability of ethnography for addressing at least three basic issues: (1) how people on the ground are affected by public policies; (2) the unintended consequences of public policy; (3) the co-production of public services, particularly the interaction between front line bureaucrats and their clients.

Does where you live determine your destiny? This seminar will engage students in a rich dialogue about these questions and more, drawing from the best social science evidence to date from the social sciences. In the first half of the course, we will consider research conducted on neighborhood-level (census tract) differences in big cities. In the second half, we will consider research focusing on differences between communities across the entire U.S., including rural America. Student presentations are a significant part of this course.

The senior thesis (498-499) is a year-long project in which students complete a substantial piece of research and scholarship under the supervision and advisement of a Princeton faculty member. While a year-long thesis is due in the student's final semester of study, the work requires sustained investment and attention throughout the academic year. Required works-in-progress submissions, their due dates, as well as how students' grades for the semester are calculated are outlined below.

Analyzes the historical construction of race as a concept in American society, how and why this concept was institutionalized publicly and privately in various arenas of U.S. public life at different historical junctures, and the progress that has been made in dismantling racialized institutions since the civil rights era.

This course will examine how institutions develop, vary in design, and shape public policy. Law will be a primary focus because it is central to the development of institutions in modern societies and provides the formal means for expressing and fixing policy. The course will cover a wide range of institutions- social, economic, and political- not only in an American context but also in comparative perspective.

This survey course will introduce you to the central issues in K-12 education policy. We will first consider the normative dimensions of education policymaking: What are the substantive and distributional goals of K-12 public education? What does, and should, equality of educational opportunity mean in theory and practice? After introducing a framework for combining values and evidence, we will consider the empirical evidence on a range of policy levers, including policies that address school accountability, teacher quality, school choice, and curricula.

This course focuses on the causes, consequences, and responses to urban inequality. The course is organized in four parts. First, we consider how one comes to learn about and understand cities and neighborhoods. Second, we review classic and current ideas about how urbanization affects the way we live and interact with each other. Third, we assess various explanations for urban inequality. Fourth, we focus our attention on central problems and challenges of urban life, from segregation to violence, and consider policy responses.

This seminar introduces the study of gentrification, with a focus on mapping projects using GIS (Geographic Information Systems) software. Readings, films, and site visits will situate the topic, as the course examines how racial landscapes of gentrification, culture and politics have been influenced by and helped drive urban change. Tutorials in ArcGIS will allow students to convert observations of urban life into fresh data and work with existing datasets. Learn to read maps critically, undertake multifaceted spatial analysis, and master new cartographic practices associated with emerging scholarship in the Digital and Urban Humanities.