The Sociology of Organizations

Formal organizations are key to understanding most facets of modern life. This course examines organizations as complex social systems, which reflect and shape their broader social environments. The first half explores why organizations look and act the way they do: Why are they so bureaucratic? How do they influence one another? Why are they so often resistant to change? The second half of the course focuses on the consequences of organizational practices: How do they shape work, inequality and diversity? How do they mediate the effects of public policies? How do they become instruments of political change?