Sociology

Collection Development Statement

Last updated July 2020

Overview

The MSE Library’s collection supports the research and studies of both faculty and students of the university’s sociology department and other departments across campus. The study of sociology requires an interdisciplinary approach that considers the data, statistics, theories, and findings of a wide variety of other subjects. It is likewise utilized by many other disciplines to collect and assess data on human systems and demographics. This interdiscilinarity is demonstrated by the interchange of faculty that teach in both sociology and other departments across campus.

Departments/disciplines/programs subject areas supported

The sociology collection supports all of the programs within the sociology department. This includes an undergraduate major as well as a doctoral program. Again, due to the interdisciplinary nature of sociology, the materials of this collection are also often used by students in other departments (see collaborations below).

Formats Collected

• Audiovisual materials
• Collected editions
• Databases
• Dissertations
• Edited volumes
• Monographs
• Serials
• Textbooks

Languages Collected

Materials are collected primarily in English although a variety of other languages (most prominently French, German, and Spanish) are present. While preference is given to English language materials, resources in other languages may be added as deemed appropriate or upon faculty/student request.

Chronological or geographical focus

No priority is given to any geographical region or period of history. Due to the often comparative and diachronic nature of sociology research and the focus of JHU’s programs on global change and social inequality, to do so would be limiting to the resources available to our scholars.

Collaborations

The very nature of Anthropology demands interdisciplinary collaboration. Some of the frequent collaborations involve:

• Archaeology
• African Studies
• Africana Studies
• Business
• East Asian Studies
• History
• International Studies
• Islamic Studies
• Jewish Studies
• Latin American Studies
• Linguistics
• Modern Languages and Literatures
• Public Health
• Sociology
• …and others