Fall 2013
Volume: 12 | Number: 4
Precarious Work
Sociologist Gretchen Purser reviews the books The Temp Economy, Intern Nation and The Precariat. These books explore recent transformations in the labor market and the increasingly precarious nature of work. Read More
Slot Machine Capitalism
What is seductive about casino gambling? Sociologist Jacob Avery reviews the books Addiction by Design and Gambling for Profit in a desperate attempt to win some answers. Read More
On (Not) Practicing What We Preach
What should sociologists do when their everyday lives are at odds with their sociological values? Authors Ara Francis and Jill Bakehorn examine the contradictions that stem from trying to live sociologically and consider how scholars might put personal inconsistencies to good use. Read More
Better Not Put a Ring on It
Same-sex marriage is all the rage these days and supporting it is a civil-rights no brainer. But sociologist Suzanna Danuta Walters warns us that we should never imagine that gaining this signals the end of homophobia or the beginning of deep social belonging. Read More
Gated Communities For The Rich And The Poor
Sociologist Zaire Zenit Dinzey-Flores discusses how the concentration of class and racial privilege in gated communities takes place alongside the spatial concentration and confinement of the poor. She argues that gates help sort and segregate people, physically and symbolically distinguish communities, and cement inequality. Read More
Cool Stores, Bad Jobs
Sociologist Yasemin Besen-Cassino explores the techniques through which employers attract young, attractive, and middle-class workers for minimum wage, service sector jobs. Using in-depth interviews and job ads, she shows that employers focus on social benefits, discounts, and prestige of the brand to attract higher income workers to low paying jobs. Read More
Inequality and the Growth of Bad Jobs
The share of jobs that are low-skill declined by 15% from 1960 to 2005, yet low-wage jobs have made up an increasing share of total job growth over that period. Scholar Matt Vidal discusses how the manufacturing-based, nationally bound economy of the postwar years allowed employers to pay decent wages for low-skill jobs, but in today’s postindustrial, internationalized economy, wage-based competition has returned with a vengeance. Read More
Changing Men In South Africa
Sociologist Shari L. Dworkin interviews Dean Peacock, the Co-Founder and Executive Director of Sonke Gender Justice (a South-African NGO). This interview attempts to flesh out the ways in which men are critical points of engagement and active agents in reducing violence and minimizing the spread and impact of HIV/AIDS in South Africa. The ways in which social science thinking has inspired Sonke's "One Man Can Campaign" is explored, along with the program and policy impact of Sonke's numerous innovative "gender-transformative" projects. Read More
Memes
The funny cat pictures and viral videos known as "internet memes" fill our inboxes and social media sites. Scholar Alice Marwick provides an overview of memes, a history of the term and its overall significance. Read More
Affirmative Inaction
Five experts, Bret D. Asbury, Richard D. Kahlenberg, Sigal Alon, Jennifer Pierce, and John D. Skrentny, explore what the recent Supreme Court decision means for the future of race preferences in higher education. Read More
