Showing papers in "Review of Sociology in 2018"
TL;DR: The use of the logit or probit model when an outcome variable is binary, an ordered logit when it is ordinal, and a multinomial logit if it has more than two categories has been criticised as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: Methods textbooks in sociology and other social sciences routinely recommend the use of the logit or probit model when an outcome variable is binary, an ordered logit or ordered probit when it is ordinal, and a multinomial logit when it has more than two categories. But these methodological guidelines take little or no account of a body of work that, over the past 30 years, has pointed to problematic aspects of these nonlinear probability models and, particularly, to difficulties in interpreting their parameters. In this review, we draw on that literature to explain the problems, show how they manifest themselves in research, discuss the strengths and weaknesses of alternatives that have been suggested, and point to lines of further analysis.
232 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a review describes stress-related biological mechanisms linking interpersonal racism to life course health trajectories among African Americans, concluding that interpersonal racism is a form of social exclusion.
Abstract: This review describes stress-related biological mechanisms linking interpersonal racism to life course health trajectories among African Americans. Interpersonal racism, a form of social exclusion ...
175 citations
TL;DR: Theorization in the sociology of migration and the field of refugee studies has been retarded by a path-dependent division that as mentioned in this paper argue should be broken down by greater mutual engagement.
Abstract: Theorization in the sociology of migration and the field of refugee studies has been retarded by a path-dependent division that we argue should be broken down by greater mutual engagement. Excavating the construction of the refugee category reveals how unwarranted assumptions shape contemporary disputes about the scale of refugee crises, appropriate policy responses, and suitable research tools. Empirical studies of how violence interacts with economic and other factors shaping mobility offer lessons for both fields. Adapting existing theories that may not appear immediately applicable, such as household economy approaches, helps explain refugees’ decision-making processes. At a macro level, world systems theory sheds light on the interactive policies around refugees across states of origin, mass hosting, asylum, transit, and resettlement. Finally, focusing on the integration of refugees in the Global South reveals a pattern that poses major challenges to theories of assimilation and citizenship developed...
132 citations
TL;DR: Although men tended to receive more education than women in the past, the gender gap in education has reversed in recent decades in most Western and many non-western countries as mentioned in this paper, and the authors review the litera...
Abstract: Although men tended to receive more education than women in the past, the gender gap in education has reversed in recent decades in most Western and many non-Western countries. We review the litera...
124 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors consider the challenges of narrating sexual violence and review how the narrow focus on gender by some anti-sexual violence activism fails women of color and other marginalized groups.
Abstract: Sexual violence reproduces inequalities of gender, race/ethnicity, class, age, sexuality, ability status, citizenship status, and nationality. Yet its study has been relegated to the margins of our discipline, with consequences for knowledge about the reproduction of social inequality. We begin with an overview of key insights about sexual violence elaborated by feminists, critical race scholars, and activists. This research leads us to conceptualize sexual violence as a mechanism of inequality that is made more effective by the silencing of its usage. We trace legal and cultural contestations over the definition of sexual violence in the United States. We consider the challenges of narrating sexual violence and review how the narrow focus on gender by some anti–sexual violence activism fails women of color and other marginalized groups. We conclude by interrogating the sociological silence on sexual violence.
109 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the role of credit and debt in social inequality in the United States is evaluated, with a focus on the powerful actors that benefit from a political economy increasingly dependent on credit to distribute, regulate, and control social resources.
Abstract: Increasing access to diverse types of credit and spreading indebtedness across many social groups were significant economic developments of the twentieth century and into the twenty-first, with implications for social inequality and insecurity. This review evaluates the role of credit and debt in social inequality in the United States. Credit and debt shape inequalities along multiple pathways, in defining social inclusion and exclusion, directing life chances, and facilitating oppression. On the basis of this review, I conclude that building on the progress made in prior research calls for a relational approach to understanding credit, debt, and inequality that includes a focus on the powerful actors that benefit from a political economy increasingly dependent on credit and debt to distribute, regulate, and control social resources. I close by identifying outstanding questions that need to be answered in order to move forward our understanding of economic inequality and insecurity, as well as for social ...
96 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors review evidence from the social and medical sciences on the causes and effects of lead exposure and argue that lead exposure is an important subject for sociological analysis.
Abstract: In this article, we review evidence from the social and medical sciences on the causes and effects of lead exposure. We argue that lead exposure is an important subject for sociological analysis be...
89 citations
TL;DR: This paper reviewed literature on trends in fertility, marriage, divorce, and living arrangements in the past half century and found that fertility is declining and age at marriage is rising, although teenage and arranged marriages remain common in South Asia, a majority of the elderly continue to live with or are supported by their children.
Abstract: Southeast and South Asia are home to one-third of the world's population. Their great economic and cultural diversity makes generalization about family patterns and trends hazardous. We review literature on trends in fertility, marriage, divorce, and living arrangements in the past half century. The explanations for these trends focus on structural and ideological changes related to socioeconomic development; cultural factors including kinship system, religion, and ethnicity; and public policies. While the impact of rapid modernization and related ideational changes are evident, there are also changes—or a lack thereof—that cannot be explained by development and may be attributable to historical and cultural factors that have shaped family norms in the region. The following trends are evident: (a) fertility is declining and age at marriage is rising, although teenage and arranged marriages remain common in South Asia, (b) a majority of the elderly continue to live with or are supported by their children, ...
73 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, an extensive and long-standing literature examines the amount of time people spend on their jobs and families and a newer literature, including this review, takes that older literature as background a...
Abstract: An extensive and long-standing literature examines the amount of time people spend on their jobs and families. A newer literature, including this review, takes that older literature as background a...
59 citations
TL;DR: An overview of the integration of biomarkers and biological mechanisms in social science models of stratification and health is provided to encourage sociologists to embrace biosocial approaches in order to elevate the importance of social factors in biomedical processes and to intervene on the social conditions that create inequities.
Abstract: This article provides an overview of the integration of biomarkers and biological mechanisms in social science models of stratification and health. The goal in reviewing this literature is to highlight research that identifies the social forces that drive inequalities over the life course and across generations. The article is structured in the following way. First, descriptive background information on biomarkers is presented, followed secondly by a review of the general theoretical paradigms that lend themselves to an integrative approach. Third, the biomarkers used to capture several biological systems that are most responsive to social conditions are described. Fourth, research that explicates how social exposures "get under the skin" to affect physiological functioning and downstream health is discussed, using socioeconomic disadvantage as an illustrative social exposure. The review ends with emerging directions in the use of biomarkers in social science research. This article endeavors to encourage sociologists to embrace biosocial approaches in order to elevate the importance of social factors in biomedical processes and to intervene on the social conditions that create inequities.
53 citations
TL;DR: The authors derive a conceptual framework with three main characteristics: poverty is multidimensional, compounding material hardship with human frailty, generational trauma, family and neighborhood violence, and broken institutions.
Abstract: Reviewing recent research on poverty in the United States, we derive a conceptual framework with three main characteristics. First, poverty is multidimensional, compounding material hardship with human frailty, generational trauma, family and neighborhood violence, and broken institutions. Second, poverty is relational, produced through connections between the truly advantaged and the truly disadvantaged. Third, a component of this conceptual framework is transparently normative, applying empirical research to analyze poverty as a matter of justice, not just economics. Throughout, we discuss conceptual, methodological, and policy-relevant implications of this perspective on the study of extreme disadvantage in America.
TL;DR: The authors identified three types of boundaries that have symbolic significance as categorical demarcations: issue and identity boundaries, organizational boundaries, and tactical boundaries, which are used to promote or hinder the realization of three important movement outcomes: mobilization, solidarity and scope, and external social and political change.
Abstract: Social movement scholarship has increasingly sought to understand the relational dynamics of internal movement activity, from investigating the factors that enable movement coalitions to analyzing the trade-offs of organizational hybridity. We bring these and other related phenomena together under the label of boundary-spanning processes. Specifically, we organize research on boundary-spanning in social movements by identifying three types of boundaries that have symbolic significance as categorical demarcations: (a) issue and identity boundaries, (b) organizational boundaries, and (c) tactical boundaries. We then elucidate the tension in work that has examined how each form of boundary-spanning either promotes or hinders the realization of three important movement outcomes: (a) mobilization, (b) internal movement solidarity and scope, and (c) external social and political change. We relate our three types of boundary-spanning to these three types of outcomes in an organizing framework to locate future op...
TL;DR: The authors argue that corporations rule the world, but the predominant accounts of global governance imply almost the opposite: With theories populated by national governments and inte-ministries, corporations dominate the world.
Abstract: Scholars and critics often lament that corporations rule the world, but predominant accounts of global governance imply almost the opposite: With theories populated by national governments and inte...
TL;DR: The authors reviewed research that links occupations and organizations to careers and intragenerational mobility and highlighted the multidisciplinary nature of contributions to this topic and focus on integrating research by sociologists and economists, highlighting cross-national research and emphasizing the literatures that address questions related to social stratification and labor markets.
Abstract: Intragenerational mobility—persistent or secular upward or downward changes in individuals’ economic positions or occupational standing over their working lives—is intimately related both to intergenerational mobility and inequality as well as to labor market theories and behaviors. Careers are job sequences or patterns of mobility/immobility within and between occupations and organizations, the two major work structures that shape the opportunities available in the labor market. This article reviews research that links occupations and organizations to careers and intragenerational mobility. We emphasize the multidisciplinary nature of contributions to this topic and focus on integrating research by sociologists and economists. We also highlight cross-national research and emphasize the literatures that address questions related to social stratification and labor markets. Finally, we suggest fruitful areas for future research. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Sociology Volum...
TL;DR: A new generation of large-scale shared data infrastructure now in preparation will ameliorate weaknesses of current linkage methods, and some widespread approaches inadvertently introduce errors that can lead to false inferences.
Abstract: For the past 80 years, social scientists have been linking historical censuses across time to study economic and geographic mobility. In recent decades, the quantity of historical census record linkage has exploded, owing largely to the advent of new machine-readable data created by genealogical organizations. Investigators are examining economic and geographic mobility across multiple generations, but also engaging many new topics. Several analysts are exploring the effects of early-life socioeconomic conditions, environmental exposures, or natural disasters on family, health and economic outcomes in later life. Other studies exploit natural experiments to gauge the impact of policy interventions such as social welfare programs and educational reforms. The new data sources have led to a proliferation of record linkage methodology, and some widespread approaches inadvertently introduce errors that can lead to false inferences. A new generation of large-scale shared data infrastructure now in preparation will ameliorate weaknesses of current linkage methods.
TL;DR: The claim that there has been a remarkable revival of slavery, other forms of forced labor, and human trafficking in our times has inspired widespread activism and a vast body of popular and academ...
Abstract: The claim that there has been a remarkable revival of slavery, other forms of forced labor, and human trafficking in our times has inspired widespread activism and a vast body of popular and academ...
TL;DR: In this paper, the role of globalization processes in shaping collective action and social movements is discussed, and three areas of global change and movements are examined: first, long-term global trends and collective action; second, research on national and local challenges to economic globalization, including backlash movements and the types of economic liberalization measures most associated with inducing oppositional movements; and third, the emergence of contemporary transnational social movements.
Abstract: A growing body of scholarship acknowledges the increasing influence of global forces on social institutions and societies on multiple scales. We focus here on the role of globalization processes in shaping collective action and social movements. Three areas of global change and movements are examined: first, long-term global trends and collective action; second, research on national and local challenges to economic globalization, including backlash movements and the types of economic liberalization measures most associated with inducing oppositional movements; and third, the emergence of contemporary transnational social movements. In each of these arenas we address debates on diffusion, intervening mechanisms, and the outcomes of collective mobilization in response to global pressures.
TL;DR: The authors review the literature in sociology and related fields on the fast global growth of consumer credit and debt and the possible explanations for this expansion, and report on research on two areas in which consumer credit is consequential: its effects on social relations and on physical and mental health.
Abstract: We review the literature in sociology and related fields on the fast global growth of consumer credit and debt and the possible explanations for this expansion. We describe the ways people interact with the strongly segmented consumer credit system around the world—more specifically, the way they access credit and the way they are held accountable for their debt. We then report on research on two areas in which consumer credit is consequential: its effects on social relations and on physical and mental health. Throughout the article, we point out national variations and discuss explanations for these differences. We conclude with a brief discussion of the future tasks and challenges of comparative research on consumer credit.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors review the literature on globalization and business regulation from the angle of transnational governanc... and propose a transnational business regulation framework for the twenty-first century.
Abstract: In the twenty-first century, global business regulation has come of age. In this article, we review the literature on globalization and business regulation from the angle of transnational governanc...
TL;DR: This review of research on institutions of redistribution operating in high-income countries focuses on the nonelderly, and assesses three institutional arenas: predistribution, private redistribution, and conventional public redistribution.
Abstract: We review research on institutions of redistribution operating in high-income countries. Focusing on the nonelderly, we invoke the concept of the household income package, which includes income from labor, from related households, and from the state. Accordingly, we assess three institutional arenas: predistribution (rules and regulations that govern paid work), private redistribution (interhousehold transfers), and conventional public redistribution (operating via cash transfers and direct taxes). In each arena, we assess underlying policy logics, identify current policy controversies, summarize contemporary cross-national policy variation, and synthesize existing findings on policy effects. Our assessment of redistributional effects focuses on three core socioeconomic outcomes: low pay, child poverty, and income inequality. We close by assessing how the three institutional arenas perform collectively and by calling for further work on how these institutions change over time and how they affect subgroups differentially.
TL;DR: In this paper, a review asks whether this appellation describes a homogeneous set of phenomena, and whether it is a generalization of the concept of information policing, which has been widely used in public security police all around the world.
Abstract: Information policing seems to be pervading public security police all around the world. This review asks whether this appellation describes a homogeneous set of phenomena. Compstat was the first pr...
TL;DR: In the last quarter of the twentieth century, cities in the Global South have seen extraordinary growth, with China and India as the epicenters of urbanization as discussed by the authors, and this essay critically assesses the performance of these cities.
Abstract: Since the last quarter of the twentieth century, cities in the Global South have seen extraordinary growth, with China and India as the epicenters of urbanization. This essay critically assesses th...
TL;DR: The field of Latino politics has developed rapidly over the past decade, but some areas within the field have received more attention than others, with some topics remaining relatively overlooked as discussed by the authors...
Abstract: The field of Latino politics has developed rapidly over the past decade, but some areas within the field have received more attention than others, with some topics remaining relatively overlooked. ...
TL;DR: The authors look back over five decades of involvement in demographic and sociological scholarship, and they have tried to say a bit about their personal life and career, and their personal interests and goals.
Abstract: I greatly appreciate this opportunity to reflect on my career. Looking back over five decades of involvement in demographic and sociological scholarship, I have tried to say a bit about my personal...
TL;DR: A review of the most salient studies on Latin American social movements published in the last 25 years is presented in this paper, which not only assesses the questions and empirical implications that these studies have uncovered, but also points out theoretical and empirical puzzles that are currently investigated or are yet to be examined.
Abstract: This article offers a review of the most salient studies on Latin American social movements published in the last 25 years. It not only assesses the questions and empirical implications that these studies have uncovered, but it also points out theoretical and empirical puzzles that are currently investigated or are yet to be examined. In doing so, this article reviews two type of studies: those that in the author's opinion cover the most salient movements in the region and those that offer us most promising propositions for the development of the subfield in the future. With this review, the author hopes to open the debate and help include Latin American social movements within the systematic study of comparative social mobilization in sociology and comparative politics.