Course Catalogue

View Specification Document | Reading List

This course should -

highlight the significance of consumption as a major form of social life;

analyse the nature and historical development of contemporary consumer society;

Outline the various configurations of consumption in modern society, and also analyse the social forces which exist to regulate and control them.

20 contact hours over the course of a single semester. This will normally consist of 2 hours per week and may be a combination of lectures and seminars/workshops.

Mandatory Entry Requirements

Entry to Honours Sociology requires a grade point average of 12 (Grade C) over Sociology 2A and Sociology 2B as a first attempt.

None

None.

3 Hour, 2 question exam. Students will be able to choose from a range of questions.

Reassessments are normally available for all courses, except those which contribute to the Honours classification. For non Honours courses, students are offered reassessment in all or any of the components of assessment if the satisfactory (threshold) grade for the overall course is not achieved at the first attempt. This is normally grade D3 for undergraduate students and grade C3 for postgraduate students. Exceptionally it may not be possible to offer reassessment of some coursework items, in which case the mark achieved at the first attempt will be counted towards the final course grade. Any such exceptions for this course are described below. 

The course forms part of the Department's Honours programme and its aims embody the intentions of this programme. The principle aim is to build on some of the central themes of Level 1 and 2 modules and provide students with a sound knowledge and critical understanding of the sociological study of consumption. More specifically, the module aims to:

■ highlight the significance of consumption as a major form of social life;

■ analyse the nature and historical development of contemporary consumer society;

■ Outline the various configurations of consumption in modern society, and also analyse the social forces which exist to regulate and control them.

■ Allow you to enhance your transferable and inter-personal skills, particularly in communication, time management, individual and group research work, and critical appraisal of social issues.

■ Enable you to develop a wide range of skills that will meet the demands of the modern labour market.

By the end of the course, you should be able to:

■ critically assess the significance of consumption as an area of major sociological concern;

■ synthesise a variety of interdisciplinary approaches in a broadly sociological understanding of consumer society;

■ recognise the socially and historically specific nature of our understanding of consumption;

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examination) of the course's summative assessment.