--- title: Introduction to Sociology description: Introduction to sociology provides a foundational overview of how human societies develop, organize, and change. Learners will understand key sociological concepts, research methods, and theories used to analyze social interactions, institutions, and inequalities. category: social-sciences subcategory: sociology difficulty: beginner, intermediate, advanced url: /subject/introduction-to-sociology --- # Introduction to Sociology Introduction to sociology provides a foundational overview of how human societies develop, organize, and change. Learners will understand key sociological concepts, research methods, and theories used to analyze social interactions, institutions, and inequalities. ## Available Resources 2 Books • 1 Courses • 3 Websites ## Websites ### 1. Khan Academy Sociology Free short videos and practice questions covering theoretical perspectives, culture, socialisation, social institutions, demographics and social inequality. Built for MCAT behavioural-sciences preparation, the material works as a quick, self-paced orientation to core sociological concepts and terminology. **Difficulty:** Beginner | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/sociology **Tags:** sociology, social-theory, social-institutions, social-inequality, video-lessons ### 2. OpenStax Introduction to Sociology 3e OpenStax's free, openly licensed introductory textbook. Chapters move from sociological theory and research methods through culture, socialisation, deviance, stratification, race, gender, family, religion and social movements, with review questions and further-reading lists in each chapter. **Difficulty:** Beginner | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://openstax.org/details/books/introduction-sociology-3e **Tags:** sociology, textbook, open-educational-resources, social-theory, social-stratification ### 3. Sociological Science Open-access, peer-reviewed general sociology journal publishing short empirical research articles across subfields such as stratification, demography, networks and family. Reading its articles shows how current sociological research frames questions, uses quantitative evidence and reports findings. **Difficulty:** Advanced | **Language:** English | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://sociologicalscience.com **Tags:** sociology, sociological-research, open-access-journal, quantitative-methods, empirical-research ## Courses ### 1. Crash Course Sociology Learn the fundamentals of sociology with Nicole Sweeney & John Green's engaging Crash Course. Explore key concepts & theories! **Difficulty:** Beginner | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2QuSfnT0hGFApVqkJJ-h24LeHCQ3x59_ **Tags:** sociology, social-theory, video-series, introductory, social-institutions ## Podcasts ### 1. The Sociology Show **Author:** Matthew Wilkin The Sociology show hosted by Matthew Wilkin conducts interviews with a range of different people within the world of Sociology. **Difficulty:** Beginner | **Language:** en | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-sociology-show--4318027 **Tags:** sociology, podcast, interviews, social-theory, a-level-sociology ### 2. The Social Breakdown **Author:** socbreakdown The sociology podcast nobody wants, but everybody needs! Come join us as we break down the complex social world one topic at a time using our sociological imagination. **Difficulty:** Beginner | **Language:** en | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://www.thesocialbreakdown.com/ **Tags:** sociology, social-theory, social-inequality, podcast, humanities-social-sciences ### 3. Making the Familiar Strange **Author:** Erin Baker Interview podcast hosted by sociologist Erin Baker, who talks with fellow sociologists about their research on social structures, education, gender, family and mental health. Listeners see how sociological research methods and concepts explain everyday social life. **Difficulty:** Beginner | **Language:** en-us | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://mtfspodcast.com/ **Tags:** sociology, social-structures, sociological-research, academic-interviews ## Books ### 1. The Sociological Imagination **Author:** C. Wright Mills Mills's 1959 essay argues that personal troubles are best understood as public issues shaped by history and social structure. Reading it gives you the core habit of sociological thinking and a sharp critique of abstracted empiricism and grand theory. **Difficulty:** Intermediate | **Language:** English | **Price:** Paid **Link:** https://www.amazon.com/dp/0140211306?tag=edmonddante07-20 **Tags:** books, humanities-social-sciences, sociology ### 2. You May Ask Yourself **Author:** Dalton Conley Introductory textbook that teaches sociology as a research craft, walking through methods, culture, socialization, inequality, race, gender and institutions. Conley uses everyday puzzles and interviews with researchers so students see how sociological claims are actually built and tested. **Difficulty:** Intermediate | **Language:** English | **Price:** Paid **Link:** https://www.amazon.com/dp/0393674185?tag=edmonddante07-20 **Tags:** books, humanities-social-sciences, sociology --- *This content is part of Dantes.io - Your Treasure Map to Knowledge* *Curated by humans at Dantes.io. Personal study use welcome; republishing this curation requires permission (team@dantes.io).* View this page online: https://dantes.io/subject/introduction-to-sociology