Outline

Social Construction of Gender

Gender Roles in the United States
Cross-Cultural Perspective

Explaining Stratification by Gender

The Functionalist View
The Conflict Response
The Feminist Perspective
The Interactionist Approach

Women: The Oppressed Majority

Sexism and Sex Discrimination
The Status of Women Worldwide
Women in the Workforce of the United States
Women: Emergence of a Collective Consciousness

Aging and Society

Explaining the Aging Process

Functionalist Approach: Disengagement Theory
Interactionist Approach: Activity Theory
The Conflict Approach

Age Stratification in the United States

The "Graying of America"
Wealth and Income
Ageism
Competition in the Labor Force
The Elderly: Emergency of a Collective Consciousness

Social Policy and Gender Stratification: The Battle over Abortion from a Global Perspective

The Issue
The Setting
Sociological Insights
Policy Initiatives

Boxes

Sociology in the Global Community: Aging Worldwide: Issues and Consequences
Research in Action: Female Ice Hockey Players and Male Nurses
Taking Sociology to Work: Stacey Karp, President of San Francisco Chapter of NOW