Two bricklayers work bent over

How Poverty of Work Becomes Entrenched

A sociology study of the experiences of working class migrant workers finds that the conditions of their work make it virtually impossible to get ahead.

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Sculpture of the top of a library, collapsed

In Support of the Public Library

Public funding for libraries tends to be decreasing in many parts of the world. The idea that libraries and librarians are redundant because we can search for information online is false.

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A phone sits on a table, open to the Facvebook login page. Scrabble tiles spell out "Social media"

Cognitive Capital of Click Farm Workers

How do we better support “click farm” workers of the online economy?

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Aboriginal flag flies high against a blue sky

Decolonising Sociology

Much like the challenges facing educators looking to transform education in a way that is more meaningful to Indigenous students, Australian sociology has many issues of colonialism to address.

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Sign above St Paul's Cathedral, Melbourne, says: Let's fully welcome refugees

Stop Australia’s Lifetime Ban of Refugees

This coming Tuesday 7 February 2017, Australia is set to introduce a lifetime ban on refugees who arrive by boat.

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Aboriginal people protesting in Australia. One sign reads: open your eye

How Does Social Change Happen?

The concept of social change involves a transition in society from one state to another, within a specific point in time. The level of change, and whether this change has a profound effect on a society, depends on a complex interplay of actors, actions and organisation.

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Parliament House, Canberra, lit up at night

How to Address Democratic Apathy

Sociological research shows that the longest established democracies suffer from the greatest level of democratic apathy. This is because people generally distrust their government.

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People watching a concert

Society

Today’s social science post comes from sociologist, Peter Berger, from “Invitation to Sociology.”

A beautiful white drum suspended. Quote: Society provides us with warm, reasonably comfortable caves, in which we can huddle with our fellows, beating on the drums that drown out the howling hyenas of the surrounding darkness. “ecstasy” is the actor stepping outside the caves alone, to face the night.
– Peter Berger (1963: 149-150)
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