Our Social World: Introduction to Sociology, Condensed, inspires students to develop their sociological imaginations, to see the world and personal events from a new perspective, and to confront sociological issues on a day-to-day basis. The award-winning author team of Jeanne H. Ballantine, Keith A. Roberts, and Kathleen Odell Korgen organizes the text around the "Social World Model," a conceptual framework that demonstrates the relationships among individuals (the micro level); organizations, institutions, and subcultures (the meso level); and societies and global structures (the macro level). The application of this model across chapters helps students practice using the three levels of analysis and view sociology as an integrated whole rather than a set of discrete subjects.


The Fifth Edition of the Condensed version is adapted from Our Social World: Introduction to Sociology and is one-third shorter by streamlining boxes and the main narrative, and combining four chapters into two (Family/Education, and Politics/Economics).


New and Key Features




A new full-length chapter on health, illness, and healthcare has been added.
Several chapters have been reorganized with updated data, added studies, and newly emerging emphases in sociology.
Six new "Sociologists in Action" features added.
Four new "Engaging Sociology" features added with new opportunities for data analysis by students.
100 new or updated Tables and Figures, nearly 500 new references, and dozens of older references removed.
Many sentences and definitions in the book have been revised for brevity and clarity, and the glossary has been updated for better correspondence with the text.
Links to exceptional teaching resources from A.S.A.'s TRAILS (Teaching Resources and Innovation Library for Sociology) available in SAGE coursepacks.
MCAT Guide maps chapter content to Foundational Concepts and Content Categories in Section 3 of the MCAT test available in SAGE coursepacks.