The Study of Social Problems Seven Perspectives

This anthology uses seven theoretical perspectives to examine social problems (unlike most social problems texts, which are organized topically around issues such as drug abuse, crime, etc.). Each section begins with an overview of the main contributors to the perspective, its history, and an outline of its major characteristics, and closes with a critique of the perspective and questions for discussion. This book is used in social problems courses, which is a lower-level course, but it takes a higher level approach due to its heavy focus on theory. The book's strengths include its theoretical approach to social problems and its clear illustrations of those theories. It is well-organized, comprehensive, and affordable and also includes primary sources and scholarly articles (or excerpts thereof).

ER is Professor Emeritus of Sociology at Northeastern University. MW is Professor of Sociology at Indiana University. His research has focused on a variety of topics including models of female sexuality, foot fetishism, intersexuality, sadomasochism, sex work, and bisexuality. Recent work has focused specifically on the social and interpretive worlds of men who have sex with animals.