Research Guides: Affordable Learning Georgia: Social & Behavioral Sciences

Sociology Textbooks

Introduction to Sociology by Nathan Keirns, Eric Strayer, et al.
Publication Date: 2012
Introduction to Sociology adheres to the scope and sequence of a typical introductory sociology course. In addition to comprehensive coverage of core concepts, foundational scholars, and emerging theories, we have incorporated section reviews with engaging questions, discussions that help students apply the sociological imagination, and features that draw learners into the discipline in meaningful ways. Although this text can be modified and reorganized to suit your needs, the standard version is organized so that topics are introduced conceptually, with relevant, everyday experiences.
Principles of Sociological Inquiry – Qualitative and Quantitative Methods by Amy Blackstone
Principles of Sociological Inquiry: Qualitative and Quantitative Methods emphasizes the relevance of research methods for the everyday lives of its readers, undergraduate students. Each chapter describes how research methodology is useful for students in the multiple roles they fill:
1) As consumers of popular and public information
2) As citizens
3) As current and future employees.
Connections to these roles are made throughout and directly within the main text of the book.
Principles of Sociological Inquiry: Qualitative and Quantitative Methods also provides balanced coverage of qualitative and quantitative approaches by integrating a variety of examples from recent and classic sociological research. The text challenges students to debate and discuss the strengths and weaknesses of both approaches.
Sociology: Understanding and Changing the Social World by Steven Barkan
Publication Date: 2011
It is no accident that many sociology instructors and students are first drawn to sociology because they want to learn a body of knowledge that could help them make a difference in the world at large. Steve Barkan’s Sociology: Understanding and Changing the Social World is designed for this audience. It presents a sociological understanding of society but also a sociological perspective on how to change society, while maintaining the structure and contents of the best mainstream texts.

History Textbooks

History in the Making: A History of the People of the United States of America to 1877 by Catherine Locks; Sarah K. Mergel, PhD; Pamela Thomas Roseman, PhD; Tamara Spike, PhD
Publication Date: 2013
This textbook examines U.S. History from before European Contact through Reconstruction, while focusing on the people and their history.

Prior to its publication, History in the Making underwent a rigorous double blind peer review, a process that involved over thirty scholars who reviewed the materially carefully, objectively, and candidly in order to ensure not only its scholarly integrity but also its high standard of quality.

This book provides a strong emphasis on critical thinking about US History by providing several key features in each chapter. Learning Objectives at the beginning of each chapter help students to understand what they will learn in each chapter. Before You Move On sections at the end of each main section are designed to encourage students to reflect on important concepts and test their knowledge as they read. In addition, each chapter includes Critical Thinking Exercises that ask the student to deeply explore chapter content, Key Terms, and a Chronology of events.
Reading, Writing, and Researching for History: A Guide for College Students by Patrick Rael
Publication Date: 2012
Writing, and Researching for History: A Guide for College Students by Patrick Rael (Bowdoin College, 2004), is a straightforward university-level introduction to crafting history papers. The book familiarizes students with primary and secondary sources in history, offers an understanding of the formal argument in historical studies, outlines the rudiments of producing research papers, and assists students with the foundations of organizing the basic history research term paper. The text book also reviews historical writing, explains the use and documentation of scholarly sources, and guides learners through the editing process.

Psychology Textbooks

Introduction to Psychology by Charles Stangor
Publication Date: 2010
Charles Stangor's Introduction to Psychology utilizes the dual theme of behavior and empiricism to make psychology relevant to intro students. Charles wrote this book to help students organize their thinking about psychology at a conceptual level. Five or ten years from now, he does not expect his students to remember the details of most of what he teaches them. However, he does hope that they will remember that psychology matters because it helps us understand behavior and that our knowledge of psychology is based on empirical study.
Principles of Social Psychology by Charles Stangor
Publication Date: 2011
This textbook is based on a critical thinking approach, and its aim is to get students thinking actively and conceptually – with a greater focus on the forest than the trees. Yes, there are right and wrong answers, but the answers are not the only thing. What is perhaps even more important is how students get to the answers – the thinking process itself. To help students better grasp the big picture of social psychology, and to provide you with a theme that you can use to organize your lectures, Dr. Stangor's text has a consistent pedagogy across the chapters. The presentation is organized around two underlying principles that are essential to social psychology: Person and Situation (the classic treatment) and the ABC's of Social Psychology (affect, behavior, and cognition).
Research Methods in Psychology by Paul Price
Publication Date: 2012
While Research Methods in Psychology is fairly traditional— making it easy for you to use with your existing courses — it also emphasizes a fundamental idea that is often lost on undergraduates: research methods are not a peripheral concern in our discipline; they are central.The overarching goal of this textbook is to present the basics of psychological research methods — focusing on the concepts and skills that are most widely shared within the discipline — emphasizing both their centrality to our field and their contribution to our understanding of human behavior.

Criminal Justice Textbooks

Criminal Law, v. 1.0 by Lisa Storm
Publication Date: 2012
Criminal Law employs a variety of instructional techniques which will engage your students from start to finish. First, every chapter contains embedded videos, ethical scenarios, charts, diagrams, and/or tables to demonstrate the legal concepts and examples provided. These enhancements break up the text and also appeal to various learning styles.This text uses a two-step process to augment learning, called the applied approach. First, after building a strong foundation from scratch, Criminal Law will introduce your students to crimes and defenses which have been broken down into separate components. The author's goal was to make it easier for students to comprehend the subject matter when it is simplified this way. The author wrote under the premise that an application must be seen, experienced, and practiced before it comes naturally. Thus, the second step of the applied approach is reviewing examples of the application of law to facts after dissecting and analyzing each legal concept. Some of the examples come from cases, and some are purely fictional. All of the examples are memorable, even quirky, so they will stick in your students' minds when they need them the most (like during an exam). The examples clarify the principles, which can lighten their workload significantly.
Criminal Law by Lisa Storm
Publication Date: 2012
Criminal Law uses a two-step process to augment learning, called the applied approach. First, after building a strong foundation from scratch, Criminal Law introduces you to crimes and defenses that have been broken down into separate components. It is so much easier to memorize and comprehend the subject matter when it is simplified this way. However, becoming proficient in the law takes more than just memorization. You must be trained to take the laws you have studied and apply them to various fact patterns. Most students are expected to do this automatically, but application must be seen, experienced, and practiced before it comes naturally. Thus the second step of the applied approach is reviewing examples of the application of law to facts after dissecting and analyzing each legal concept. Some of the examples come from cases, and some are purely fictional. All the examples are memorable, even quirky, so they will stick in your mind and be available when you need them the most (like during an exam). After a few chapters, you will notice that you no longer obsess over an explanation that doesn’t completely make sense the first time you read it—you will just skip to the example. The examples clarify the principles for you, lightening the workload significantly.

Psychology

Teaching Psychology

From the University Instructional Development Project of the Graduate School of the University of South Carolina--we bring you teaching advice from the experts! Whatever your experience level, you're sure to learn something here that will boost your teaching skills.

APA Undergraduate Education Resources

APA offers undergraduate psychology faculty and departments tools to improve classroom teaching, evaluate program quality and construct curricula. As one of the most popular undergraduate majors, psychology can prepare students to be successful in many different careers — from the social sciences to business and beyond.

Criminal Justice

Frontline Teacher Center

A collection of lesson plans and activities to accompany FRONTLINE documentaries in the classroom.

Africana Studies

Africana Studies at Merlot

A variety of Africana Studies resources available through the Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching.

History

A Comprehensive Outline of World History

Each chapter covers a period of historical time (e.g. a century). Sections within chapters describe what was going on in every geographical region of the world; each section provides a reference for that region in the subsequent chapter, i.e. in the next time period. The reader can thus get a snapshot of the entire world at a point in time by reading one chapter, or can follow the history of a region through time by linking to sections in successive chapters.

Reading, Writing, and Researching for History: A Guide for College Students

Writing, and Researching for History: A Guide for College Students by Patrick Rael (Bowdoin College, 2004), is a straightforward university-level introduction to crafting history papers. The book familiarizes students with primary and secondary sources in history, offers an understanding of the formal argument in historical studies, outlines the rudiments of producing research papers, and assists students with the foundations of organizing the basic history research term paper. The text book also reviews historical writing, explains the use and documentation of scholarly sources, and guides learners through the editing process.

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