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This note outlines the type of papers which the U.S. periodical "The Sociological Quarterly" wishes to publish. The periodical is a general sociological journal, and as such does not place any quotas on the number of papers it shall publish in any specific area. It nearly always considers scholarly sociological research and writing done by sociologists as being within the journal's acceptable limits. The note airs a special call for articles on the teaching of sociology as well.

Drawing upon insights from the social movement literature as well as leadership experience in a successful social movement organization, this paper suggests aspects of a framework for integrating traditional and contemporary approaches. The case history of JUST (Johnstowners United to Stop another Tragedy) is used to illustrate the interaction of grievances and structures in the career of a social movement organization. In addition to helping fill a lacuna in the literature on the internal dynamics of such organizations, this analysis also demonstrates the importance of the nature of the grievance as well as the target group's structural entrenchment. The paper focuses upon a relatively anomalous case for U.S. social movement organizations: an SMO which was successful despite displacement goals. The final section of the paper includes a summary diagram of the factors involved in JUSTs successful protest effort as well as broader generalizations suggesting the conditions under which grievances or infrastructures are more salient in explaining social movement phenomena. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the emergence of sociopolitics in the United States during the 1980s. The Reagan Administration's drastic budget cuts for social research prompted social scientists to engage in interest-group politics. The newest development in sociopolitics is setting priorities for research. This paper examines the intellectual and political risks of setting priorities. I conclude that sociologists must begin to discuss the objectives and strategies of funding social research, and seek ways of reducing our dependency upon federal funding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author comments on papers written by the sociologists Michael Aiken, Kenneth Land and James McCartney which are bound by a common thread of being philosophical and practical reflections on the basic objective of sociology. All three writers make broad judgments about whether the evolution of the discipline and profession has resulted in more clearly defined boundaries and whether the expansion of the domains of sociology will strengthen the discipline and profession.

In their most essential respects, the immigrant communities of American Jews (and the total American Jewish community) were a direct continuation of those which appeared in East Europe, prior to 1914. Using archives, government reports, and texts (primary and secondary) this paper reconstructs the sociohistorical environment in which they appeared. The extensive communal organization which characterized both settings, actually served the interests of societal demands. These institutions provided needed (often emergency) services to the community, but they also supported the out-group's status, as determined by the larger society. A clear picture emerges of the impact on the collective Jewish, and individual Jew's, adaptation to society within a highly developed and organized community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper first reviews the descriptions and structural explanations for variations, in urban population densities in the United States over several decades. The research reviewed focuses on shifts in the technology and economics of travel as being the major influences on urban density distributions. These variables appear to be somewhat less adequate as explanations of the process in recent decades. After reviewing these findings and suggesting several research questions, we attempt to assess the evidence relating variations in population density to several other aspects of human behavior. A review of the research relating high population densities to various "social pathologies" indicates that little of the variance in rates of these pathologies can be attributed to density independently of other social structural variables. Some important consequences of population density have been reported, however, and possible research directions are outlined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethnic entrepreneurs in American society often carve out an economic niche by means of business enterprises and cultural events that are open to the general public and showcase ethnic culture. These locations depend upon a display of the ethnic culture that is simultaneously seen as "authentic" and within the bounds of cultural expectations ("Americanized"). In a society that values toleration and cross-cultural contacts, many consumers desire a unique, yet comfortable experience, given their own cultural preferences. We focus on the presentation of ethnic food in four Chinese restaurants in a small southern city. Ethnic tradition continues but in the context of a continuous process of adaptation. Authenticity is not an objective criterion but is socially constructed and linked to expectations. We contrast two broad classes of Chinese restaurants-consumption-oriented and connoisseur- oriented-to describe strategies by which restaurateurs fit Chinese food into market niches. We conclude by suggesting some directions for the study of public ethnic culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pivotal in HIV/STD intervention and prevention is how individuals perceive risk. This article discusses how ethnotheory can be used to understand the underpinnings of risk perception from the subject's perspective. Ethnotheory's theoretical and methodological character extends present models used to explain sex-related HIV behaviors and provides insights into risk perception useful for the development of effective intervention strategies. Four detailed ethnographic excerpts from low-income African American and Mexican American men and women illustrate how people form perceptions of risk and how information gained through ethnotheory is useful in the design of culturally relevant interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sociology as an academic discipline has always undergone change and modification in theory, method and substance. This article addresses some of the changes in many substantive area of sociology. Some special aspects that have characterized American sociology was discussed. The diversity in styles of sociological work was recognized. In order to provide a broader context for sociological work, it is necessary to go back to the turn of the century,a period of marked social change in America. There are two major influence on how academic sociology would respond to change the development of pragmatism in American philosophy and sociologists' belief in empiricism.There are some similarities between the concerns of European sociologists of the last century and the American sociologists of the early decades of the century.

The normative erosion hypothesis is that nonpunitive reactions by legal officials will erode offenders' normative evaluations of delinquency. Consistent with the hypothesis, survey data from Arizona high school students show that offenders who have been referred to a "hands-off" court express less condemnation (i.e., have lower perceived seriousness) of delinquency than do offenders with no court referrals. The findings also show that the perceived threat of legal punishment is positively related to offenders' perceptions of the seriousness of delinquency. The findings bear on the normative validation thesis in the sociology of law and have important policy implications for juvenile justice practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the findings of the study sponsored by the Conference Board of Associated Research Councils on the quality of graduate programs in the United States. Evaluation of graduate sociology departments; Relationship between the resources of a department and its power to attract faculty, students or additional resources.

Leading sociologists have warned that sociology in the United States faces an internal crisis of diversity. Diversity is defined as the splintering of sociology into a multitude of theories, specialities and interest groups. While many professional associatinos remain viable, they have been described as suffering from 'intellectual paralysis.' The author takes issue with the assumption that diversity weakens sociology. He believes that diverse viewpoints among sociologists can serve them well in light of increasingly complicated social arrangements. Therefore he posits that it is shortsighted to argue that sociologists ought to abandon this diversity and adopt a single point of view.

The relationship between objective (researcher) and subjective (respondent) definitions of status inconsistency is examined with data from a survey study of Gary, Indiana. The analysis of a variety of measures of income-occupation inconsistency indicated a moderately high correlation between "normatively" defined and objectively defined inconsistency but otherwise very little relationship between subjective and objective measures. The overall pattern of correlations among the particular measures employed suggests that researchers and subjects share a common mode of status evaluations up to, but not including, the concept of status inconsistency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]