222 Sociology Questions and Answers, first published in 2013, now in its 4th edition. (available on www.amazon.com)

This book is primarily intended as supplementary material to a sociology textbook at community colleges. By answering the most fundamental questions, this slim book condenses the vast amount of information characteristic of the subject matter and encapsulates the essentials of the field. It provides students with a quick and easy access to the basic concepts and theories in sociology. Also, the book contains summaries of the very material students are most likely to need for exams, thus eliminating the need to read and review many pages of the textbook and class notes.

This book is also intended for general readers who are interested in understanding human behavior in society. The language is easy and simple. It does not require any academic background or preexisting knowledge to read the book. The easy-to-understand format and a full index will help them easily locate a topic or question they are fascinated by. Finally, each chapter stands by itself and can be read independently to suit the particular needs of the reader. The book opens a window to the fascinating subject about society and how human beings behave in society.

THE AUTHOR’S NOTE

This book was originally written for my students at ASA College, a community based college in New York City. As a professor teaching An Introduction to Sociology since 2005, I had become aware of the need and strong desire of my students for something significantly shorter and simpler than their bulky textbooks. They need a condensed book that can be used as supplementary material. It should contain just the essentials and gives students easy and quick access to the most important definitions, concepts, theories, facts, analyses, and related discussions in sociology. It should also be sufficient for students to rely on for an exam, eliminating the need to read and review the many pages of the textbook and class notes.

It is my belief that the easiest and fastest way to explain a sociological issue to community college students is to treat it as a question and then provide a short and easy answer. Collected in this book are 222 questions, each of which I have tried to answer as concisely as possible, using as simple language as possible. Also, I found the format of FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) to be the most effective way of explaining a complicated problem in the tech world. So I borrowed the idea for my book. For the same purpose, I wanted the book to be like a manual, to which my students can easily refer whenever they need to look up a sociological term, a theory, a famous name, or anything like that.

Many of the questions in the book were most frequently asked by my students. Most of the materials in the book have been used in my classes. The very positive feedback and excellent learning outcome in class were a major reason why I decided to publish this book to make it available to all the students who take a course in sociology at college level.

I want to thank my students at ASA College, without whom this small book would not have been possible. Their eagerness to succeed in my classes has stimulated me tremendously to search for the most effective way of teaching. I am also deeply indebted to many of my colleagues, from whom I received wonderful inspirations and all kinds of assistance.