Sociology 4350: Corporate and Governmental Deviance
Spring 2008, MWF 1.00-1.50, Cina 224
University of Minnesota, Duluth
3 credits

Texts:
Ermann and Lundman: Corporate and Governmental Deviance, sixth edition
Power: A Problem from Hell--America and the Age of Genocide
Additional readings on the web or library electronic reserve

Course Description: Examination of theories and research relating to deviant and criminal behavior within large scale formal organizations, particularly governmental and business organizations. Causes and consequences, barriers to social control, prospects for change.

Course Objectives:
1. Understand how corporate and governmental crime emerged as an issue for theory and research in sociology.

2. Understand the varieties of organizational crime and their costs, both monetary and social. We will take a particularly close look at crimes by the transnational corporations and at genocide, the most heinous of crimes by government.

3. Understand the barriers to confronting corporate and governmental crime through the criminal justice system, and the emergence of new strategies for social control of such crime, including the development of international law. We will look especially at the genesis of criminal definitions and laws relating to genocide.

4. Evaluate the likely effectiveness of various approaches to the social control of organizational crime, including human rights law at the international level.

My Expectations: I expect you to arrive on-time, to treat your fellow class members and me with respect, to have done the reading that is assigned for the day, to bring your questions and ideas about the material we are covering, to make me aware of any problems you are having with course materials. In return, I pledge to be prepared and organized, to communicate clearly my expectations of you, to evaluate your work promptly, to listen to your concerns, to respect your point of view, and to treat you as a person of value.

SEMINAR, ATTENDANCE, PREPARATION: Not only your attendance but your preparation and participation are important to the success of this class for you and others. Attendance and participation will factor into your grade for the course. You will each be involved in two group presentations--one relating to a chapter in the Power text and another on a topic of your choosing.

Grading: Grades will be based on two take-home essay exams and individual and group assignments, as follows:

Academic Honesty: A violation of UMD's Academic Honesty Policy (behavior which is also referred to as Scholastic Misconduct) such as cheating, plagiarizing or any other "act which violates the rights of another student in academic work or that involves misrepresentation of your own work will result in penalties up to and including an F for the course.

Extra-Credit: A maximum of 15 points extra credit will be available, with up to 5 points for each short paper submitted based on sociologically relevant campus or community presentations. Another alternative would be to maintain a weekly log of New York Times articles relating to the topic of our course; include title and date of article and a short summary of each article.

INTERNET RESOURCES: The course schedule is linked to my home page (http://www.d.umn.edu/~bmork). Click on the index page for Sociology 4395; then click on the schedule. The schedule is subject to change. It is your responsibility to check the online schedule if you have to miss class.

Presentation: Students in groups must develop a 15-minute presentationl dealing with a major instance of corporate or governmental crime or with the development of an organization or institution for dealing with corporate or governmental crime.

Most teachers will tell you that they never understood a subject matter so thoroughly as when they began teaching it to others, so that your presentation is part of the process of really mastering the topic you are researching. In addition, in a survey of people who graduated from our deparment between 1985 and 1996, 53% identified presentation skills as highly important and another 33% as moderately important in their subsequent jobs.

While whole courses are devoted to the development of speaking skills, I think a few basic guidelines should give you a sense of direction as you develop your skills in this area:

1. Audiences have more confidence in speakers who don't rely heavily on notes; the ideal is to speak more or less extemporaneously but with a clear structure to your remarks. You shouldn't just be reading your PowerPoint slides--in fact, keep them short.

2. Lots of eye contact with individual members of the audience increases a speaker's effectiveness; don't just make eye contact with the teacher, or with students on one side of the room.

3. Do use visual aids--in this case Powerpoint--and include some graphics, but use graphics sparingly--not on every slide. .

4. If there are audience questions, regard that as an opportunity to customize your presentation to the interests and concerns of your audience. Sometimes this can be the best part of a presentation.

5. Rehearse your presentation in advance so you know it fits the time guidelines and so you are very familiar with the materials. Have a written copy of your remarks in case you get nervous.

Paper: The topic will be the same as in your presentation ( EACH GROUP MEMBER NEEDS TO DO HIS OR HER OWN PAPER), but the structure and tone of a written paper is somewhat different than in a presentation--more formal and certainly more carefully documented. Your paper should include a list of references and you should be very careful to give credit wherever you draw on ideas or evidence that come from somebody else. Papers should be word-processed and double-spaced, 6-8 pages. You will be graded on writing as well as content, and I don't mind if you have a friend read your rough draft and make suggestions. That's really the norm with academic papers written by faculty member as well. Papers will be due on Monday of finals week, in place of a final exam.

SPECIAL ARRANGEMENTS/FACILITIES: If you have a physical or cultural condition, either permanent or temporary, which you believe makes it difficult for you to participate in and/or complete the requirements of this course in the time and manner prescribed, please let me know by the end of the first week of instruction. Adaptation of methods, materials, or testing may be made as required. It is your responsibility to contact the Disability Center for advice regarding adaptations.

Academic Integrity: Academic dishonesty tarnishes UMD's reputation and discredits the accomplishment of students. UMD is committed to providing students with every opportunity to grow in mind and spirit. This pledge can only be redeemed in an environment of trust, honesty, and fairness. As as result, academic dishonesty is regarded as a serious offense by all members of the academic community. In keeping with this ideal, this course will adhere to UMD's Student Academic Integrity Policy, which can be found at http://www.d.umn.edu/assl/conduct/integrity. This policy sanctions students engaging in academic dishonesty with policies up to and including expulsion from the University for repeat offenders.

Student Conduct Code The instructor will enforce and students are expected to follow the University's Academic Conduct Code (http://www.d.umn.edu/assl/conduct/code). Appropriate classroom conduct promotes an environment of academic achievement and integrity. Disruptive classroom behavior that substantially or repeatedly interrupts either the instructor's ability to teach, or student learning, is prohibited. Disruptive behavior includes inappropriate use of technology in the classroom. Examples include ringing cell phones, text-messaging, watching videos, playing computer games, doing email, or surfing the internet on your computer instead of note-taking or other instructor-sanctioned activities.