Augusta Dwyer

Arguing that poverty reduction as envisioned by Western governments and aid agencies is little more than a perpetuation of colonial attitudes, Augusta Dwyer explores the extraordinary successes that have been achieved by the poor themselves. Dwyer takes us on a journey through the slums and villages of Brazil, Indonesia, India, and Argentina as she meets with organizers from some of the most  More >

Lyn Boyd-Judson

Is it possible for nations to negotiate in the context of seemingly incompatible moral values? Lyn Boyd-Judson answers yes—and argues that it can be strategically useful, as well as ethical, to assume that an enemy has just moral concerns. Boyd-Judson uses the US and UN negotiations with Iran, Libya, Zimbabwe, and Haiti to illustrate the practical application of strategic moral diplomacy.  More >

Sarah Smith Rainey

In this exploration of intimate relationships between people with physical disabilities and those without, Sarah Smith Rainey shatters the myth of sexless, burdensome partnerships—and in its place reveals a rich and rewarding continuum of emotional and physical intimacies. Rainey draws on interviews, autobiographies, and films to show how disabled/nondisabled couples not only build  More >

John A. Gould

In this remarkable story of postcommunist politics gone wrong, John Gould explores privatization’s role in the scramble for wealth and power in postcommunist Europe. Gould engages the core debates on privatization. Does democratic development facilitate effective capitalist reform, or vice versa? How do political legacies shape privatization choices? Is simultaneous transition feasible?  More >

Ursula Castellano

Do pretrial release programs, initiated and now operated by a range of nonprofit organizations to redress the inequalities of the bail system, affect the administration of justice? Specifically, do they lessen the barriers to justice often faced by poor and minority defendants? Ursula Castellano's ethnographic study of four pretrial release programs reveals the often unintended consequences of  More >

Ronald H. Aday and Jennifer J. Krabill

Ronald Aday and Jennifer Krabill offer a complete picture of the experience of older women prisoners and the distinct challenges these women present for correctional institutions. The authors integrate their quantitative findings with the voices of individual inmates to explore essential concerns such as health, inmate and family relationships, prison adjustment, and end-of-life issues. They  More >

J. William Spencer

Winner of the Midwest Sociological Society Distinguished Book Award, 2013! Is a teenage violent offender a dangerous predator—or a vulnerable innocent that we should rescue from a life of crime? J. William Spencer probes our ambivalent response to youth violence to show how deeply entwined issues of crime, age, race, and class distort our understanding of an important social  More >

Mary Ann Tétreault, Gwenn Okruhlik, and Andrzej Kapiszewski, editors

Although reform movements have been prominent in varying degrees in most Middle Eastern countries for some time, the recent cascade of events has generated new pressures for democratization throughout the Arab World. Political Change in the Arab Gulf States explores the politics influencing the volatile situation in the region, as well as specific measures devised by regimes in power to adjust to  More >

Beth Omansky

A person may be legally blind, yet not "blind enough" to qualify for social services. Beth Omansky explores the lives of legally blind people to show how society responds to those who don’t fit neatly into the disabled/nondisabled binary. Probing the experience of education, rehabilitation, and work, as well as the more intimate spheres of religion, family, and romantic  More >

Ronald J. Berger

When does cutting corners in pursuit of corporate profit become a crime? When should the misdeeds of government officials warrant a prison sentence? This lucid introduction to the notoriously complex problem of white-collar crime provides students with a set of tools for exploring the abuse of corporate and government power.   This student-friendly text:      ●  More >