Second Thoughts: Sociology Challenges Conventional Wisdom

Welcome to the Companion Site

Do birds of a feather flock together or do opposites attract? Does haste make waste or should you strike while the iron is hot? Adages like these—or conventional wisdoms—shape our social life. This Seventh Edition of Second Thoughts reviews several popular beliefs and notes how such adages cannot be taken at face value.

This unique text encourages students to step back and sharpen their analytic focus with 23 essays that use social research to expose the gray areas of commonly held beliefs, revealing the complexity of social reality and sharpening students’ sociological vision.

Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge Janet M. Ruane and Karen A. Cerulo for writing an excellent text and for their involvement in creating and editing the assets on this site.