Sociology in Government

by Larson, Olaf F.; Zimmerman, Julie N.; Moe, Edward O.

• ISBN13: 9780271022987
• ISBN10: 0271022981
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2003-03-01
• Publisher: Pennsylvania State Univ Pr

Summary

From 1919 through 1953, the U.S. Department of Agriculture housed the Division of Farm Population and Rural Life - the first unit within the federal government established specifically for sociological research. It reached the height of its influence during the New Deal and World War II as it helped implement modern liberal policies in America's farming sector, attempting to counteract the harsh effects of modern industrialism on the rural economy. In addition, the Division devoted resources to studying both the history and the contemporary state of rural social life. Sociology in Government offers the first detailed historical account and systematic documentation of this remarkable federal office.

Author Biography

Julie N. Zimmerman is Assistant Professor in the Department of Community and Leadership Development at the University of Kentucky.

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. VII
Acknowledgments	p. XIII
List of Acronyms	p. XVII
Introduction	p. 1
Establishing the Division: The Background	p. 11
The Division as an Organization	p. 25
Research Priorities and Programs: Continuities and Discontinuities	p. 45
Farm and Rural Population	p. 57
Levels and Standards of Living	p. 71
The Social Organization of Rural Society: Locality and Other Groups	p. 87
The Social Organization of Rural Life: Institutions and Services	p. 113
Farm Labor	p. 129
The Sociology of Agriculture	p. 149
The Division and Black Populations	p. 171
The Practice of Sociology	p. 189
The Practice of Sociology: II	p. 223
Some Other Areas of Research	p. 257
The Division and the Social Science Research System	p. 269
Retrospect and Reflections	p. 277
Epilogue	p. 281
Persons on the Professional Staff of the Division of Farm Population and Rural Life, Bureau of Agricultural Economics, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1919-1953	p. 283
References	p. 287
Index	p. 323
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