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The General Board give notice that, on the recommendation of the Faculty Board or other authority concerned, they have approved amendments of the regulations for certain University examinations, as follows:
(Statutes and Ordinances, p. 380)
Regulation 12.
By amending the title of Paper 19 so as to read 'Medicine, body, and society'.
(Statutes and Ordinances, p. 382)
By replacing the text for certain papers as follows:
The course for this paper provides an introduction to some central questions about the nature of modern politics through an examination of a set of political thinkers and some consideration of their work in relation to a range of examples from practical politics. The paper is divided into three sections: the modern state; representative democracy; and the question, can politics be different? Candidates will be required to answer questions from at least two out of three sections of the paper.
Paper 14. The social structure of modern Britain (also serves as Paper 14 of Part II of the Economics Tripos)
The development of major institutions and social and political processes in Britain since 1945. Changes in ideologies, strategies, and institutions for governing Britain; the formulation and implementation of social and economic policy. Changing patterns of inequality with reference to social class, education, and race and ethnicity. The distribution of power in British society; élites, ruling classes, and democracy. Cultural change with reference to religion.
Paper 19. Medicine, body, and society
The course for this paper is concerned to provide students with a critical and comprehensive understanding of the principal issues and debates in contemporary medical sociology; to analyse the major social causes of health and illness in modern societies with special reference to such factors as social class, gender, ethnicity, and age; to provide students with a sociological grasp of the issues and problems associated with chronic illness, disability, and impairment; and finally to develop a sociological analysis of the major organizational and professional components of medical institutions (hospitals, clinics, and training institutions). The paper attempts to provide a comprehensive overview of contemporary medical sociology and to explore a full range of topics and issues concerning the nature of health and illness in modern societies. It is comparative in its focus, although the principal illustrations are taken from Britain, northern Europe, and North America. The paper is concerned both with the nature of disease as a social phenomenon, and the medical institutions such as the modern hospital and medical training. Disease, disability, and sickness as social categories are explored through an emphasis on contemporary theories of social construction, feminist theory, the sociology of the body, and phenomenology. A central sociological theme of the paper is social inequality and social stratification, which are explored in terms of social class, ethnicity, gender, and age. As social inequality is taken to be significant, the paper also explores the transformations of the welfare state, marketization, and new methods of health delivery. Health and illness are thus seen within the context of social rights and citizenship.
Paper 21. Women in society (also serves as option (a) of the subjects specified for Paper 15 of the Economics Tripos)
There is a dual perspective to this paper: the position of women in society seen through the history of feminism and the question of bringing a gender perspective to bear on social, political, and psychological issues. These two general approaches are then illustrated by specific topics. Until further notice these are: gender in the developing world, in education in Britain, in theories and practices of language and of psychoanalysis. The paper is divided into two sections. Candidates will be required to answer at least one question from each section.
Paper 24. The politics of North America since 1900
The paper is concerned with the politics of the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Among topics considered are the nature of North American democracy, approaches to the study of American politics, and political institutions. The coverage of the USA concentrates on political institutions and processes in state and society, including: the Constitution and its consequences; American 'exceptionalism' as real or ideal; the Presidency, the Congress, and the relationship between them; the Federal Courts and their political consequence; elections and political campaigning; bureaucracy and administration in theory and practice; political parties and interest groups; the origins and production of welfare and economic policy; social division and political activity; race, gender, region, ideology, and social movements as sources of political action; and American political argument. The paper will focus principally on the USA but the politics of Canada and Mexico will be compared with those of the United States, with particular emphasis placed upon the relationship between Quebec, the other provinces, and the federal system, and on the Canadian and Mexican relationships with the USA, including NAFTA and its consequences. The examination paper is undivided.
(Statutes and Ordinances, p. 389)
By replacing the text for certain papers as follows:
Paper Pol. 3. The analysis of modern politics II
The paper examines a range of issues in the understanding of modern politics. Until further notice, it will concentrate on those that arise in domestic and international politics, and rational explanation.
Paper Pol. 5. Conceptual issues in modern politics
Conceptual questions that arise in the study of modern politics. This paper is examined by two 5,000-word essays.
Paper Psy. 1. Social psychology
The scope of this paper will include all those aspects of psychology which are relevant to an understanding of human social behaviour and its development. In any single year the paper will offer students the opportunity to study a number of individual and interpersonal processes from within this range (e.g. aggression, altruism, applied social psychology, attitudes, attribution theory, communication, conflict, conformity, co-operation, emotion, group processes, identity, impression formation, inter-group relations, interpersonal attraction, personality, prejudice, pro-social behaviour, relationships, social cognition, social influence, social psychiatry, stereotyping, trust), and alternative frameworks within which the study of human social behaviour has been conceptualized (e.g. discursive psychology, experimental social psychology, psychoanalysis, social representations theory). The relationship between social psychology and other parts of psychology will also be addressed.
Paper Psy. 2. Experimental psychology (the subject Experimental Psychology in Part IB of the Natural Sciences Tripos)
The paper is assessed for students for Part IIA of the Social and Political Sciences Tripos by one three-hour examination and notebooks on experimental work.
Paper Soc. 1. Social theory
This paper provides an account of the main intellectual traditions and key contributions of contemporary social theory. The time period extends from c. 1920 to the present day, but the paper concentrates on recent (post-1960) literature and developments. A limited number of traditions and orientations are selected for detailed discussion; these traditions and orientations are situated in their social and intellectual contexts, and the writings of key thinkers are examined in some depth.
Paper Soc. 2. Contemporary societies and global transformation
Theories of global scale, political and economic transformation: Marxist theories of capitalism and imperialism; world systems theory; development theory; modernity; globalization. The evolution of a global economy: Fordism and post-Fordism; multi- and trans-national corporations: the information and knowledge economy; convergence and diversity in capitalism; global finance. The development of the modern state: the interstate system and new forms of 'geo-governance'; economic globalization and state power. Post-communist societies and the problem of 'transition'. Global communication and information networks: communication and development; cultural identity and the information age. Globalization and social change: health, the family.
Paper Int. 1. Inquiry and analysis I
This paper introduces candidates to the concepts and methods of social research. It will give candidates the conceptual and methodological knowledge to evaluate different styles of social inquiry and provide the necessary skills to design and implement an empirical inquiry. Candidates will be introduced to the basic philosophical ideas that underpin social research and will be instructed in the appropriate use of basic descriptive and inferential statistical techniques. The paper will be examined by one 2,500-word methodological essay, one 2,500-word statistical assignment, and a project report of 5,000 words.
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Cambridge University Reporter, 11 October 2000