Acknowledgments
As always in my books, I express my personal and professional debt to two sociologists, Norman Miller and Forrest Dill. Norman Miller was my first sociology professor in college and led me in his special way into a discipline and profession that became my life’s calling. Forrest Dill was my adviser in graduate school and helped me in ways too numerous to mention. His untimely death shortly after I began my career robbed the discipline of a fine sociologist and took away a good friend.
I thank everyone at FlatWorld for helping bring this text to fruition and for helping today’s students afford high-quality textbooks while college costs keep rising. Special thanks go to Lindsey Kaetzel, who worked tirelessly to make this book the best it could be, and to Sean Wakely for his continuing support for my textbook authorship. My efforts also benefited greatly from the many sociologists who reviewed some or all of the text. These reviewers were tough but fair, and I hope they are pleased with the result. They include the following:
Velmarie Albertini, Southeastern University
Marcia Andrejevich, Purdue University North Central Campus
Kathleen Angco-Vieweg, American International College
Sharon Arnold, Lebanon Valley College
Grace Auyang, University of Cincinnati
Melissa Bonstead-Bruns, University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire
David Briscoe, University of Arkansas at Little Rock
Clifford Broman, Michigan State University
Jennifer Brougham, Arizona State University
Benjamin Brown, University of New Hampshire
Thomas Busnarda, Niagara College, Welland, Ontario
Derral Cheatwood, University of Texas at San Antonio
Alan Dahl, University of Kentucky
Wenqian Dai, University of South Dakota
Keri Diggins, Scottsdale Community College
Scott Dolan, University at Albany–SUNY
Charles Faupel, Auburn University
Fang Gong, Ball State University
Gayle Gordon Bouzard, Texas State University–San Marcos
Mark Gottdiener, University at Buffalo–SUNY
Gaetano Guzzo, Wright State University
Kellie Hagewen, University of Nebraska
Rahime-Malik Howard, Collin College/El Centro College
Jay Irwin, University of Nebraska at Omaha
Kristin Joos, University of Florida
Yoshinori Kamo, Louisiana State University
Todd Krohn, University of Georgia
Linda Kaye Larrabee, Texas Tech University
Jason Leiker, Utah State University
Royal Loresco, South Texas College
Suzanne Macaluso, Purdue University
Donald Mack, Tarrant County College
Stephanie Malin, Utah State University
William Martin, Binghamton University
Richard McMillan, University at Albany–SUNY
Joan Morris, University of Central Florida Cocoa Campus
Timothy O'Boyle, Kutztown University
Takamitsu Ono, University of Illinois
Romana Pires, San Bernadino Valley College
Antonia Randolph, University of Delaware
Fernando Rivera, University of Central Florida
Joseph Scimecca, George Mason University
Glenn Sims, Glendale Community College
Irena Stepanikova, University of South Carolina
Eric Strayer, Hartnell College
Chris Sutcliff, Lewis and Clark Community College
Ronald Thrasher, Oklahoma State University
William Tinney, University of South Carolina
Linda Vang, Fresno City College
Jesse Weiss, University of the Ozarks
Susan Wortmann, University of Nebraska–Lincoln
Jun Xu, Ball State University
Yih-Jin Young, Nassau Community College
Brittany Anne Chozinski, Our Lady of the Lake UniversityMelissa L. Nemon, Ph.D., Manchester Community College
Authors usually save the best for last in their acknowledgments, and that is the family members to whom they owe so much. Barbara Tennent and our sons David and Joel have always shared with me the joy and exhaustion of writing my textbooks, and their patience has certainly been a virtue. I have saved two family members for the very last, and they are my late parents, Morry and Sylvia Barkan. They have been gone many years, but whatever I have achieved in my personal and professional life, I owe to them.