91233 - Diversity and Inequalities in Global Phenomena

Learning outcomes

The course aims to present and examine the main theoretical and methodological approaches to the analysis of diversity and inequalities linked to global phenomena. By the end of the course, students will be able to identify and critically analyse the main research traditions in the study of global processes, with particular reference to the analysis of diversity and inequalities; distinguish between different types of actors, arenas and instruments; and connect theories and case studies in the analysis of global processes.

Course contents

The course is structured around the analysis of three fundamental sociological concepts: globalization, diversity and inequalities.

The course will be developed within the framework of sociological theory and its specific languages, with particular attention to the contribution of the sociology of culture. From this perspective, culture will be considered not only as a set of values, norms and representations, but also as a dimension through which social differences are constructed, interpreted, legitimized, contested and, in some cases, transformed into inequalities.

The first part of the course will examine the concepts of globalization, equality, diversity and inequality, with reference to the main contributions of the sociological tradition: from classical authors to the contemporary debate. The aim is to provide students with the theoretical tools needed to understand the processes of social stratification, differentiation, inclusion and exclusion that characterize contemporary societies.

Particular attention will be devoted to the relationship between social structure, culture and inequalities. Topics such as class, status, cultural capital, recognition, stigma, symbolic boundaries, collective belongings and the social construction of differences will therefore be discussed.

The course will then introduce the phenomenon of globalization, examining its main social, cultural and political implications. The lectures will address questions such as: what does globalization mean? What transformations does it produce in contemporary societies? How does it redefine identities, belongings, cultural boundaries and forms of inequality? How can it be organized politically and socially?

Finally, the course will explore the theme of social acceleration, understood as one of the forms through which the radicalization of global modernity manifests itself. Attention will be paid to the effects of acceleration on individual and collective life, social relations, institutions and democratic processes. The lectures will be organized around a number of guiding questions: what is social acceleration? How can its complexity be grasped? What experiences of adaptation, alienation and transformation does it produce? What challenges does it pose to contemporary societies?

In the second part of the course, a seminar-based teaching format will be adopted. Attending students will be divided into groups and will be asked to explore, through individual activities and collective work carried out under the supervision of the lecturer, specific processes and areas in which contemporary inequalities take shape.

The seminar activities will focus in particular on:

gender, cultural norms and processes of recognition;
generations, life course and the transformation of social expectations;
the labour market, cultures of merit and new vulnerabilities;
welfare, social risks, merit and meritocracy;
climate change, risk communication and socio-environmental inequalities.

The seminar-based part of the course aims to show that contemporary inequalities cannot be understood exclusively in terms of the unequal distribution of material resources, but must also be analysed as the outcome of cultural processes of classification, recognition, stigmatization, distinction, social construction of differences and public representation of risks.

Readings/Bibliography

Reference bibliography for attending students

First part of the course — lectures

Giancola, O. e Salmieri, L. (a cura di), Sociologia delle disuguaglianze. Teorie, metodi, ambiti, Roma, Carocci, 2020, capp. 1-2.

Piketty, T. e Sandel, M. J., Uguaglianza. Che cosa significa e perché è importante, Milano, Feltrinelli, 2025.

Beck, U., Che cos’è la globalizzazione. Rischi e prospettive della società planetaria, Roma, Carocci, 1999, pp. 9-86.

Rosa, H., Accelerazione e alienazione. Per una teoria critica del tempo nella tarda modernità, Torino, Einaudi, 2015.

Second part of the course — seminar activities

Giancola, O. e Salmieri, L. (a cura di), Sociologia delle disuguaglianze. Teorie, metodi, ambiti, Roma, Carocci, 2020, capp. 6-9.

At the beginning of the course, after the seminar groups have been formed and the topics for in-depth study have been assigned, further materials and papers related to the topics addressed in the seminars will be made available on Virtuale. These materials will form an integral part of the examination programme for attending students.

Reference bibliography for non-attending students

Non-attending students are required to prepare the following texts:

Giancola, O. e Salmieri, L. (a cura di), Sociologia delle disuguaglianze. Teorie, metodi, ambiti, Roma, Carocci, 2020, the entire book.

Piketty, T. e Sandel, M. J., Uguaglianza. Che cosa significa e perché è importante, Milano, Feltrinelli, 2025.

Beck, U., Che cos’è la globalizzazione. Rischi e prospettive della società planetaria, Roma, Carocci, latest available edition.

Rosa, H., Accelerazione e alienazione. Per una teoria critica del tempo nella tarda modernità, Torino, Einaudi, 2015.

Non-attending students must also choose one in-depth study text from the list below. The chosen reading will form the basis for the required thematic in-depth study and will replace the work carried out by attending students during the seminar activities.

Bauman, Z., Dentro la globalizzazione. Le conseguenze sulle persone, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2001.

Beck, U., Disuguaglianza senza confini, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2011.

Bourdieu, P., Il dominio maschile, Bologna, il Mulino, 2014.

Goffman, E., Stigma. Note sulla gestione dell’identità degradata, Verona, Ombre Corte, latest available edition.

Byung-Chul Han, Iperculturalità. Cultura e globalizzazione, Milano, Nottetempo, 2023.

Crouch, C., Identità perdute. Globalizzazione e nazionalismo, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2019.

Lelo, K., Monni, S. e Tomassi, F., Le mappe della disuguaglianza. Una geografia sociale metropolitana, Roma, Donzelli, 2019.

Santambrogio, A., Ecologia sociale. La società dopo la pandemia, Milano, Mondadori Università, 2020.

Sassen, S., Espulsioni. Brutalità e complessità nell’economia globale, Bologna, il Mulino, 2018.

Sen, A. K., La disuguaglianza. Un riesame critico, Bologna, il Mulino, 2010.

Steger, M. B., La globalizzazione, Bologna, il Mulino, 2016.

Teaching methods

The course adopts a teaching organization structured into two sections.

The first section, developed through lectures, is aimed at enabling students to acquire the basic conceptual and theoretical tools needed to understand the concepts of globalization, diversity and inequality. Through traditional lectures, supported where necessary by slides and teaching materials, the main contents of the course will be presented and discussed, with particular attention to facts, processes, concepts, theories and interpretative perspectives.

The second section, developed through six seminar meetings, is aimed at applying and deepening the knowledge acquired. In this part of the course, learning will be based on interaction among students, classroom discussion and guided debate with the lecturer. For this reason, attending students will be divided into three seminar groups.

During the seminar activities, students will be asked to carry out structured classroom work involving discussion, re-elaboration and verification of the knowledge acquired through the reading of the assigned texts and materials. To this end, they will be expected to attend classes having already read the assigned material, so that they can participate actively in the discussion, collective reflection and planned activities.

Each seminar group will attend only one seminar meeting per week. This organization will allow attending students to have adequate time to read, examine in depth and study the material indicated by the lecturer in preparation for the class.

Assessment methods

Assessment methods for attending students

In order to be considered attending students, students must attend at least 80% of the classes, give the seminar presentation agreed upon with the lecturer, and take part in the in-depth study activities planned during the course.

The final grade will result from a series of partial assessments, organized as follows:

Written mid-term test
The test, indicatively scheduled for the end of October, will consist of three open-ended questions relating to the contents of the lecture-based part of the course.
The grade obtained will account for 45% of the final grade.

Seminar presentation of a thematic in-depth study
During one of the seminar meetings scheduled between November and December, students will present a thematic in-depth study agreed upon with the lecturer at the beginning of the course.
This activity will account for 20% of the final grade.

Class participation and discussion
Active participation, the ability to contribute to discussion, engagement with the assigned materials, and contribution to the activities carried out during classes will be assessed.
This component will account for 15% of the final grade.

Final written test
The final written test will consist of open-ended questions relating to the contents addressed during the seminar meetings.
The grade obtained will account for 20% of the final grade.

Assessment methods for non-attending students

Non-attending students are required to take a written test based on the texts listed in the bibliography for non-attending students.

The test will consist of five open-ended questions: four questions will refer to the institutional part of the course and one question will refer to the chosen monograph. The duration of the test will be 100 minutes.

The aim of the test is to assess the student’s ability to use the concepts and knowledge acquired appropriately, to argue clearly and coherently, and to establish logical-deductive connections between concepts, theoretical perspectives and themes addressed in the examination texts.

Grading system valid for all students, regardless of the type of assessment taken:

• Fail: no even approximate knowledge of the topic, or incorrect knowledge; insufficient ability to present arguments and to use appropriate terminology.
• 18-21: basic knowledge of the topic, and/or not always correct; partial ability to present arguments; sufficient use of appropriate terminology.
• 22-25: satisfactory knowledge of the topic; fairly solid ability to present arguments; fair use of appropriate terminology.
• 26-29: good or very good knowledge of the topic; good or very good ability to present arguments; good use of appropriate terminology.
• 30: precise knowledge of the topic; excellent ability to present arguments; excellent use of appropriate terminology.
• 30 cum laude: precise knowledge of the topic; excellent ability to present arguments; excellent use of appropriate terminology and relevant personal re-elaboration of knowledge.

Teaching tools

During the course, where deemed necessary, the lecturer will make use of slides and other digital resources — such as videos, short films, posts from social networks, presentations and further audiovisual materials — in order to illustrate, explore in greater depth and update the concepts presented in class.

The Virtuale platform will be used to manage the organizational aspects of the course, such as the class schedule, division into working groups and communications relating to seminar activities, as well as to share teaching materials.

Students with specific learning disorders, or with temporary or permanent disabilities, are invited to contact the relevant University office in good time:
https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/it/per-studenti

The office will propose any necessary adjustments to the students concerned. Such adjustments must be submitted to the lecturer for approval at least 15 days in advance, so that they can also be assessed in relation to the learning objectives of the course.

Office hours

See the website of Elena Macchioni