This new Brief Sixth Edition of David Newman’s text is the streamlined version of Sociology: Exploring the Architecture of Everyday Life with the same goal: to be a textbook that, in the author’s words, "reads like a real book." 

Newman shows to see the “unfamiliar in the familiar”—to step back and see organization and predictability in their take-for-granted personal experiences. Newman uses the metaphors of “architecture” and “construction,” to help students understand that society is not something that exists “out there,” independently of themselves; it is a human creation that is planned, maintained, or altered by individuals. Instead of surveying every subfield in sociology, this text focuses on the structural features of society, the social construction of self and identity, and social inequality in the context of social institutions.

The new edition includes examples and analysis of contemporary events and trends, including:

• The changes in our national politics brought about by the 2016 presidential election


• Increasing societal attention paid to fatal encounters between police and unarmed people of color or incidents of sexual harassment and assault


• School shootings and the debates over gun ownership


• The continued dramatic growth of communication technology, particularly social networking sites