Faculty of Social Science

www.ssc.uwo.ca

 

Program Information

American Studies

Western’s American Studies program is one of only a
handful in Canada. This innovative interdisciplinary
program introduces students to the social, political,
historical, and cultural dimensions of the United
States in an effort to better understand the meaning
and significance of the American identity. It also
examines America’s role in the world and its relationship
with other countries.

Anthropology

Anthropology is the study of people and culture
in all periods of history and in all areas of the world. Through sub-disciplines like Archaeology, Biological/Physical Anthropology, Anthropological Linguistics, and Sociocultural Anthropology, one can investigate past and current cultures through the examination of artefacts, study human evolution and genetics, examine the nature of communication, and analyze societies and cultures. Some examples of topics studied include: the environmental impact of globalization, refugees in the Middle East and Africa, diseasesand public health policy in the Ecuadorian Andes, and forensics.

 

Economics

Students in Economics study the behavior of individuals, organizations, and governments, as well as the implications of that behavior for markets, national economies, and the global economy. Economists analyze a wide variety of questions, such as: How do businesses decide what to produce, how many workers to employ, and whether to invest in new technologies? What determines prices, incomes, exchange rates, inflation, unemployment, and international trade flows? What explains economic growth and recessions? Other topics include the economics of education, taxation, crime, marriage, sports, poverty, social justice, and the environment.

The Economics department has introduced three new honors programs. The program in Economics, Politics and Philosophy will appeal to students interested in the relationships between economic issues, social justice and public policy. The program in Global Economics is an interdisciplinary program designed to combine a strong foundation in economics with an understanding of international issues and foreign cultures. In addition, the combined honors degree with the Ivey School of Business allows students to graduate with both Honors Social Science and Honors Business Administration degrees in five years.

 

First Nations Studies

First Nation Studies seeks to develop skills in its graduates so they may lead in the improvement of Indigenous peoples’ lives in Canada. The program has the mandate to bring greater understanding of Indigenous people's cultures, traditions and place in Canada to non-Aboriginal Canadians. Students in this interdisciplinary program develop their skills while exploring the role of Indigenous peoples in Canadian society and the world.  A special emphasis is placed on the Hodenosaunee (Iroquoian) and Anishnabwe (Ojibwa, Delaware, Potawatomi) traditions of south-western Ontario. The First Nations Studies program engages political, legal, cultural and linguistic perspectives on the First Nations informed by the standpoints and voices of Aboriginal people through partnerships with local communities and organizations.

Geography

Geography is the study of the processes, both social and natural, that shape the world around us. Geographers can thus address some of today’s most pressing issues, such as global climate change, international development, and spatial patterns of health and disease. Physical geography examines processes and patterns in the physical environment, including how and why environments change over time. Human geography seeks to understand the spatial distribution of human activities and the relationships between people and their environment, together with the resulting diversity amongst places and regions of the world. At Western, students receive training in both human and physical geography, along with skills in geographical techniques such as Geographic Information Systems (GIS), which is a set of computer-based methods to analyse, represent and visualize spatial information.  In addition to modules in Geography, Physical Geography and Geographic Information Science, the department also offers a unique interdisciplinary program in Urban Development. Hallmarks of Geography at Western are an applied, hands-on, integrated geographical education that can lead to variety of exciting career paths.  

History

Western’s history program is one of the largest in
Canada and offers a wide variety of courses relating
history to: society and culture, international relations and conflict, business and economy, technology, health, and the environment. Students will develop their abilities in writing, speaking, argumentation, and analysis, as they consider the central issue of change over time and the ways in which gender, class, and race have shaped the experience of people in past times. The Department of
History oversees modules in Latin American Studies
as well as Jewish Studies.

International Relations

Western’s program in International Relations is
genuinely interdisciplinary, blending history and political science approaches and methods in courses like International Justice and American Foreign Policy. Students in this program study issues such as: Canadian peacekeepers in Afghanistan, global warming, nuclear weapons testing in North Korea, global initiatives to combat HIV/AIDS, earthquakes in South America, the World Wide Web, SARS, and the dizzying price of filling your gas tank.

 

Linguistics (shared between Social Science
and Arts and Humanities)

Language is an important part of what makes us human and how we communicate with one another. Linguists study the properties of language, how language is used in social situations, how it is acquired in infancy, how it is learned as a second language, and how it evolves. Linguistics is a growing field with significant connections to other disciplines, such as: anthropology, computer science, philosophy, psychology, speech disorders/audiology, and the teaching of languages (including English as a Second Language).

Political Science

Students in Political Science explore the ideas, activities,
and problems associated with the governance of
nations, states, and societies, both past and present.
Western’s Political Science program is one of the largest
in Canada and is designed so that students can explore
issues that have a profound impact on shaping the
nature of domestic and international politics. Students
learn about the impact of globalization, the making of
American foreign policy, the role of the courts in politics,
the multilevel governance of Canadian cities, and how
the policies and principles, which governments endorse
and follow, shape our societal values, our careers, and
our freedoms.

Psychology
Students in Psychology explore the biological, social, and
psychological roots of human and animal behaviour under
the guidance of world-class researchers in state-of-theart
research facilities. Psychologists examine behaviour
from a variety of different perspectives ranging from how
our brain controls our behaviour (behavioural cognitive
neuroscience) to how we interact in small groups (social
psychology). We look at how we perceive, process, and
remember information (cognitive psychology; sensation
and perception) and how behaviour changes over our lifetime (developmental psychology). We examine individual differences in behaviour (personality psychology), and apply our knowledge of psychology to understanding behaviour in the workplace (industrial/organizational psychology).The Department of Psychology at Western offers a comprehensive
undergraduate program providing courses in all the different branches of psychology including two new programs. In Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, students examine how the mind and its disorders evolve out of an interaction of biology and experience. In the Animal Behaviour program, students study the science of animal behaviour, from the role of genes, hormones and the nervous system, to the ecology and evolution of behaviour in the natural world.

Sociology
Sociologists study how society influences what we do,
how we think, and our social behaviour and relationships,
in an attempt to understand and explain differences, for example, between men and women, the young and the old, or people of different nationalities.
Comparing and analyzing the different ways that people
live and work together is an important aspect of Sociology.
The department also offers a module in Criminology where concepts, such as the impact of gun control, how the media reports crime, and the causes and consequences
of deviant and criminal behaviour, are explored.
In the Health and Aging module, the process of aging
and how it is influenced by such factors as gender, social
class, and health care is examined.

Women’s Studies and Feminist Research
(Shared between Social Science and Arts and Humanities)

Students in this program explore the ways in which
gender, race, class, sexual orientation, and (dis)
ability intersect to shape social structures and ways
of thinking. The interdisciplinary nature of Women’s
Studies affords students the opportunity to pursue
their interests across a wide array of subject areas,
including: feminist theory, feminist perspectives
in health, philosophy, law, sociology, psychology,
political science, and the history of women.

Programs by Faculty

• Faculty of Arts and Humanities
• Faculty of Engineering
• School of Nursing
• School of Kinesiology
• Faculty of Health Sciences
• Faculty of Information
  and Media Studies
• Faculty of Music
• Faculty of Science
• Faculty of Social Science
• Management and Organizational Studies
• Second-Level Entry Professional Programs
• Faculty of Law

Academics

• Academic Choices
• Scholar's Electives
• Western Scholars
• Graduate Studies
• Affiliated University Colleges