Simon Fraser University
Engaging the World

Course Outlines

Fall 2025 - SA 304 D100

Social Control (S) (4)

Class Number: 4909

Delivery Method: In Person

Overview

  • Course Times + Location:

    Sep 3 – Dec 2, 2025: Thu, 11:30 a.m.–2:20 p.m.
    Vancouver

  • Instructor:

    Dany Lacombe
    lacombe@sfu.ca
    Office Hours: Thursday 3:00pm – 4:00pm or by appointment

  • Prerequisites:

    SA 101 or 150 or 201W.

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

This course examines how the organization of control (formal and informal) affects both individuals and society. It will investigate how control takes form, how it functions, the ideologies supporting it, and the resistance it produces. We will ask the following questions: who are the agents of social control; who or what do they control; and how do they control?

COURSE DETAILS:

Social control refers to the various means and mechanisms by which a society enforces conformity on its members.  Some of these mechanisms are formal (legal system, government agencies, police and military enforcement) and some are informal (socialization, internalization of norms, moral or religious regulation). Together, these mechanisms exert a profound influence on individuals, shaping identities, constraining behaviours, colouring judgements, and dictating responses towards non-conforming individuals. Ultimately, social control affects our freedoms, actions, and selfhood.

In this course, we will reflect on the intricate relationship between social control and individual freedom by examining society’s response to certain forms of deviance and criminality. We will delve into complex case studies, posing questions such as: in what ways do the serial killings of Dr. Neill Cream, a McGill-educated medical doctor, reflect societal anxieties surrounding women’s control over their bodies? To what extent does the medicalization of “nymphomania” and “kleptomania” operate as a mechanism of social control to enforce normative female behaviour? And what does the psychiatric concept of “folie à deux” (shared madness) in cases of female teenager murderers reveal about societal construction of norms regarding gender and sexuality?

Drawing on scholarship that contextualizes deviance and criminality within broader social, cultural, historical and economic circumstances, students will learn to appreciate the role various experts, discourses, and institutions play in the production and maintenance of conformity.   

COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:

  1. Students will develop a sociological imagination about aspects of authority, power, and control in society.
  2. Students will develop an understanding of major concepts associated with the work of major thinkers in the sociological study of social control.
  3. Students will develop public speaking skills by engaging in discussions with peers and the instructor.
  4. Students will develop their critical thinking skills and writing skills.

Grading

  • Test 1 30%
  • Test 2 30%
  • Class Participation (Public speaking about assigned weekly readings: 15% and active engagement with classmates and instructor: 10%) 25%
  • Group discussion with instructor 15%

NOTES:

Grading: Where a final exam is scheduled and the student does not write the exam or withdraw from the course before the deadline date, an N grade will be assigned. Unless otherwise specified on the course syllabus, all graded assignments for this course must be completed for a final grade other than N to be assigned. An N is considered as an F for the purposes of scholastic standing.

Grading System: The Undergraduate Course Grading System is as follows:

A+ (95-100) | A (90-94) | A- (85-89) | B+ (80-84) | B (75-79) | B- (70-74) | C+ (65-69) | C (60-64) | C- (55-59) | D (50-54) | F (0-49) | N*
*N standing to indicate the student did not complete course requirements

Academic Honesty and Student Conduct Policies: The Department of Sociology & Anthropology follows SFU policy in relation to grading practices, grade appeals (Policy T20.01), and academic honesty and student conduct procedures (S10‐S10.05). Unless otherwise informed by your instructor in writing, in graded written assignments you must cite the sources you rely on and include a bibliography/list of references, following an instructor-approved citation style. It is the responsibility of students to inform themselves of the content of SFU policies available on the SFU website.

Centre for Accessible Learning: Students with hidden or visible disabilities who believe they may need classroom or exam accommodations are encouraged to register with the SFU Centre for Accessible Learning (1250 Maggie Benston Centre) as soon as possible to ensure that they are eligible and that approved accommodations and services are implemented in a timely fashion.

The Sociology and Anthropology Student Union, SASU, is a governing body of students who are engaged with the department and want to build the SA community. Get involved!  Follow Facebook and Instagram pages or visit our website.

Materials

MATERIALS + SUPPLIES:

Reading materials will be available through Canvas

REQUIRED READING:

  • McLaren, Angus. A Prescription for Murder: The Victorian Serial Killings of Dr. Neil Cream.  Chicago: Chicago University Press, 1993.

REQUIRED READING NOTES:

Your personalized Course Material list, including digital and physical textbooks, are available through the SFU Bookstore website by simply entering your Computing ID at: shop.sfu.ca/course-materials/my-personalized-course-materials.

Registrar Notes:

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS

At SFU, you are expected to act honestly and responsibly in all your academic work. Cheating, plagiarism, or any other form of academic dishonesty harms your own learning, undermines the efforts of your classmates who pursue their studies honestly, and goes against the core values of the university.

To learn more about the academic disciplinary process and relevant academic supports, visit: 


RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION

Students with a faith background who may need accommodations during the term are encouraged to assess their needs as soon as possible and review the Multifaith religious accommodations website. The page outlines ways they begin working toward an accommodation and ensure solutions can be reached in a timely fashion.