James S. Coleman Article Index for
James S
Website Links For
James
 

Information About

James S. Coleman




James S. Coleman, born May 12 , 1926 in Bedford, Indiana , died March 25 , 1995 in Chicago , was an American Sociologist . He was a sociological theorist, who studied the Sociology Of Education , Public Policy , and was one of the earliest users of the term " Social Capital ". His ''Foundations of Social Theory'' stands as one of the most important sociological contributions of the late- 20th Century .

Coleman received his bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering from , the University Of Chicago , at Johns Hopkins University ( 1959 - 1973 ), and then again at Chicago, where he directed the National Opinion Research Center . In 1991 Coleman was elected President of the American Sociological Association .

Coleman is widely cited in the field of , in the hopes of avoiding compliance with the Brown V. Board Of Education decision.)

This research also suggested that socially disadvantaged black students profited from schooling in racially-mixed classrooms. This was a catalyst for the implementation of Desegregation Busing systems, ferrying black students to integrated schools. Following up on this, in 1975 Coleman published the results of further research, this time into the effects of school bussing systems intended to bring lower-class black students into higher-class mixed race schools. His conclusion was that white parents moved their children out of such schools in large numbers; this is known as " White Flight ". His 1966 article had explained that black students would only benefit from integrated schooling if there was a majority of white students in the classroom; the mass bussing system had failed.

One of the most important points he made was about social capital and how it is related to trust.

In addition, Coleman was a pioneer in the construction of mathematical models in sociology, especially through his book, ''Introduction to Mathematical Sociology.'' Related to this was his major treatise ''Foundations of Social Theory'' that made a major contribution to contemporary efforts to produce a more rigorous form of theorizing in sociology.


SELECTED WORKS


  • '' Union Democracy '' ( 1956 , with Seymour Martin Lipset )

  • ''The Adolescent Society'' ( 1961 )

  • ''Introduction to Mathematical Sociology'' ( 1964 )

  • ''Equality of Educational Opportunity'' ( 1966 )

  • ''Youth: Transition to Adulthood'' ( 1973 )

  • ''High School Achievement'' ( 1982 )

  • ''Individual Interests and Collective Action'' ( 1986 )

  • ''Social Theory, Social Research, and a Theory of Action'', article in ).

  • ''Social Capital in the Creation of Human Capital'', article in The American Journal of Sociology, Vol. 94, Supplement: Organizations and Institutions: Sociological and Economic Approaches to the Analysis of Social Structure, pp. S95-S120 ( 1988 ).

  • ''Foundations of Social Theory'' ( 1990 )



SEE ALSO




EXTERNAL LINKS