Professor Stillerman and HNR 251: Inequality by the Numbers

Read along to hear about Professor Stillerman's background and his new course!

What would you like students to know about you?

JS: I’m originally from Chicago and completed my PhD in Sociology and Historical Studies at the New School for Social Research. I began teaching at GVSU in 2002 in the Sociology Department and taught at the University of Arizona for a few years before arriving at GVSU. I have been teaching an integrative seminar on the Sociology of Consumption since 2004 and became an Honors College Faculty-in-Residence in 2018.  Since then, I have been co-teaching a freshman sequence, “Culture, Power and Inequality.” I have also appreciated the opportunity to direct several Honors senior projects, many of which have focused on consumer behavior/consumer culture. My research has mostly been focused on Chile, in South America. I have worked in the areas of labor and labor movements, urban sociology, the sociology of consumption, and cultural sociology. I published a book (The Sociology of Consumption: A Global Approach. Polity Books, 2015) and have a second one due out next year (Identity Investments: Middle Class Responses to Precarious Privilege in Neoliberal Chile. Stanford University Press, 2023).  I’ve also published numerous articles and chapters in the above sub-fields.  In addition to teaching, I am a jazz guitarist and I enjoy hiking in Michigan’s beautiful state and county parks.

What about your background has led you to teach this class?

JS: All my research explores inequalities based on class, race, and gender. Additionally, teaching SOC 351 Urban Sociology and my freshman sequence has given me experience teaching about inequalities, while piquing my interest in current quantitative-based research on inequalities.

What kinds of activities should the students expect in the class?

JS: The class will have an interactive lecture/discussion format and will include periodic brief student oral presentations as well as a large group project at the end of the semester. Students will conduct some small individual research projects that are “scaffolded” to help prepare students for their final project. Because the class is project-based, students will spend some time developing collaborative skills that will help them work effectively in their group project.

How will the class benefit students, in your view?

JS: Most students in our Culture, Power, and Inequality sequence were unaware of the systemic nature of inequalities in our society before taking our class. They are very enthusiastic about what they learn and often remark that they have discussed these issues with friends and family.  Some students have gone on to take my integrative seminar and do a senior project with me and it is clear from their upper-level class work that their knowledge base is “next-level.” Inequality by the Numbers will give students an understanding of how inequalities based on class, race, gender, sexual identity/orientation, and ability affect people’s opportunities in the areas of employment, housing, incarceration, and health.  In contrast to the freshman sequence I teach, Inequality by the Numbers will help students develop the capacity to interpret statistical data as well as apply publicly available statistics in their own research. While this is not a “methods” class in that students will not be doing statistical calculations and operations, they will gain an understanding of how quantitative arguments are made in the social sciences, and they will be exposed to a great deal of evidence on the stubborn patterns of inequality in our society. After completing the class, students will be well equipped for upper-level classes in the social sciences and in related fields (like public health or criminology), with have better quantitative literacy skills, and will enjoy a much deeper understanding of the causes and consequences of inequality in our society. 

What are you most looking forward to about the class?

JS: I have taught about inequalities related to housing, employment, and incarceration. I am looking forward to teaching about health-based inequalities that are so important in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic but also have been with us for a long time. I am also excited about the challenge of teaching an entire course devoted to quantitative literacy. About a decade ago, I taught HNR 280, Causal Explanation in the Social Sciences, which introduced students to quantitative, qualitative, and comparative-historical methods. I’m looking forward to taking a deep dive into statistics-based research with students.

Professor Joel Stillerman

Professor Joel Stillerman



Page last modified March 29, 2022