The increasing ubiquity of PowerPoint in the university classroom raises complex questions about pedagogy and the creation of dynamic and effective learning environments. Though much of the sociological teaching literature has focused on engagement and active learning, very little of this work has addressed the presence of PowerPoint in sociology classrooms. Teaching sociology requires discussion, critical thinking, and debate—characteristics many critics argue are at odds with PowerPoint’s unique presentation style. Utilizing survey data from faculty and students at a private university, this research explores PowerPoint usage and the many ways it influences the learning environment of the sociology classroom.

PurposeState Health Agencies (SHAs) have developed public health genomics (PHG) programs that play an instrumental role in advancing precision public health, but there is limited research on their approaches. This study examines how PHG programs attempt to mitigate or forestall health disparities and inequities in the utilization of genomic medicine.MethodsWe compared PHG programs in three states: Connecticut, Michigan, and Utah. We analyzed 85 in-depth interviews with SHA internal and external collaborators and program documents. We employed a qualitative coding process to capture themes relating to health disparities and inequities.ResultsEach SHA implemented population-level approaches to identify individuals who carry genetic variants that increase risk of hereditary cancers. However, each SHA developed a unique strategy—which we label public health action repertoires—to reach specific subgroups who faced barriers in accessing genetic services. These strategies varied across states given demographics of the state population, state-level partnerships, and availability of healthcare services.ConclusionOur findings illustrate the imperative of tailoring PHG programs to local demographic characteristics and existing community resources. Furthermore, our study highlights how integrating genomics into precision public health will require multilevel, multisector collaboration to optimize efficacy and equity.

In the past decade, healthcare delivery has faced two major disruptions: the mapping of the human genome and the rise of evidence-based practice. Sociologists have documented the paradigmatic shift towards evidence-based practice in medicine, but have yet to examine its effect on other health professions or the broader healthcare arena. This article shows how evidence-based practice is transforming public health in the United States. We present an in-depth qualitative analysis of interview, ethnographic, and archival data to show how Michigan's state public health agency has navigated the turn to evidence-based practice, as they have integrated scientific advances in genomics into their chronic disease prevention programming. Drawing on organizational theory, we demonstrate how they managed ambiguity through a combination of sensegiving and sensemaking activities. Specifically, they linked novel developments in genomics to a long-accepted public health planning model, the Core Public Health Functions. This made cutting edge advances in genomics more familiar to their peers in the state health agency. They also marshaled state-specific surveillance data to illustrate the public health burden of hereditary cancers in Michigan, and to make expert panel recommendations for genetic screening more locally relevant. Finally, they mobilized expertise to help their internal colleagues and external partners modernize conventional public health activities in chronic disease prevention. Our findings show that tools and concepts from organizational sociology can help medical sociologists understand how evidence-based practice is shaping institutions and interprofessional relations in the healthcare arena.

Declining social capital is one explanation for lower response to household surveys. By intentionally developing an awareness of social capital among its interviewers, the Por Ahí Dicen research study encouraged the use of interviewer social capital as a mechanism to achieve a response rate of 65.2 percent for baseline and post-intervention household studies of Puerto Rican mothers (n = 413). These surveys were conducted in a “hard-to-count” urban environment designated by the U.S. Census Bureau. The interviewer trainings highlighted three domains of social capital: reciprocity and generalized trust, group or social cohesion, and cultural affirmation. By stressing the importance of social capital as an engagement tool, interviewers more easily made research participation salient and successfully leveraged Puerto Rican mothers’ participation in the community study.

This study examines the dynamics of the first-time teaching experience of graduate instructors, drawing on interview and focus group data from 35 sociology students in a doctoral program at a large university in the United States. Results indicate the majority of graduate instructors felt a great deal of anxiety due to challenges they faced when teaching their own course for the first time: challenges such as feelings of unpreparedness, constant and unremitting time demands, problems with students, a lack of confidence, and insufficient support. Instructors employed a number of informal strategies in attempts to mediate the personal and professional impact of these challenges. Strategies included adjusting expectations, making sacrifices, becoming savvy, and creating informal peer networks that provided social support and increased access to resources. Findings indicate the need for institutional-level changes, including how graduate student teaching is viewed within the discipline and the ways graduate instructors are supported and prepared to teach. This article concludes with specific recommendations for graduate programs and sociology departments of sociology.