SOCI 326 1st EditionLecture 4Robert S. Mackin, Ph.D.Spring 2015Assignment: Reading Memo #1 (Davis & Robinson)OBJECTIVE & BACKGROUNDOne of the objectives of sociology is to debunk “common sense.” Samuel Huntington’s(1996) influential book, Clash of Civilizations, anticipates that conflicts in the future will be among “civilizations”, including (but not limited to) “Islamic Civilization” and the “Western Christian Civilization”. Huntington’swork has been very influential among scholars and in popular debates. Manywould suggest that Huntington’s ideas define the common sense on the subject.For this assignment you will read an article in a leading sociological journal with the objective of determining, among other things, whether Huntington’s claim are supported regarding Islamic Fundamentalism. For this assignment, you will read Nancy J. Davis andRobert V. Robinson. 2006. “The Egalitarian Face of Islamic Orthodoxy: Support for Islamic Law and Economic Justice in Seven Muslim-Majority Nations.” (American Sociological Review, 71:167-190).The assignment has three parts: (1) read the article and write a short 1-2 pagememo answering the questions below; (2) bring your essay and the Davis & Robinson article (or a digital copy of it) to class; and, (3) during the latter, you (and your group) will answer questions about the article posed by theprofessor. Your essay or memo is your ticket to the class. In each small groupone person will be designated the recorder and they will jot down responses of fellow students. You (and your group) will have about 24-hours to submit the notes to ecampus. (A photo or scan of the notes will suffice. However, make sure each member’s name is clearly marked and – this is important for grading purposes – each student should submit a copy of the report to ecampus.)Prior to reading the piece by Davis & Robinson, please review “Appendix 2: How Do You Read A Research Article” in Purvin & Kain’s (2005) article. This is a useful guide if you are unfamiliar with reading published social science research articles in their entirety. This is a valuable resource, however, I would suggest one minor change in reading strategy: In contrast to Purvin & Kain (2005) I suggest the following order: (i) read the Abstract, (ii) the Introduction and then (iii) Discussion and Conclusions. Then go backand read the other recommended sections.ADVICE FOR THIS ARTICLE:Here are some specific suggestions regarding which parts of the article to read (and which to skip) and the questions to answer in your memo. (NB: answer the questions on a separate page and submit one copy to eCampus and bring a hard copy to class.)Section 1: Read entire section (p. 167 -169)Q1) What is the problem, or “gap in the literature” the authors are trying to address. [This helps the reader identify the contribution the author(s) is making to the field.]Section 2: Read entire section (169-174)This section is important because we see the introduction of key theories, concepts, and terms (moral cosmology theory, orthodoxy, etc.) plus the presentation of hypotheses that will be tested.Q2) In your own words, define the following terms: moral cosmology theory, orthodoxy, modernistSection 3: I suggest you skim or ignore these pages on your first reading (pp.174-175) This section provides the rationale for the hypotheses (esp. #3-5) discussed in previous section; however, they are not essential to understanding main arguments of the article.Section 4: Skim or skip (pp. 175-178): so you can get right to the Results section.Section 5: Read this section (175-184): however, it may be easier to understand after you’ve read the final section (Discussion and Conclusion) which is the most important. Due to time constraints I suggest you ignore thetables of data and instead focus on the findings as reported and interpreted bythe authors. And, as you read, focus on what seems to be the most important findings.Q3) What are the most important finding(s) from the article? Which hypotheses were confirmed, which were rejected?Section 4: Read the entire section (pp. 185-187): This is the most important part of the article, the Discussion and Conclusions. This section should clearly address the paper’s findings (conclusions). Use it to compare your answer to Q3 with the author’s discussion here.Q4: Are there any differences between you answers to Q3 and the author’s discussion in this part?Additional commentary: This section should connect the paper’s findings to broader trends in the field or in sociology or in popular debates more generally. Lastly, it should suggest future areas of research.ASSIGNMENT DETAILS:Answer the above questions (Q1-Q4) on 1-2 double-spaced pages. Use 1-inch margins and Times New Roman 12-point font. Submit the paper in pdf format.Please submit the assignment online to eCampus prior to class and bring a hardcopy to