Faculty Books
Bruce Carruthers
Professor
John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Chair
1808 Chicago Avenue
Room 203
Phone: (847) 467-1251
b-carruthers@northwestern.edu
Office Hours: By appointment only
Areas of Interest
Comparative/Historical Sociology
Economy and Society
Sociology of Law
Sociology of Organizations
Relevant Links
Business Institutions Program
Comparative Historical Social Science
Biography
Professor Carruthers received his PhD at the University of Chicago in 1991. Areas of interest include comparative and historical sociology, economy and society, sociology of law and sociology of organizations. At Northwestern, Carruthers is involved in the graduate Comparative Historical Social Science (CHSS) program, and the undergraduate Business Institutions Program (BIP).
His current research projects include a study of the historical evolution of credit as a problem in the sociology of trust, regulatory arbitrage, what modern derivatives markets reveal about the relationship between law and capitalism, and the regulation of credit for poor people in early 20th Century America. He has had visiting fellowships at the Russell Sage Foundation and the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, and received a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship. He is methodologically agnostic, and does not believe that the qualitative/ quantitative distinction is worth fighting over. Northwestern is Carruthers' first teaching position.
Carruthers has authored or co-authored five books, City of Capital: Politics and Markets in the English Financial Revolution (Princeton, 1996), Rescuing Business: The Making of Corporate Bankruptcy Law in England and the United States (Oxford, 1998), Economy/Society: Markets, Meanings and Social Structure (Pine Forge Press, 2000), Bankrupt: Global Lawmaking and Systemic Financial Crisis (Stanford, 2009), and Money and Credit: A Sociological Approach (Polity Press, 2010).
Courses Taught
SOCIOL 215: Economy and Society Syllabus
SOCIOL 302: Sociology of Complex Organizations Syllabus
SOCIOL 331: Markets, Hierarchies, and Democracies Syllabus TBA
SOCIOL 376: Special Topics: Law, Markets, & Global Economy Syllabus
SOCIOL 437: Economic Sociology Syllabus Syllabus
SOCIOL 439: Comparative & Historical Sociology Syllabus
Books
Money and Credit: A Sociological Approach
Polity Press, 2010
Bankrupt: Global Lawmaking and Systemic Financial Crisis
Stanford, 2009
City of Capital: Politics and Markets in the English Financial Revolution
Princeton, 1996
Economy/Society: Markets, Meanings and Social Structure
Pine Forge Press, 2000
Rescuing Business: The Making of Corporate Bankruptcy Law in England and the United States
Oxford, 1998
Publications
Accounting for Rationality: Double-Entry BookkeeAping and the Rhetoric of Economic Rationality
With Wendy Nelson Espeland; ASA, American Journal of Sociology, 1991
A Sociology of Bubbles
Contexts, 2009
The Color of Money and the Nature of Value: Greenbacks and Gold in Postbellum America
With Sarah Babb; The American Journal of Sociology; The University of Chicago Press, 1996
The Social Structure of Liquidity: Flexibility, Markets, and States
With Arthur L. Stinchcombe; Theory and Society, 1999
William Henry Exum Award
The intent of this prize is to honor the memory of William Henry Exum, a member of the Department of Sociology and the African American Studies Department, who died in 1986 at the age of 37. Exum was concerned with the quality of writing and research analysis in student papers. He was also interested in racial problems facing minority youths in higher education. This award was established as a means of continuing his goals of breaking barriers for all minorities.
The award submission deadline is April 27, 2012. All interested students should submit a 15-20 page paper, typed and double-spaced, on a topic dealing with race and ethnicity. Students are not limited to a sociological approach in preparing their submissions, nor is the award limited to sociology or social science majors.
The paper should include a cover sheet with the student's name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, year in school, and major.
Three copies of the essay must be submitted by the announced deadline to the Exum Award - Department of Sociology, 1810 Chicago Ave., Evanston Campus or one copy by email to sociol@northwestern.edu.
This award is open to all undergraduate students from all disciplines.
Upcoming Events
COLLOQUIUM: Myra Marx Ferree, Sociology, University of WI-Madison
May 17, 2012 • 12:30 PM - 2:00 PM
Culture and Society Workshop
May 17, 2012 • 3:30 PM - 5:30 PM
