Decoding Disney: Sociology of the Disney Universe Syllabus

This resource was originally published in TRAILS, which is an online database of peer-reviewed teaching resources supported by the American Sociological Association.

Decoding Disney is an 8-week course that involves a trip to Walt Disney World and is semi-co-taught with several other disciplines at IU Kokomo. Students must apply for the course because the university subsidizes student travel as part of the Kokomo and You Experience. Sociology students must meet several pre-requisites for the course: completion of introductory sociology, Research methods, and the completion of at least nine credit hours in sociology.

This course seeks to examine sociological topics and methods using the Disney universe (e.g., films, products, and parks) as the focus of inquiry. Course topics may include issues of diversity (including, but not limited to: race, gender, class, and age), emotion work, the presentation of the self, and others based on the expertise of the instructor of record. The course includes spending time on site at Walt Disney World where students will apply sociological concepts to the field site. Students will engage in fieldwork observations locally and at Walt Disney World and prepare an analysis suitable for formal presentations beyond the classroom. The course includes some interdisciplinary work with other disciplines (variable, but may include riminal justice, hospitality and tourism, among others) also taking part in the trip.