Course Topics
This course is designed to encourage students to actively engage with and critically explore selected topics, theories, and findings relevant to the sociology of social change, with the aim of acquiring a general overview and familiarizing themselves with key concepts. Developed for students in design and art, this course offers structured opportunities to gain initial insights into the following areas: 1. Fundamental concepts for analyzing and describing changing social realities. 2. Various approaches to understanding the causes and driving forces of social change. 3. Basic methods for exploring social change in real-world contexts. 4. Key phenomena and characteristic patterns of social change in selected fields, with particular attention to significant megatrends. 5. The study of changing attitudes, lifestyles, interests, and living conditions across past, present, and future generations. 6. Different perspectives on social criticism and ways of understanding contemporary societies. 7. Addressing how these themes intersect with design and art perspectives, with particular attention to the ways in which subjects, problems, and solutions are conceptualized and framed in different disciplines.

Propaedeutic courses
none

Teaching format
The course places minimal emphasis on lecture-based instruction and maximizes the use of interactive components, including group activities, discussions, shared readings, and individual assignments.

Educational objectives
Disciplinary competence Knowledge and understanding - have acquired the basic knowledge to be able to turn a critical eye to their own work and to deal with contemporary complexity - have acquired the basic knowledge necessary for further Master's studies in all components of project culture as well as in scientific and theoretical subjects. Applying knowledge and understanding - recognise the main phenomena of contemporary society, to observe them critically, also from an ethical and social point of view, and to elaborate appropriate solutions at the level of a design proposal/response. - make use of the skills acquired during the course of study in the event of continuing studies in a Master's degree programme in the field of design and to develop them further. Transversal competence and soft skills Making judgements - Be able to make independent judgements, both in the critical evaluation of their own work and in their ability to use the right interpretative tools in those contexts in which they will work professionally in design and/or continue their studies, also considering ethical and social aspects. Communication skills - to professionally communicate and substantiate their own decisions and justify them from a theoretical point of view. Learning skills - have acquired basic knowledge in theoretical subjects as well as a study methodology suitable for continuing studies with a Master's degree programme.

Additional educational objectives and learning outcomes
- Students will enhance their ability to analyze and understand processes of social change. - Learners will develop skills to apply sociological concepts in diverse contexts. - Participants will strengthen critical thinking and communication for academic and professional growth.

Assessment
For attending students: Attending students are those regularly present in class and delivering all required assignments during the time span of the course. For them the average of all grades of their completed assignments (written reports and oral presentations) will provide the anticipated final examination mark. The validity of the anticipated final examination mark will be concisely checked by some oral final examination. For not attending students: Not attending students are those not regularly present in class and not delivering all required assignments during the time span of the course. They have to study on their own on the basis of a list of essential literature (that will be published in the TEAMS domain of the course) in order to prepare themselves independently to pass a thorough final examination in written that will provide the final mark. N.B. ALL THE STUDENTS ATTENDING THE EXAM AS “OPT” OR AS NON-ATTENDING STUDENTS MUST AGREE UPON THE CONTENTS WITH THE TEACHER AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SEMESTER.

Evaluation criteria
For attending students: Consistency in the elaboration of written reports; clarity in the preparation of oral presentations; ability to summarize, evaluate, and establish relationships between topics For not attending students: Correctness and accuracy in answering the questions of the written examination; ability to summarize, evaluate, and establish relationships between topics.

Required readings

Massey, G. (2017). Social change. In K. O. Korgen (Ed.), The Cambridge handbook of sociology (pp. 485–496). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316418376.048

Complete listing will be communicated the first day of class and

provided in the TEAMS domain of the course.

Supplementary readings

Metzner-Szigeth, A. (2026). On sustainable futures, generative competences, and the nexus of governance, management and design. In A. Metzner-Szigeth, I. Kofler, H. Pechlaner, & G. Erschbamer (Eds.), Integrating design in governance and management: Creative approaches for the future. Routledge (in press).

Complete listing will be communicated the first day of class and provided in the TEAMS domain of the course.

Further information
Success in this course requires active engagement and constructive participation; a passive consumption attitude will not be sufficient to pass. Students are expected to contribute thoughtfully and take responsibility for their own learning. While commitment and effort are essential, meaningful involvement in the learning process can also be genuinely enjoyable.