Pedagogy & Practice — Social Structure: Relationships, Representations, and Rules

SHECP is excited to host Dr. Jonathan Eastwood, Professor of Sociology at Washington and Lee University, and Dr. Howard Pickett, Professor of Ethics and Poverty Studies at Washington and Lee University, for a Pedagogy & Practice event on October 10th. 

During the event, Dr. Eastwood will introduce a framework for understanding social structures that he names “the three R’s": relationships, representations, and rules. "Relationships are recurrent patterns of interaction or exchange. Representations are shared categories for sorting people and things. Rules are prescriptions and proscriptions regarding conduct" he writes in What is Social Structure"? This framework is the core argument of his new book, Social Structures, which was published by Polity in February 2025.

Dr. Pickett will then discuss the value of the three R’s for teaching poverty studies, and how he has incorporated the framework into his own poverty studies courses. Register here!  

Date: October 10, 2025

Time: 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM ET

Who Should Attend: This event is open to the public.

Pedagogy & Practice events are designed to facilitate collaboration and sharing of best practices across SHECP Member Schools.

About the Book:

“Social structure is arguably the central concept of sociology, and in recent years a much wider public has taken up with fresh vigor the sociological idea that persistent inequalities are rooted in social structures. Yet there seem to be as many definitions of the term as there are sociologists, and we often struggle to articulate accessible yet precise accounts of structures that can guide empirical research and other kinds of action.

"Jonathan Eastwood offers a set of pragmatic strategies for thinking about social structures, emphasizing ways in which we can approach them as complex lacings of relationships, representations, and rules. He then teases out a variety of implications of these strategies for qualitative and quantitative research, the analysis of social problems, and the implementation of social policies. Written for advanced undergraduate and graduate students as well as fellow scholars, this insightful book contributes to our understanding of this fundamental and dynamic ingredient of social life.”

Read more about the book here: https://www.politybooks.com/blog-detail/what-is-social-structure.

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About the Speakers: 

Dr. Jonathan Eastwood

Jonathan Eastwood is a Professor of Sociology and the current department head for the Sociology and Anthropology department at Washington and Lee University. He is also a core faculty member in the Shepherd Program at Washington and Lee University. "Professor Eastwood is a social theorist who also has a strong interest in quantitative methods. He teaches seminars on classical and contemporary theory as well as a series of courses that train students how to use quantitative and computational tools to answer sociological questions." (https://www.wlu.edu/profile/eastwood-jonathan)

Dr. Howard Pickett

Howard Pickett is a Professor of Ethics and Poverty Studies and the director of the Shepherd Program at Washington and Lee University. "Professor Pickett teaches poverty studies courses on dignity and human rights, oppression and privilege, human capability and Martin Luther King Jr. He researches ethics, poverty, distributive justice and modern religious thought." (https://www.wlu.edu/profile/pickett-howard)

The Shepherd Program at Washington and Lee University "integrates thought and action to prepare students from different majors, career paths, backgrounds, passions, and political perspectives to understand and address the complex causes and consequences of poverty and inequality in ways that respect the dignity of every person.

Students weave together poverty-related courses across campus (economics, education, law, philosophy, politics, sociology, and more) and related service and internship experiences across the county, the country, and the world. Those pursuing a minor in poverty studies also complete capstone research that connects their concerns about poverty and inequality with their future civic and professional lives." (https://my.wlu.edu/the-shepherd-program/about)