author
Charles A. (Charles Abram) Ellwood
1873–1946
A pioneering American sociologist, he helped shape the field in the early 20th century and brought social psychology into debates about education, culture, and reform. His work was widely read in its day and helped establish sociology as a serious academic discipline.
1 Audiobook
Sociology and Modern Social Problems
by Charles A. (Charles Abram) Ellwood
About the author
Born in 1873 near Ogdensburg, New York, Charles Abram Ellwood became one of the better-known American sociologists of the interwar years. He studied at Cornell University and later earned a Ph.D. at the University of Chicago, building a career around the idea that sociology should draw on psychology as well as history, ethics, and education.
Ellwood taught for many years at the University of Missouri, where he was a leading figure in sociology, and later moved to Duke University, where he established the Department of Sociology in 1930. He also served as president of the American Sociological Society, a sign of how influential he was within the profession.
His books explored social psychology, cultural evolution, religion, and modern social problems, always with an eye toward how societies change and how people might guide that change thoughtfully. He died in 1946 in Durham, North Carolina, leaving behind a body of work that captures an important chapter in the early history of American sociology.