Frequently Asked Questions

• Students
• Instructors

• I’m a student. How do I buy the textbook?
  Our materials are broken down to individual chapters, listed on the “Chapters” page of the main menu. There, you can add each chapter you wish to purchase to your Cart and proceed to checkout. You must register and be signed in to purchase chapters.

  You are welcome to buy chapters as your semester progresses, or all at once. You can also purchase the full textbook (all sixteen chapters) at the top of the “Chapters” page.

  Once purchased, the “Add to Cart” button on each chapter will instead say “Read Now.” When you select “Read Now,” you will be taken to a new window or tab with our e-reader, hosted by Bookshelf.

  I am receiving the following error when I try to log in: “Your account has to be confirmed by an administrator before you can log in”

  Student accounts should not require administrative approval. When our site is overwhelmed with new registrations, some student accounts are erroneously marked as needing approval. We have been working on correcting this error, and we apologize for the inconvenience.

  If you received this error, please email us at help@sociologyexperiment.com with the email or username you used to register, and someone from our team can get your account approved and accessible as soon as possible.

  What is the difference between the “A Sociology Experiment: Spring 2023” and the rest of the products on the Chapters page?

  The “All Chapters” version of A Sociology Experiment contains all chapters of the textbook, for students assigned most or all of the text. The rest of the products listed are the same materials included in that version, but sold as individual chapters.

  A Sociology Experiment was designed for instructors to assign whichever chapters make sense for their class, and for students to only purchase the chapters they need. Students are advised to purchase these individual chapters if they are assigned fewer than fourteen chapters of the book, or wish to pace out their purchases over the semester.

  Why am I being taken to another website when I select ‘Read Now’?

  When you select ‘Read Now’ you will be redirected to a safe and secure website for accessing your purchase. Our new e-reader is provided by VitalSource Technologies, and all chapter text is now hosted through their site.

  Can I buy hardcopies?

  As of this time, we only provide our materials digitally. We do not provide hardcopies or versions which users can print.

  I already bought chapters in 2022 or earlier. Why am I being prompted to Add to Cart?

  Moving forward, our chapters will only be available using our new Bookshelf e-reader. If you have purchased chapters prior to January 5, 2023, you can still download the Fall 2021 version of the text at the bottom of each purchased chapter’s page.
• I’m an instructor. How do I view materials to decide whether to adopt them for my course?
  Please register as an instructor on our site’s landing page using an institutional email address. We verify each instructor on a daily basis, but you may have to wait 24-48 hours for our team to verify you. Once verified, you will have access to all the chapters on the “Chapters” page, as well as additional teaching resources.

  If you have not been given an institutional email address, your account has not been verified after 48 hours, or you would like to provide further information to help us verify you, please email us at help@sociologyexperiment.com.

  Why are chapters sold individually? Why are they not numbered?

  We sell our chapters individually to minimize the financial burden placed on students, and to encourage instructors to only use the materials that make sense for their course. We designed A Sociology Experiment to be a modular resource that gives instructors plenty of freedom about how they wish to integrate our materials into their syllabus. We believe that if an instructor is only assigning half the chapters, that’s all students should be expected to purchase.

  How do I place a bulk order?

  All bulk orders, including invoicing and payment, are handled directly through VitalSource’s Bulk Store. We only accept bulk orders for the complete book at the price listed on VitalSource’s website.

  If you are an instructor working with incarcerated students, we want to make our materials available to you at minimal cost. Please contact us at help@sociologyexperiment.com.

  Can I buy hardcopies?

  In order to keep our materials affordable to students, we only provide our materials digitally. We do not provide hardcopies or versions which users can print.

  I tried to log in, and my account no longer exists!

  In order to keep our site functioning smoothly and securely, we periodically remove accounts we deem “expired.” Your account may have expired if you have not logged in a long time and we have been unable to reach you via your registered email. If your account was removed and you want to regain access to A Sociology Experiment, simply register again using the form on our home page.

If you have any other questions or need assistance, please email us at help@sociologyexperiment.com