Sociology on Film: Postwar Hollywood's Prestige Commodity

After World War II, Hollywood’s “social problem films”—tackling topical issues that included racism, crime, mental illness, and drug abuse—were hits with critics and general moviegoers alike. In an era of film famed for its reliance on pop psychology, these movies were a form of popular sociology, bringing the academic discipline’s concerns to a much broader audience.

Sociology on Film examines how the postwar “problem film” translated contemporary policy debates and intellectual discuss...