The idea for this Encyclopedia of Sociology was in gestation for a long time. Probably the notion arose when, as Sociology Advisory Editor for Rand McNally and Company, I arranged for a series of handbooks that were published in the 1960s and 1970s. This influential group of volumes covered most of sociology, especially with the Handbook of Modern Sociology (Robert E. L. Faris, 1964) as a key volume. Other titles in the list included: Handbook of Marriage and the Family (Harold T. Christensen, 1964); Handbook of Organizations (James G. March, 1965); Handbook of Socialization Theory and Research (David A. Goslin, 1968); Handbook of Personality Theory and Research (Edgar F. Borgatta & William W. Lambert, 1968); Handbook on the Study of Social Problems (Erwin O. Smigel, 1971); and Handbook of Criminology (Daniel Glaser, 1974). Effectively, the series functioned as an encyclopedia, especially since there was additional related coverage already provided by the Handbook of Social Psychology (Gardner Lindzey and Elliot Aronson, 1968). At that time Macmillan’s International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences (David L. Sills, ed., 1968) was also available, and a separate encyclopedia for sociology seemed superfluous.