Current Research
When bad things happen, who's to blame? When we see tragedies such as shootings, plane crashes, or untimely deaths , do we think that there is random noise that leads to these events - such events are simply natural accidents (to quote Perrow) or dysfunctions in our society (to use Merton) ? Or do we consider the idea that some nefarious entity works behind the scenes of public discourse to bring about some sort of plot. Far beyond Mills' Power Elite, over half of Americans believe in at least one form such conspiracy theory.
My current research agenda, stemming from my work on political corruption broadly, grapples with the central question: what sociological factors lead to an individual believing a conspiracy theory over official accounts of events? Certainly work has been done on psychological, and individual-level factors that influence such beliefs (e.g., a distrustful attitude, or feelings of economic exploitation), but what macro-level, structural factors might influence such beliefs: political climate? economic downshifts? country-of-origin?
Preliminary results have been presented at Eastern and Midwest Sociological Society's annual meetings in 2018 and 2019. Stay tuned for more information on this exciting new research venture!
My current research agenda, stemming from my work on political corruption broadly, grapples with the central question: what sociological factors lead to an individual believing a conspiracy theory over official accounts of events? Certainly work has been done on psychological, and individual-level factors that influence such beliefs (e.g., a distrustful attitude, or feelings of economic exploitation), but what macro-level, structural factors might influence such beliefs: political climate? economic downshifts? country-of-origin?
Preliminary results have been presented at Eastern and Midwest Sociological Society's annual meetings in 2018 and 2019. Stay tuned for more information on this exciting new research venture!
Dissertation Research and Public Policy Research
In my dissertation, I examine the complicated world of political corruption, with a special focus on its consequences and the struggles we face when challenging such corruption in the United States. Specifically, I examined corruption's effects on voter turnout and citizen trust, and the pathways by which corruption can occur. In that regard, my recent publication concerning the social construction of political corruption in government documents some of those issues and potential solution. For a brief synopsis, please listen to this Academic Minute piece from WAMC.
In line with my focus on corruption and civic life, I've worked with Southern Illinois University's Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, a non-partisan institute centered on public service, by providing survey questions for their 2014 poll, and contributing to The Simon Review. This paper, “Unsupervised, Ensnared, Relational, and Private: A Typology of Illinois’ Corrupt Women,” looked at 29 cases of corruption where a woman was the perpetrator and discovered commonalities in the ways corruption manifested itself, leading to some concrete policy implications. The full article is available at http://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1048&context=ppi_papers.
And here are some related articles and interviews about the piece: The Southern: http://thesouthern.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/bad-girls-of-illinois-government/article_f9ac0a78-5b63-56e3-9b1c-6f14cebea680.html. NPR: http://wuis.org/post/equity-illinois-corrupt-women. Illinois News Network: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpPcJ_6u_qQ.
Civic Engagement and Volunteerism Research
Finally, I also focused on community engagement, broadly conceived. In my masters-level work, using the AmeriCorps program as a research site, I qualitatively examined how AmeriCorps volunteers balance finding a sense of community with their reality of earning low wages. Specifically, in my piece entitled “Doing Poor in AmeriCorps: How National Service Members Deal with Living Below the Poverty Line,” published in Qualitative Sociology Review, I detail the “typical” experience members have with their new identities. That is available here. Another piece, informs us of the way AmeriCorps members form their sense of identity in the program. That is entitled "What's pay got to do with it? Collective identity formation in the AmeriCorps program" and is available from the Michigan Sociological Review here.
More recently, I’ve investigated citizens’ views of government officials and their perspectives on what their roles are in terms of serving the communities of which they are a part. This research has led to new insights into the way AmeriCorps members deal with their relative privilege in the form of cultural capital, and how that allows them to experience the program differently than those without such privilege. The full article is available in Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations here.
WHAT'S PAY GOT TO DO WITH IT? COLLECTIVE IDENTITY FORMATION IN THE AMERICORPS PROGRAM
More recently, I’ve investigated citizens’ views of government officials and their perspectives on what their roles are in terms of serving the communities of which they are a part. This research has led to new insights into the way AmeriCorps members deal with their relative privilege in the form of cultural capital, and how that allows them to experience the program differently than those without such privilege. The full article is available in Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations here.
WHAT'S PAY GOT TO DO WITH IT? COLLECTIVE IDENTITY FORMATION IN THE AMERICORPS PROGRAM