Research Themes

Professor Joe Hermer recently published an article entitled, “Thomas Parker and the Tragedy of Vagrancy Law” for the Crisis Blog, an online publication produced by a national charity in the UK that works to reduce homelessness in England, Scotland and Wales. Professor Hermer’s article outlines the history of Britain’s Vagrancy Act of 1935 and its … Read More

PhD Candidate Merin Oleshuk, in collaboration with Professors Josée Johnston and Shyon Baumann,  published an article in Sociological Forum, entitled “Maintaining Meat: Cultural Repertoires and the Meat Paradox in a Diverse Socio-Cultural Context.” This article examines Canadian meat eaters and vegetarians within the context of “cultural repertoires” regarding meat eating. The authors distinguish between two … Read More

Ph.D. student Natália Otto recently published an article, entitled, “‘I Did What I Had to Do’: Loyalty and Sacrifice in Girls’ Narratives of Homicide in Southern Brazil” in The British Journal of Criminology. The article investigates the ways in which women reconcile their gendered identities with the act of killing. Otto sheds light on women’s … Read More

Ph.D. candidate Taylor Price published an article in Poetics, entitled “Posthumous Consecration in Rock’s Legitimating Discourse.” The article advances the idea of posthumous consecration and analyzes lifetime and posthumous rock album reviews. His findings demonstrate that “death plays a critical role in how cultural fields achieve autonomy.” Price reveals that critics emphasize the coherence of … Read More

Ph.D. candidate Laila Omar co-authored and published an article in Meridian, entitled “Listening in Arabic: Feminist Research with Syrian Refugee Mothers”. The article takes a feminist approach to research and is highly conscious of the unequal relations between women at the intersection of class, race, citizenship status as well as several other categories that represent asymmetrical … Read More

Ph.D. candidate Andrew Nevin and Professor Scott Schieman recently published a co-authored article in The Sociological Quarterly, entitled, “Technological Tethering, Digital Natives, and Challenges in the Work–Family Interface.” The article discusses the phenomenon of “constant connectivity” and the ways in which it has fostered unrealistic expectations of worker availability. The authors explore the conflict that occurs … Read More

Professor John W.P. Veugelers’ newly published book, Empire’s Legacy: Roots of a Far-Right Affinity in Contemporary France, analyzes the local politics and historical context to explain the emergence of far-right support for the National Front in Toulon. Veugelers examines the extent of far-right power at the local level and how the government can pose barriers … Read More

Ph.D. Candidate James Lannigan published an article in Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Social Media & Society. The article, entitled, “Branding Practices in The New(Er) Media: A Comparison of Retailer Twitter and Web-Based Images,”compares the ways in which specialty coffee retailers use webpages and Twitter. Lannigan’s research finds that retailers post twice as many … Read More

PhD student Ferdouse Asefi recently co-authored an op-ed published by The Star, entitled “Indigenous peoples will continue to suffer under Liberal minority.” The article examines how the promises and commitments made to Indigenous peoples have often been unfulfilled and casts doubt on the Liberals’ likelihood of prioritizing reconciliation during its next term. Ferdous Asefi is … Read More

Ph.D. Candidate Merin Oleschuk research on “foodies” in Toronto was featured in an article by Eater, entitled, “What Does ‘Authenticity’ in Food Mean in 2019?” The article claims that ‘authenticity’ in food “still matters, but its definition isn’t as simple as it used to be” because of the rising awareness of racial inequalities in its … Read More

PhD candidate Anson Au recently wrote an op-ed published by South China Morning Post, entitled “K-pop deaths show East Asia must end the stigma, and the solitude, that surrounds mental health.” The op-ed discusses the deaths of Korean pop stars Goo Hara and Sulli and the stigma surrounding mental health in East Asia. He argues … Read More

The Faculty of Arts and Science recently profiled Professor Sharla Alegria’s research on the tech sector.  Focusing partly on Professor Alegria’s recently published in article in Gender & Society, the article also speaks broadly about Alegria’s passion for her research in the sociology of work. Sharla Alegria is an assistant professor of sociology at the … Read More

Professor Jerry Flores recently discussed his investigation into murdered and missing Indigenous women in Canada with the University of Toronto, Mississauga News. Professor Flores is working with local organizations to gather stories from Indigenous women on why they left home and the challenges they face in the city. His research contributes to the ongoing discussion … Read More

Ph.D. Candidate Merin Oleschuk has published an article in Gender and Society, entitled “Gender, Cultural Schemas and Learning to Cook.” The article looks to the experience of learning to cook to understand persistent gender inequalities in family cooking. Merin Oleschuk’s research and teaching areas involve the sociology of food; consumption and consumer culture; sociology of health; sociology … Read More

Ph.D. Candidate Patricia Louie has published an article in the Journal of Society and Mental Health, entitled “Revisiting the Cost of Skin Color: Discrimination, Mastery, and Mental Health among Black Adolescents.” This study aims to investigate whether there are significant associations between skin tone and depression in a population of black adolescents. In particular, Louie … Read More

Ph.D. Candidate Amanda Couture-Carron, in collaboration with Professor Nawal Ammar, Professor Shahid Alvi and Jaclyn San Antonio published an article in Violence Against Women, entitled “Experiences of Muslim and Non-Muslim battered immigrant women with the police in the United States: A closer understanding of commonalities and differences.” The article aims to fill the gap in knowledge concerning … Read More

Ph.D. Candidate James Braun published an article in Nations and Nationalism entitled “The strange case of ‘John Black’ and ‘Mr Hyde’: constructing migrating Jamaicans as (un)worthy nationals.”  The article uses content analysis to understand the moral constructions within Jamaica of diasporic Jamaicans. We have posted the citation and the abstract of the article below. Braun, … Read More

PhD Graduate Maria Majerski has published an article in The Sociological Quarterly that examines the earning of immigrant and native-born men in Canada. The article demonstrates that while immigrants have higher levels of education, they still earn less than native-born Canadians due to the effects of human capital and visible minority status. Maria Majerski has successfully … Read More

Ph.D. Candidates Gabriel Menard and Melissa Godbout, in collaboration with Professor Robert Brym, and PhD graduates Andreas Hoffbauer, and Tony Huiquan Zhang, have published an article in The British Journal of Sociology, entitled “Social media in the 2011 Egyptian uprising.” The article examines the role of new electronic communications media in the 2011 Egyptian uprising. … Read More