Gayle Kaufman Chair & Nancy and Erwin Maddrey Professor of Sociology

I teach courses on gender, family, sport, statistics and research methods. My classes challenge normative conceptions of gender and examine the role of institutions in shaping these norms. I like to center students’ voices in the classroom and particularly enjoy engaging students in research projects.   

My research examines aspects of modern marriage, parenting and family. My first book, Superdads: How Fathers Balance Work and Family in the 21st Century, focuses on fathers who adjust their work lives to suit their families. My second book, Fixing Parental Leave, offers policy lessons from Sweden and the UK. I have been a Fulbright Scholar at the  University of Leicester (UK) as well as a visiting scholar at the University of Cambridge and Umeå University (Sweden).

Courses

I am teaching the following courses in 2020-2021:

• SOC 201: Social Statistics (Spring)
• SOC 217: Sociology of Gender & Sexuality (Fall)
• SOC 246: Modern Families (Fall)
• SOC 310: Gender, Race, & Sports (Spring)

Thesis Advising

• Acton, Lillian ’20 – Let’s talk about sex: An evaluation of Davidson College’s first-year sex education programs
• Bair, Molly ‘19 – Motherhood identities: Choice and agency for employed and stay-at-home mothers
• Cabrera McDonald, Jaela ’18 – The “open secret”: An exploration of the racialized and gendered experiences of black women healthcare professionals in the workplace
• Holmes, Shelby ’20 – Red pill women: Women in the men’s rights movement
• Luong, Khanh ‘18 – Understanding abortion in Vietnam: Attitudes and behaviors regarding abortion among women and health care providers in Ho Chi Minh City
• Mayer, Sarah ’20 – Yo’ mama’s so fat! An analysis of fat motherhood under neoliberalism
• Olvera, José ’19 – Race and gender dynamics in the online gaming community
• Reliford, Margaret ’20 – The process of commodification: Housing affordability in Davidson
• Samuels, Ryan ‘18 – Race and gender impact on commentary over black athletes