Research Foci

Northeastern’s Sociology and Anthropology Department provides students with the research skills and critical perspectives needed to understand the complex causes of the most pressing challenges of our time and develop appropriate solutions to address them. Some of these challenges include climate change, health disparities, racism and racial injustice, and income inequality and precarity.

The department’s faculty research is loosely organized into eleven research foci:

Gender, Sexuality, and Intersectionality

Linda Blum, Professor of Sociology

Layla Brown, Assistant Professor of Cultural Anthropology & Africana Studies

Anjanette Chan Tack, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Public Policy

Tiffany Joseph, Associate Professor of Sociology and International Affairs; Graduate Program Director, Sociology

Valentine M. Moghadam, Professor of Sociology and International Affairs

Eileen Otis, Associate Professor of Sociology

Sarah Riccardi-Swartz, Assistant Professor of Religion and Anthropology

Nina Sylvanus, Associate Professor of Anthropology

Berna Turam, Professor of Sociology and International Affairs

Suzanna Danuta Walters, Professor of Sociology; Professor and Director of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

Political Change and Social Movements

Layla Brown, Assistant Professor of Cultural Anthropology & Africana Studies

Phil Brown, University Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Health Sciences; Director, Social Science Environmental Health Research Institute

Silvia Dominguez, Associate Professor of Sociology

Daniel Faber, Professor of Sociology; Director of the Northeastern Environmental Justice Research Collaborative

Carie Hersh, Associate Teaching Professor in Anthropology

Matthew Hunt, Professor of Sociology

Tiffany Joseph, Associate Professor of Sociology and International Affairs; Graduate Program Director, Sociology

Doreen Lee, Associate Professor of Anthropology

Valentine M. Moghadam, Professor of Sociology and International Affairs

Gordana Rabrenovic, Associate Professor of Sociology; Director of the Brudnick Center on Violence and Conflict

Sarah Riccardi-Swartz, Assistant Professor of Religion and Anthropology

Liza Weinstein, Department Chair; Associate Professor of Sociology

Work, Labor, and Economic Insecurity

Matthew Hunt, Professor of Sociology

Doreen Lee, Associate Professor of Anthropology

Eileen Otis, Associate Professor of Sociology

H.C. Robinson, Associate Professor of Law and Sociology

Nina Sylvanus, Associate Professor of Anthropology

Global Economy and Culture

Layla Brown, Assistant Professor of Cultural Anthropology & Africana Studies

Silvia Dominguez, Associate Professor of Sociology

Daniel Faber, Professor of Sociology; Director of the Northeastern Environmental Justice Research Collaborative

Doreen Lee, Associate Professor of Anthropology

Ineke Marshall, Professor of Sociology and Criminology and Criminal Justice

Valentine M. Moghadam, Professor of Sociology and International Affairs

Eileen Otis, Associate Professor of Sociology

Nina Sylvanus, Associate Professor of Anthropology

Berna Turam, Professor of Sociology and International Affairs

Liza Weinstein, Department Chair; Associate Professor of Sociology

Violence, Conflict, and Security

Silvia Dominguez, Associate Professor of Sociology

Ineke Marshall, Professor of Sociology and Criminology and Criminal Justice

Ramiro Martinez, Professor of Sociology and Criminology and Criminal Justice

Cassie McMillan, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Criminology and Criminal Justice

Gordana Rabrenovic, Associate Professor of Sociology; Director of the Brudnick Center on Violence and Conflict

Berna Turam, Professor of Sociology and International Affairs

Cities and Urbanization

Anjanette Chan Tack, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Public Policy

Silvia Dominguez, Associate Professor of Sociology

Daniel Faber, Professor of Sociology; Director of the Northeastern Environmental Justice Research Collaborative

Doreen Lee, Associate Professor of Anthropology

Alisa Lincoln, Associate Dean of Research; Director, Institute for Health Equity and Social Justice Research; Professor of Health Sciences and Sociology

Gordana Rabrenovic, Associate Professor of Sociology; Director of the Brudnick Center on Violence and Conflict

Berna Turam, Professor of Sociology and International Affairs

Liza Weinstein, Department Chair; Associate Professor of Sociology

Health and Health Equity

Linda Blum, Professor of Sociology

Phil Brown, University Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Health Sciences; Director, Social Science Environmental Health Research Institute

Danielle Crookes, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Health Sciences

Silvia Dominguez, Associate Professor of Sociology

Sharon Harlan, Professor of Health Sciences and Sociology

Carie Hersh, Associate Teaching Professor in Anthropology

Tiffany Joseph, Associate Professor of Sociology and International Affairs; Graduate Program Director, Sociology

Alisa Lincoln, Associate Dean of Research; Director, Institute for Health Equity and Social Justice Research; Professor of Health Sciences and Sociology

Cassie McMillan, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Criminology and Criminal Justice

Laura Senier, Associate Professor of Sociology and Health Sciences; Undergraduate Program Director, Sociology and Anthropology

Sara Wylie, Associate Professor Sociology and Health Science

Environment and Environmental Justice

Phil Brown, University Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Health Sciences; Director, Social Science Environmental Health Research Institute

Daniel Faber, Professor of Sociology; Director of the Northeastern Environmental Justice Research Collaborative

Sharon Harlan, Professor of Health Sciences and Sociology

Laura Senier, Associate Professor of Sociology and Health Sciences; Undergraduate Program Director, Sociology and Anthropology

Sara Wylie, Associate Professor Sociology and Health Science

Racial Identity, Racism, and Anti-Racism

Layla Brown, Assistant Professor of Cultural Anthropology & Africana Studies

Anjanette Chan Tack, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Public Policy

Danielle Crookes, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Health Sciences

Silvia Dominguez, Associate Professor of Sociology

Daniel Faber, Professor of Sociology; Director of the Northeastern Environmental Justice Research Collaborative

Matthew Hunt, Professor of Sociology

Tiffany Joseph, Associate Professor of Sociology and International Affairs; Graduate Program Director, Sociology

Isabel Martinez, Associate Professor and Director of Latinx, Latin American and Caribbean Studies

Ramiro Martinez, Professor of Sociology and Criminology and Criminal Justice

Gordana Rabrenovic, Associate Professor of Sociology; Director of the Brudnick Center on Violence and Conflict

Sarah Riccardi-Swartz, Assistant Professor of Religion and Anthropology

Suzanna Danuta Walters, Professor of Sociology; Professor and Director of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

Migration and Immigrant Communities