sociology

New & Noteworthy

• In Talk and Trust About Climate Change, Nicole Bekesz covers new research investigating who people trust to tell them the truth about climate change, and what makes them seem trustworthy. {2 min read}
• Check out our Media Report by Jan-Rose Davis for recent news featuring social science experts. Last week, Iman Sediqe on intersections between cooking and sociology, Katie E. Corcoran and Christopher P. Scheitle on Americans’ habits of attending multiple religious congregations, Seung-yeon Lee on therapy culture, and Heather Hensman Kettrey on students’ distrust of universities to appropriately handle sexual misconduct. {3 min read}

From the Archives

• The U.S. Supreme Court eviscerated the Voting Rights Act in a ruling last Wednesday, reversing protections against racial discrimination in redistricting. This 2020 piece from Neeraj Rajasekar synthesizes research on gerrymandering, voter disenfranchisement, and the role of voting in U.S. democracy. {7 min read}
• Last week, Israel intercepted the Global Sumud Flotilla in international waters more than 600 miles from the flotilla’s destination in Gaza, where they sought to bring aid. Over 175 civilian activists from around the world were detained, which leaders of multiple countries have criticized as illegal. To help make sense of how international crimes are understood and arbitrated, check out this roundtable discussion from 2013 explaining the international criminal justice system. {19 min read}

More from our Partners & Community Pages

Council on Contemporary Families

• A new study by Yiang Li, Jason Wong, and Linda Waite shows how the conditions people experience in childhood don’t only shape themselves in adulthood, but impact their partners and wider relationships as well. {5 min read}

Backstage with TSP

• After a grueling start to the year here in the Twin Cities, the spring 2026 academic semester is coming to a close. While the TSP board will be posting less frequently over the summer to accommodate the break and changing schedules, stay tuned for more content covering the latest social science research, as well as a special TSP series processing the ICE surge in Minnesota.

New & Noteworthy

• A new Discoveries article highlights research on how renters navigate the risks of poor housing conditions and forced moves. Tenants often face a tough choice: stay and deal with needed repairs or risk instability by relocating. Learn more in The Risks of Relocation and Repair for Renters by Luna Iman. {2 min read}

From the Archives

• Despite declining participation in organized religion, mainstream media is seeing a rise in religion-based films and shows, like Amazon’s “The Chosen” and Fox’s “The Faithful: Women of the Bible.” This 2011 TSP article by Kyle Green – Godless TV – suggests that there has been a dramatic shift in media production of religion in the last 15 years. {4 min read} And this 2014 piece by Evan Stewart – Christian Cinema? – highlights the controversy surrounding religious media in the market concerning navigating complex social and religious identities. {2 min read}
• Last Thursday the Trump administration signed an order to reclassify licensed medical marijuana as a less regulated Schedule III rather than a more highly regulated Schedule I drug, a designation typically reserved for drugs with limited medical use and high potential for abuse. Check out this 2018 TSP article for A Sociological Look at Marijuana and its Users. {3 min read}

More from our Partners & Community Pages

Council on Contemporary Families

• What are the expectations for family members to care for older adults with chronic health conditions? A new piece by Samantha M. Pantelic, Kelsi Caywood, and Sarah E. Patterson shows the complicated dynamics behind caregiver relationships. Read more in “Families Are Messy, Aren’t They?” {3 min read}

First Publics

• A new essay by Brianna Stefano reflects on teaching victimology in classrooms where students may have lived experience with trauma, emphasizing care and flexibility in pedagogy. {5 min read}
• First Publics interviewed Sarah Lageson, Associate Professor of Technology and Social Power at Northeastern University. They discussed the intersection of sociology and law, public sociology and pedagogy. {6 min read}

New & Noteworthy

• A new study from PhD candidate Aven Peters shows that people who have physical disabilities are significantly more likely to identify as transgender. Find out more in Disabling the Gender Binary, written by Anastasia Dulle. {2 min read}
• Check out our Media Report by Jan-Rose Davis for recent news featuring social science experts. Last week, Elena Moore on the invisible burden of care work, Abdelilah Farah on Gen Z’s protest culture in Morocco, and Adam Coutts on the importance of community resilience. {2 min read}

From the Archives

• During the past two weeks, headlines and social media feeds buzzed with excitement about the Artemis II mission around the moon. Check out this 2015 Contexts article by Janet Vertesi to read about the sociology behind our interactions and fascination with science, technology, and outer space. {7 min read}
• Tomorrow is Tax Day in the United States. Last year, CCF interviewed Ruth Braunstein about her 2025 book My Tax Dollars: The Morality of Taxpaying in America, which covers research showing how paying taxes is a moral issue for a diverse array of Americans. {9 min read}

More from our Partners & Community Pages

Council on Contemporary Families

• CCF reprinted a report from Liana Christin Landivar and Pilar Gonalons-Pons analyzing how childcare centers closing during COVID-19 impacted care providers and parents. {5 min read}

Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies

• Henning Schroeder wrote a reflection for the Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies on 1970s media discourses in post-war West Germany. {5 min read}

New & Noteworthy

• A new study reveals how subtle word choices in state abortion laws reinforce gender hierarchy. Read more about the project from Luna J. Slater, Brooke A. de Heer, and Emily M. Schneider in Gender, Power, and the Stories Abortion Laws Tell by guest author Dylan DiGiacomo-Stumm. {4 min read}

From the Archives

• The Supreme Court heard oral arguments this week in Trump v. Barbara – a case examining the Trump administration’s efforts to end birthright citizenship. This 2020 piece from Contexts describes the “invisible knapsack of citizenship privilege that U.S. (born) citizens carry with them as they navigate their lives.” {4 min read}
• President Trump wrote on social media, “a whole civilization will die tonight” if the Iranian government does not agree to reopen a key economic waterway by this evening. A top U.N. official said targeting civilian infrastructure would amount to a war crime. In this 2020 article from our partners at The Center for Holocaust & Genocide Studies, Kurt Borchard reckons with U.S. atrocities at the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. {6 min read}

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First Publics

• First Publics held a webinar on teaching sociological research methods for/as public engagement in February. Attendees, led by panelists Arturo Baiocchi and Piper Sledge, discussed the role of sociological methods in community-engaged work, how storytelling can enhance sociological research, and more. The conversation was summarized for a post this week. {7 min read}

Center for Holocaust & Genocide Studies

• The Trump Administration is removing educational signs at U.S. National Parks, primarily targeting content relating to slavery, Indigenous people, and climate change. Interim Director of CHGS Joe Eggers spoke to Jenny McBurney about Save Our Signs, a project housed at the University of Minnesota which aims to preserve signs through photography and document their removal. {8 min read}

New & Noteworthy

• Do you find it hard to tell your family when you’re struggling, but easy to unpack your problems with a stranger on a plane? In The Weakness of Strong Ties, Tianhe Chen covers new research showing that people very commonly avoid talking to their closest friends and family when facing personal issues. {2 min read}
• Check out our Media Report by Jan-Rose Davis for recent news featuring social science experts. Last week, Sean M. Theriault on the legacy of Pope Francis, Danielle J. Lindemann on how reality TV changes your behavior, Zachary Levenson on the state censorship of sociology in Florida, and Megan Thiele Strong on how misinformation impacts sociologists in the age of Trump. {2 min read}

From the Archives

• Millions of people attended “No Kings” protests across the U.S. this past weekend. This 2017 article by Neeraj Rajasekar provides insights from social scientists on what makes protests successful. {2 min read}
• There’s a connection between the growing heat of March Madness and the growing discontent with President Trump’s immigration enforcement policies. Learn more in this 2017 Engaging Sports piece by Ryan Turcott, which explains the increasing internationalization of college basketball – a dynamic that has become more complicated with changes in transfer rules and NIL payments for student athletes. {5 min read}

More from our Partners & Community Pages

Council on Contemporary Families

• CCF reprinted a report from the Texas Population Research Center showing the demand for pill packs for self-managed abortions increased significantly after the Dobbs v. Jackson decision. {5 min read}

New & Noteworthy

• How Black Women Navigate Interracial Relationships by Jan-Rose Davis covers a new interview study by Vanessa Gonlin, Chelsey D. Adams, and Elaysha K. Brown. Black women in interracial relationships were often confronted with social tensions rooted in a history of slavery, including accusations of internalized racism from other Black people. {3 min read}

From the Archives

• Spring has sprung! As we move into the warmer season, revisit this 2016 TROT for research on the sociology of spring cleaning. {3 min read}
• This past weekend, the Islamic holiday Eid converged with Nowruz, the start of the Persian New Year. Next week, the Jewish holiday Passover will converge with Christian celebrations of Holy Week and Easter. This Discovery from 2016 discusses how social media facilitates exposure to religious diversity, which can in turn impact people’s own religious practices. {3 min read}

More from our Partners & Community Pages

Council on Contemporary Families

• Does getting your hair done feel like therapy? CCF’s Alicia M. Walker interviewed Hannah McCann about her new book, Emotions, Bodies, and Identities in the Hair and Beauty Salon: Caring Beyond Skin Deep. {6 min read}
• CCF reprinted a 2023 briefing from Daniel Carlson on how worries about COVID-19 transmission affected mother’s participation in the workforce. It warned that the pandemic could have long-lasting effects on gender equality. {5 min read}

New & Noteworthy

• Why do people think some voices “sound gay”? There’s research on that! In What Sociolinguistics Tells Us About the “Gay Voice”, guest author Engin Yolcu unpacks how “sounding” straight or gay is rooted in masculine speech norms. {3 min read}
• Check out our Media Report by Jan-Rose Davis for recent news featuring social science experts. Last week, Angela Simms on racialized wealth disparities in the middle class, Leah Binkovitz on train safety, Rena Zito on misconceptions about Tourette syndrome, and Daniel Perez G. on fragile romantic relationships. {2 min read}

From the Archives

• A new bill passed in Kansas invalidates all driver’s licenses and birth certificates that list a gender identification other than people’s assigned sex at birth. The bill gives no grace period and forces residents to pay for updated documents out of pocket. Check out this 2018 TROT by Allison Nobles for research showing how gender and sex binaries are socially constructed and politically contested. {3 min read}
• With bipartisan support, Congress just approved $9.4 billion in spending on global health. However, instead of operating through USAID and linking with global NGOs, the proposed funding is planned to be spent in deals made directly with partnering countries’ governments. Revisit this 2012 article from Kendra Dupuy, James Ron, and Aseem Prakash for context on the complexity of NGOs and foreign aid. {9 min read}

More from our Partners & Community Pages

Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies

• This week, Joe Eggers interviewed Jenny McBurney on the Save Our Signs project, which seeks to preserve historical signs, plaques, and monuments at national parks amid federal censorship and revision. {7 min read}

Council on Contemporary Families

• CCF reprinted a briefing paper by Wen Fan and Richard J. Petts on the ways remote work both enhanced and hindered gender equality during the COVID-19 pandemic. {6 min read}

First Publics

• Bailey A. Brown reflected on her experiences using a variety of classroom activities to teach about education policy. {3 min read}

Backstage with TSP

• Jan-Rose Davis is stepping in to take the lead of the Media Report! With her at the helm, we’ll continue to bring you weekly highlights of sociology and sociologists in the news.

New & Noteworthy

• This past weekend saw the closing of a politically fraught Winter Olympic Games. TSP co-publisher Doug Hartmann penned a special feature on where politics and patriotism collided. {5 min read}
• How does your paycheck affect your parenting? When economic uncertainty arises, new research suggests that high- and low-income parents might adjust their parenting styles in contrasting ways. Read more in Parenting Under Financial Pressure by Tatum Anderson. {3 min read}
• Check out our Media Report by Mallory Harrington for recent news featuring social science experts. This week, Leana Cabral on the persistence of anti-Black attitudes in schools; Michael Light on how citizenship status impacts criminal sentences; Celina McEwen, Alison Pullen, and Carl Rhodes on why DEI programs are failing; and a new book from political science and religion scholar Ryan Burge. {3 min read}

From the Archives

• A coalition of organizations sued the U.S. Department of the Interior following a Presidential executive order that removed an LGBTQ Pride flag from the Stonewall National Monument in New York City and an exhibit about slavery at a national historical park in Philadelphia. Check out this 2016 TROT by Erik Kojola and Jacqui Frost, which contextualizes the importance of telling marginalized stories in the parks which have been shaped by unequal access, racial and cultural norms, and a colonial legacy. {3 min read}
• In the UK, King Charles’s brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office following recent news about his affiliation with Jeffrey Epstein. This is the first time a member of the UK royal family has been arrested since the 1600s. This 2019 TROT from Neeraj Rajasekar covers sociological research on the role of media and status in creating scandals. {3 min read}

More from our Partners & Community Pages

Council on Contemporary Families

• CCF reprinted a Psychology Today article on COVID-19’s gendered impacts on household labor, written by former editor of Gender and Society Barbara J. Risman. {6 min read}

New & Noteworthy

• Murder at Home, Police Violence at Work by Sara Kadoura details a new study that reveals how homicide in white police officers’ neighborhoods impacts their use of force on the job. {2 min read}
• Market Transition and Materialism in China by Tianhe Chen covers new research showing how economic reform reshaped Chinese cultural values. {2 min read}
• In An Update from TSP in the Twin Cities, TSP’s editors give some initial reflections and updates regarding ICE presence in Minnesota. {3 min read}
• Check out our Media Report by Mallory Harrington for recent news featuring social science experts. Last week, Nicole Bedera on how ICE Watch can de-escalate violence; Matthew Marr on a Florida state-required sociology textbook; Cynthia Miller-Idriss on violence and masculinity; and Tressie McMillan Cottom on how to fight political exhaustion. {2 min read}

More from our Partners & Community Pages

Council on Contemporary Families

• Alicia M. Walker talked to Nina Bandelj about her new book, Overinvested: The Emotional Economy of Modern Parenting for CCF’s “3Qs” series. {7 min read}
• Also for CCF’s “3Qs” series, Alicia M. Walker talked to Fatima Suarez about her new book, Latino Fathers: What Shapes and Sustains Their Parenting. {7 min read}
• In January, CCF reprinted research by Raquel Delerme on the costs of mothers’ care work for their incarcerated adult children. The study was published last year in Gender & Society. {4 min read}
• At the beginning of the year, a CCF brief by Jean Choi, Sae Hwang Han, Yee To Ng, and Elizabeth Muñoz detailed their findings on how neighborhood cohesion shapes cognitive health. Their study was previously published in The Journals of Gerontology. {5 min read}

First Publics

• This week, First Publics reposted a piece from Victor Ray that contextualizes ICE’s occupation of Minnesota. {7 min read}
• In Teaching Methods in Times of Crisis, the First Publics board recounted takeaways from a webinar with sociologists Steve McKay, Patricia Richards, and Naomi Sugie. The professors answered questions about how, and why, to teach research methods in abnormal times. {8 min read}

Give Theory a Chance [podcast]

• In this episode, Chris Conner joins host Kyle Green to discuss Conner’s research on the electronic music scene and gay dating apps. {43 min listen}

Backstage with TSP

• TSP is easing back into regularly scheduled programming while our board continues to manage stressors related to federal presence in the Twin Cities. Thank you for bearing with us as we navigate new developments.
• Anastasia Dulle is our newly minted Graduate Editor. She joins Doug and Chris leading TSP operations.
• The alliteration is back! The “TSP Friday Roundup” is rebranding as “TSP Tuesdays” to accommodate board members’ schedules this semester.
• Anastasia will work with board member Sara Kadoura to bring you the latest from TSP and our partners every week.

New & Noteworthy

• In Violence and Detained Immigrants’ Access to Justice, Anastasia Dulle presents new research from Mirian G. Martinez-Aranda detailing the unique barriers to justice faced by detained immigrants marked for deportation in America. {3 min read}
• Check out our Media Report by Mallory Harrington for recent news featuring social science experts. This week, Francesco Duina on why we tolerate inequality; Stephen Whitehead on a masculinity non-crisis; Bailey Brown on parental stress caused by school choice decisions; Willy Pedersen on the link between alcohol consumption and earning potential; and Victor Onyilor Achem on the violent consequences of a cattle-grazing ban in Nigeria’s Middle Belt. {4 min read}

From the Archives

• Trump has signed a bill to release the Epstein files after months of controversy and legal fighting. Our article from 2019 looks at how laws and legal proceedings shape cultural understanding of what constitutes sexual assault or harassment. {3 min read}
• Wicked: For Good hits theatres today. Stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande are on a press tour to publicize the sequel to last year’s blockbuster Wicked. This 2015 piece from our partners at Sociological Images discusses how big publicity might inflate the movie’s long-term success in theatres. {5 min read}

More from our Partners & Community Pages

Contexts

• Contexts published an essay by Laurel R. Davis-Delano and Stephanie A. Fryberg responding to the publication’s summer 2025 cover design. The authors write that the cover image – a tipi – and accompanying title – “Erasures and Defiance” – contribute to the “elimination, erasure, and dehumanization” of Native Americans. Contexts has issued an apology for the cover. {9 min read} 

Council on Contemporary Families

• Alicia M. Walker talked to Christina J. Cross about her new book, Inherited Inequality: Why Opportunity Gaps Persist between Black and White Youth Raised in Two-Parent Families for CCF’s “3Qs” series. {5 min read}