Social Studies
MN
Experts
Profiles of scholars within CLA.
How Climate Change Is Influencing Birth Weight in Africa
In the United States, we know everything about our domestic agriculture thanks to the USDA and agricultural monitoring. But not all countries have the luxury of these programs, which is a challenge for Assistant Professor Kathryn Grace, who studies how varying climates impact poor women and families in Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso, Africa. She…
Same-Sex, Different Attitudes
In a now-classic white paper, sociologist Kathy Hull asks how and why American public opinion about marriage equality evolved so quickly: “It’s not a case of older people with more conservative beliefs dying out and being replaced by younger, more liberal generations. Rather, this kind of rapid shift suggests some individuals are changing their minds on the issue.”
Thinking about Trayvon: Privileged Response and Media Discourse
A classic roundtable discussion from The Society Pages features U of M professors Zenzele Isoke and Enid Logan. Isoke issues a damning critique of media constructions of balance: “When the media panders to both sides or both ‘storylines’ … it makes a mockery of the political community. The media operates on the fiction that both sides are ‘equally valid,’ when clearly they are not.”
To Want the Tough Conversations
Richard Lee studies how parents and children in racially mixed families talk about race and racism.
One Thing I Know: Redefining Retirement
Life course scholar Phyllis Moen’s classic 2010 piece on why retirement is no longer a moment, but a project.
To Ensure Governments Uphold Justice and Human Dignity
Director of the U of M’s Human Rights Program, Barbara Frey discusses what drives her research.
Time for a Fresh Look at Pension Design
In a Heller-Hurwicz Economics Institute policy brief, economists Kurt Winkelmann and Jahiz Barlas write that policymakers should be concerned about the ability of many of the world’s pension systems to deliver on their promises. It is time, they believe, to build a new foundation for pension systems using the tools of quantitative economic analysis with aggregate welfare as the evaluation yardstick.
About Social Studies MN
Social Studies MN is a partnership between the University of Minnesota’s College of Liberal Arts and The Society Pages. We highlight cutting edge research, teaching, and community engagement within CLA, and we hope to showcase such material to viewers like you.
