I am a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Sociology at Rice University. I am also a Research Affiliate at the Center on Aging and Population Sciences (CAPS-TXan). My current research, "Stress, Partnership, and Cognition in Aging Sexual Minority Adults," is supported by a pilot grant from the National Institute on Aging (NIA).

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My research agenda is motivated by the central question of how social stratification and inequality shape family dynamics and health outcomes across the life course. The first thread of my research investigates whether and how marriage and family matter for health. I examine this question by focusing on same-sex unions and sexual minority families as this approach offers a unique opportunity to disentangle whether the health impacts of marriage and family reflect the social privileges conferred on certain family forms or the gendered family dynamics that vary for same- and different-sex couples (e.g., housework division; power balance; spousal support; care work). The second thread of my research focuses on social determinants of well-being. Specifically, I study how disadvantaged social statuses get under the skin to produce inequalities in a variety of outcomes over the life course.

 

My work has appeared in The Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, Archives of Sexual Behavior, Journal of Family Studies, BMC Public Health, Asian Population Studies, and other outlets. I also managed Demography as an editorial assistant for three years (2019-2022).