Before
arriving at Indiana University, I spent several years as a community journalist
in the foothills of the Appalachians. As a reporter, one issue among many that I
covered was the transformation of community mental health center model of
treatment in North Carolina. This led directly to a research interest in the
organization of care and the social integration of individuals living with
severe mental illness.
I completed my master's in sociology at IUB in 2006, which focused on the social
networks and changing community housing situation of previously hospitalized
individuals. While my interest in community living and housing continues, I have
more recently turned my attention to the changing institutional logics of mental
health services for individuals living with severe mental illness in the United
States. I have a particular interest in one emerging concept and practice:
recovery-based services.
My other interests include the medicalization of behavioral and social problems,
social networks theory and methodology, and public sociology.
