KIMBERLY McERLEAN

About me

I am currently a postdoctoral researcher at the European University Institute. I am working on ERC Grant "WeEqualize: Social Inequalities in Work-Family Strategies Within and Across 24 Industrialized Countries," with PI Léa Pessin. I received my PhD in Sociology with a specialization in Demography from the University of Texas at Austin in 2024.

My research interests lie at the intersection of marriage and families, social class, gender, and public policy. My work explores the drivers of social class disparities in marriage and divorce rates to understand the structural factors shaping these family outcomes. In particular, I emphasize the role of gendered household and labor market dynamics in shaping family formation, dissolution, and other related outcomes.

My research has been published in the Journal of Marriage and Family, Demography, Demographic Research, and the Journal of Family and Economic Issues, as well as shared at the annual meetings of the Population Association of America, American Sociological Association, and the Southern Demographic Association.

I have experience teaching Social Statistics and Family Sociology at an undergraduate level, where I leverage anti-oppressive pedagogical practices and emphasize active approaches to learning.