Amir Marvasti is Associate Professor of Sociology at Penn State Altoona. His areas of specialization include deviance, social psychology, race and ethnicity, and qualitative methods. He received his PhD from the University of Florida in 1999.

Amir’s research focuses on how deviant identities are socially constructed and managed in everyday encounters, in institutional settings, and in written texts. His work in this area explores how social power and dominant discourses influence who we are, how we think of ourselves, and how we are perceived by others. Using a constructionist framework, he conceptualizes power and identity as interrelated social processes that can be documented in talk and everyday interactions.

Additionally, Amir has an active publication record on the pedagogy of qualitative research. His books in this area provide broad overviews of qualitative methodology from data collection, to analysis, to writing a research manuscript. Through these publications, Amir has developed his particular understanding of qualitative research as a methodology that is uniquely suited for the study of lived experience.

Select Publications:

-“Constructing the Service-Worthy Homeless through Narrative Editing.� 2002. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography. 31 (4): 615-651.

-Qualitative Research in Sociology. 2004. Sage.

-Middle Eastern Lives in America (with Karyn McKinney). 2004. Rowman and Littlefield.

-“Being Middle Eastern American: Identity Negotiation in the Context of the War on Terror.� 2005. Symbolic Interaction 28(4): 525-548.

-Doing Qualitative Research: A Comprehensive Guide (with David Silverman). 2008. Sage.

-“Does Diversity Mean Assimilation?� (with K.D. McKinney), 2011. Critical Sociology 37(5): 631-650.

-The Handbook of Research Interview: The Complexity of the Craft, 2nd edition (with Jay Gubrium, James Holstein, and Karyn McKinney). 2012. Sage.

Karyn D. McKinney, Associate Professor of Sociology, holds a BS in Political Science from the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga, a Master's degree in Sociology from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and a PhD in Sociology from the University of Florida. Her research has focused on the role of race and racism in identity and experience. Her publications include "Being White: Stories of Race and Racism" (Routledge, 2005), "Middle Eastern Lives in America" (with Amir Marvasti, Rowman and Littlefield, 2004) and "The Many Costs of Racism" (with Joe Feagin, Rowman and Littlefield, 2003). In addition, she has published articles in journals such as "The Indiana Law Review" (2001), "Race and Society" (2004) and "Social Identities" (2006). Chapters by McKinney have appeared in "White Out" (Routledge, 2003, with Joe Feagin), and "Race in the College Classroom" (Rutgers University Press, 2002). McKinney's current research explores the meanings of masculinity for men of various racial and ethnic groups. Dr. McKinney teaches courses focused on social inequalities in race, class and gender, giving attention to the intersectionality of these statuses in individual lives.

Nicholas Rowland got his Ph.D. from Indiana University in Bloomington, IN, Department of Sociology in the Sociology of Technology with a minor study in Cultural Studies. He joined the faculty of Penn State Altoona in Fall 2007 as an Assistant Professor of Sociology. He teaches 9 or more contact hours per semester and conducts research year-round. His teaching responsibilities include: SOC 001 (Introductory Sociology), SOC 005 (Social Problems), SOC 424 (Social Change), and STS 200 (Contemporary Topics in Science, Technology, and Society). Each spring he also team teaches a core course in Environmental Studies (ENVST 200) and has recently contributed to an innovative new course on preparing interns for internships (INTSP 370). In addition, Dr. Rowland routinely offers independent study credit (SOC 296 or SOC 496) to students serving as research or teaching assistants or those interested in conducting their own research projects.

Dr. Rowland contributes to the Penn State Altoona community in a number of ways: his student-centered courses advance one of the college’s most popular minor studies, the sociology minor; for the past two years Dr. Rowland has participated in interdisciplinary teaching with colleagues in Environmental Studies; he oversees a growing handful of interns in collaboration with Tom Shaffer; he works closely with undergraduates outside of the classroom, presenting with them at conferences, aiding them in preparation for the Penn State Altoona Undergraduate Research Fair, editing and writing professional manuscripts with them, and conducting research with them; he continues to prepare manuscripts for publication and has remained active with regard to the regular delivery of conference presentations; and, over the last two years, Dr. Rowland’s service to the college and broader university has been enhanced. Above all, he sees himself as a “teacher-scholar” and shares the view that teaching, research, and service, when carefully coupled, are synergistic endeavors.