Education:

• Pennsylvania State, Ph.D. in Sociology
• Oakland University, B.A. in Sociology

Rank:

• Assistant Professor of Sociology

Tenure at JSU:

• Began in 2012

Curriculum Vitae for Dr. Simon

Dr. Simon earned his BA in sociology at Oakland (Oakland County, Michigan) University, and received his Ph.D in sociology from Pennsylvania State University in 2011. Previously he taught sociology at Rice.

Dr. Simon's research consists primarily of two programs. The first examines the ways gender roles shape attitudes toward science and technology. This research program largely consists of using secondary data sources, such as the Eurobarometer and the National Survey of Fertility Barriers, to generate a theory of why men and women evaluate science and technology in such different ways. The other program Dr. Simon's is currently involved with is his dissertation and related topics. The dissertation focuses primarily on the social organization of scientific research, institutions relevant to science, and their influence on knowledge production. The goal of this research has been to develop a theory of stratification in the success of different scientific research topics. Dr. Simon is also interested in political institutions, social movements, and social conflict.

Recent Publications

Katherine M. Johnson and Richard M. Simon. 2012. “Women’s Attitudes toward Biomedical Technology for Infertility: The Case for Technological Salience.” Gender & Society 26(2): 216-238.

Richard M. Simon. 2012. “Gender, Knowledge, Scientific Expertise, and Attitudes toward Biotechnology: Technological Salience and the Use of Knowledge to Generate Attitudes.” Pp. 399-414 in Innovations in Biotechnology, edited by Eddy C. Agbo. Rijeka, Croatia: InTech.

Richard M. Simon. 2011. “Habitus and Utopia in Science: Bourdieu, Mannheim, and the Role of Specialties in the Scientific Field.” Studies in Sociology of Science 2(1): 22-36.

Courses Taught

• Introduction to Sociology
• Social Problems
• Stratification and Inequality
• Social Statistics
• Sociology of Science
• Gender
• Social Movements
• Marriage and Family