Papers by Christin Munsch
Nature Human Behaviour, Apr 17, 2023
Academics and companies increasingly draw on large datasets to understand the social world, and n... more Academics and companies increasingly draw on large datasets to understand the social world, and name-based demographic ascription tools are widespread for imputing information like gender and race that are often missing from these large datasets. These approaches have drawn criticism on ethical, empirical, and theoretical grounds. Employing a survey of all authors listed on articles in sociology, economics, and communications journals in the Web of Science between 2015 and 2020, we compared self-identified demographics with name-based imputations of gender and race/ethnicity for 19,924 scholars across four gender ascription tools and four race/ethnicity ascription tools. We find substantial inequalities in how these tools misgender and misrecognize the race/ethnicity of authors, distributing erroneous ascriptions unevenly among other demographic traits. Because of the empirical and ethical consequences of these errors, scholars need to be cautious with the use of demographic imputation. We recommend five principles for the responsible use of name-based demographic inference.
While data on PhDs, employment, and professional membership abound, data regarding who authors so... more While data on PhDs, employment, and professional membership abound, data regarding who authors social science research is both rare and flawed. We present results from original demographic survey data of nearly 20,000 authors who published in sociology, economics, or communication from 2016 through 2020. We find a considerable gap between measures of disciplinary membership and disciplinary knowledge production. For example, only 46% of authors who published in sociology journals named sociology as their primary discipline. Additionally, although most sociology PhDs and faculty are women, the majority of people authoring sociology research are men. Similarly, sociology authors are more likely to be white and less likely to be Black or Asian compared to other measures of disciplinary membership. Thus, we conclude authorship is a distinct phenomenon from other measures of disciplinary membership. In addition, we provide the first descriptive statistics regarding sexuality, disability,...
Social Psychology Quarterly
This article presents results from an experimental study of workers tasked with evaluating profes... more This article presents results from an experimental study of workers tasked with evaluating professionals with identical workplace performances who differed with respect to hours worked and gender, isolating two mechanisms through which overwork leads to workplace inequality. Evaluators allocated greater organizational rewards to overworkers and perceived overworkers more favorably compared to full-time workers who performed similarly in less time, a practice that disproportionately rewards men over equivalently performing, more efficient women. Additionally, the magnitude of the overwork premium is greater for men than for women. We then use path analyses to explore the processes by which evaluators make assumptions about worker characteristics. We find overwork leads to greater organizational rewards primarily because employees who overwork are perceived as more committed—and, to a lesser extent, more competent—than full-time workers, although women’s overwork does not signal commi...
Advances in Group Processes
Abstract Purpose An accelerometer is a device that measures force due to gravity or a change in s... more Abstract Purpose An accelerometer is a device that measures force due to gravity or a change in speed or direction of travel. This paper describes accelerometers and their application in other disciplines and, by way of an example, explores the utility of accelerometers for studying aggression. We end with a discussion of additional ways accelerometers might be used in group processes research. Methodology We first review the use of accelerometers in other disciplines. We then present the results of four studies that demonstrate the use of accelerometers to measure aggression. Study 1 establishes the measure’s concurrent validity. Study 2 concerns its stability and representative reliability. Study 3 seeks to establish the measure’s predictive validity by associating it with an existing measure. Study 4 demonstrates the ability of accelerometers to address a sociological research question. Findings In Studies 1 and 2, we find that accelerometers can be used to differentiate between distinct levels of aggression. In Study 3, we find that men’s average peak acceleration correlates with a previously validated measure of aggression. Study 4 uses accelerometers to reproduce a well-established finding in the aggression literature. Practical Implications We conclude that accelerometers are a flexible tool for group processes’ researchers and social scientists more broadly. Our findings should prove useful to social scientists interested in measuring aggression or in employing accelerometers in their work.
Contemporary Perspectives in Family Research
Abstract The ideal worker norm refers to the belief that employees can and should be singularly d... more Abstract The ideal worker norm refers to the belief that employees can and should be singularly devoted to work. Our purpose is to understand the extent to which workers buy into various components of ideal work and how unpopular components of the ideal worker norm persist. We hypothesize they persist, at least in part, because of pluralistic ignorance. Pluralistic ignorance entails situations in which most people privately reject a norm, but incorrectly assume others accept it. Drawing on original survey data, we examine the extent to which US workers subscribe to a range of factors described in the ideal work literature. We test the pluralistic ignorance hypothesis by comparing workers’ agreement with, and their perceptions of their coworkers’ agreement with, these factors. We find workers embrace some components of ideal work. Yet, regardless of gender or parental status, they dislike those components that involve working extremely long hours and prioritizing work at the expense of personal or family life. In addition, regardless of gender or parental status, workers experience pluralistic ignorance with respect to those components that involve prioritizing work at the expense of personal or family life. Our findings suggest that researchers distinguish between different components of ideal work. They also suggest that everyone – not just women or parents – desire work–family balance. Lastly, because people often behave in ways that are congruent with what they mistakenly believe to be the norm, our findings suggest workers may unintentionally perpetuate family-unfriendly workplace standards.
The Journal of Men’s Studies
Stereotypical portrayals of the academy depict a progressive and inclusive institution, particula... more Stereotypical portrayals of the academy depict a progressive and inclusive institution, particularly in the social sciences, disciplines that engage with social and political topics including inequality. This article, however, details the extent to which the formal structures and informal culture of academic social science continue to reflect men’s bodies and lived experiences. Specifically, I draw on autoethnographic observations and personal reflections to demonstrate the valorization of extreme bodily strength and stamina, principal components of contemporary masculinity seemingly at odds with the scholarly endeavors of the ivory tower. Additionally, I reflect on the harms proliferated in this environment including physical, emotional, and economic violence; trauma; and the persistence of macro-level patterns of inequality.
Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 2022
A handful of studies conducted in the 1980s and 1990s find that undergraduate students perceive u... more A handful of studies conducted in the 1980s and 1990s find that undergraduate students perceive unmarried people less favorably than married people. The present research describes two experimental studies that revisit and extend this work by examining the extent to which perceptions of singles depend on marital history, gender, and race, both of which employ a more diverse sample of Americans via Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (MTurk). Black Americans are less likely to marry, more likely to divorce, and less likely to remarry than their White counterparts; Black women are less likely to marry than Black men; and Black women contend with nuanced stereotypes that portray them as strong, independent, and self-sufficient. These differences suggest race may shape beliefs about singles, and that racialized differences may be gendered. In Study 1, respondents rated a married or never married man or woman across a range of characteristics. In Study 2, respondents rated a White man, White woman, ...
South Carolina Law Review, 2014
This Article empirically examines questions of rights knowledge and rights assertion in order to ... more This Article empirically examines questions of rights knowledge and rights assertion in order to better understand the processes that contribute to people's assertions of their Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendment rights. Using quantitative and qualitative results from survey data, we test some of the assumptions about rights knowledge and rights assertion that are embedded in United States Supreme Court opinions. Our findings suggest that not only do people, by and large, not know their rights, but that when they try to figure out which rights they possess, the current procedural regime leads them to perform even worse than chance. Rights knowledge is not correlated with demographic factors such as race, social class, or even prior experience as a subject of criminal investigation. Furthermore, we find that a sense of personal efficacy in police-citizen interactions, specifically the willingness to assert rights, is positively correlated with social position. That is, people in h...
Socius: Sociological Research for a Dynamic World, 2020
This article investigates partisan beliefs regarding attributions of responsibility for mental il... more This article investigates partisan beliefs regarding attributions of responsibility for mental illness and support for mental health treatment. In study 1, we utilize a nationally representative data set to investigate these relationships with respect to generalized anxiety disorder. In study 2, we utilize an online convenience sample to assess these relationships in the context of schizophrenia. In both studies, Republicans were more likely than Democrats to attribute mental health disorders to factors that lie within patients’ control and were less supportive of healthcare coverage. In addition, given the rhetorical, erroneous link between schizophrenia and gun violence, we assess participants’ beliefs about gun control in the context of mental health. Paradoxically, we find that people who support gun rights for the mentally ill are the least likely to support healthcare coverage for the mentally ill. We discuss the implications of our findings for shaping U.S. gun debates.
Sex Roles, 2018
A robust literature ties emasculation to a range of compensatory behaviors. The present study shi... more A robust literature ties emasculation to a range of compensatory behaviors. The present study shifts focus away from the effects of masculinity threat toward an understanding of young adult men's experiences of emasculation in their own words. Drawing on 42 in-depth interviews with undergraduate men attending a selective U.S. university, we examine the behaviors, situations, and narratives-both experienced and hypothetical-that privileged young men perceive as threatening. We use these data not only to contribute to the empirical literature on masculinity threat, but also as a novel approach for theorizing about the meaning and structure of masculinity more broadly. This is an important task given recent social and economic changes that may have altered contemporary definitions of masculinity. Emasculation accounts provide unique analytical leverage for revealing men's often unspoken understandings of acceptable masculine behavior. We find that, while many interviewees superficially espoused egalitarian and anti-homophobic beliefs, their emasculation narratives implicitly call for the subordination of women and other men. These performances consequently obscure and maintain traditional, hegemonic power relations. We discuss the implications of our finding for scholars, practitioners, and individual men who desire a more equitable gender structure.
American Sociological Review, 2018
Journal of Cultural Economy, 2018
Personal Relationships, 2018
Journal of Social Issues, 2018
The masculinity contest is a set of organizational norms that fosters competition, work devotion,... more The masculinity contest is a set of organizational norms that fosters competition, work devotion, strength, and dominance. Here, we explore pluralistic ignorance as a mechanism by which these norms persist. Pluralistic ignorance occurs when individuals privately reject a norm, but mistakenly believe others endorse it. This then discourages individuals from criticizing norms that perpetuate unpopular behavioral standards. Drawing on data from U.S. workers, we find masculinity contest norms are prone to pluralistic ignorance. Workers believe their coworkers' endorsement of these norms exceeds their own private endorsement, although pluralistic ignorance levels differ by workers' gender, parental status, and the sex composition of their job. Further, employees' pluralistic ignorance about masculinity contest norms predicts decreased job satisfaction and engagement, decreased mental health, and increased relationship conflict. Discussion considers
Feminist Criminology, 2017
Despite scientific evidence to the contrary, pregnancy criminalization cases are based on assumpt... more Despite scientific evidence to the contrary, pregnancy criminalization cases are based on assumptions of reproductive asymmetry—the belief that women are exclusively responsible for fetal health. In this article, we test the impact of disrupting this assumption. In Study 1, when asked to read a case involving charges of chemical endangerment, participants exposed to testimony about the effects of paternal drug use on pregnancy outcomes viewed both Black and White defendants as less culpable than participants in the control group. In Study 2, a homicide case, information about male-mediated harm reduced perceptions of culpability for White, but not Black, defendants.
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Papers by Christin Munsch