Doctoral Student

Olivia Berding is a Sociology PhD student whose research focuses on the relationship between subjective experiences of gender and the production of gender through institutions, including education, law, and medicine. They are currently working on an ethnographic and interview-based study exploring masculinities and the social dynamics of university-level men’s choral ensembles. Olivia is also very passionate about collaborative research and is working with Professors Catherine Lee and Joanna Kempner to study the use of scientific knowledge in political discourse. Critically examining epistemic authority and knowledge systems is central to Olivia’s work as a social scholar. Olivia received their Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Philosophy from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, in 2024.