Dr. Mahay teaches Globalization & Human Rights; Social Inequality: Class, Status and Power; Contemporary Sociological Theory; Sociology of Popular Culture; and the Sociology of Marriage and Family at Concordia University Chicago.

Her areas of research interest include social inequality, gender and culture. Dr. Mahay’s current research examines the intersections of gender, culture and disease in current public health campaigns. She has been a member of Concordia-Chicago’s faculty since 2006.

Degrees

  • PhD, University of Chicago; Chicago, IL
  • MA, University of Chicago; Chicago, IL
  • BA, Wellesley College; Wellesley, MA

Publications:

  • “Their Lives Are So Much Better Than Ours! The Ritual (Re)construction of Social Identity in Holiday Cards.” Discourse 2.0: Language and New Media. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, forthcoming.

  • “Age and the Desire to Marry” (with Lewin, A.), Journal of Family Issues, 2007.

  • “Sex, Intimacy, and Family Life in the United States” (with Laumann, E., Youm, Y.), In the Sexual Self: The Construction of Sexual Scripts, 2007.

  • “Network Data Collection and Its Relevance for the Analysis of STDs: The NHSLS and CHSLS” (with Laumann, E., Paik, A., Youm, Y.), Network Epidemiology: A Handbook for Survey Design and Data Collection, 2004.

  • "Meeting and Mating over the Life Course” (with Laumann, E.) The Sexual Organization of the City, 2004.

Presentations:

  • “Making the Connection: Engaging Students in Social Justice Issues through a Multifaceted Approach,” Associated Colleges of the Chicago Area Conference, Dominican University, October 2011.

  • “Ritual, Representation, and Power: The Role of New Technologies in Identity Construction and Social Reproduction,” Discourse 2.0: Language and New Media, Georgetown University Round Table on Languages and Linguistics, Georgetown University, March 2011.

  • “Creating a Collaborative Class Website: Techniques for Empowering Students and Sharing Their Insights,” Associated Colleges of the Chicago Area Conference, Dominican University, October 2010

  • “Transforming Pedagogy: Using a Teach-In to Ignite Student Social Action,” Associated Colleges of the Chicago Area Scholarship of Pedagogy Symposium; Chicago, October 2007.

  • “Integrating Biological and Social Data in the Study of Health: Benefits and Challenges,” American Sociological Association Annual Meeting; Philadelphia, Penn., August 2005.

  •  “Interdisciplinary Methods for the Study of Health and Aging: The National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project,” Gerontological Society of America Annual Meeting; Washington, D.C., November 2004.

  • “Criteria for the Advancement of Biomarker Collection in Population-Based Research,” 2004 Chicago Workshop on Biomarker Collection in Population-Based Health Research; Chicago, June 2004.

  • “Age and the Desire to Marry: Changing Competitive and Cultural Pressures,” American Sociological Association Annual Meeting; Atlanta, Ga., August 2003.