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Dr. Tristan Bridges


Assistant Professor of Sociology

CV

Contact Information

Education

Ph.D., Sociology, University of Virginia

Areas of Specialization

Gender
Sexuality
Family
Inequality
Qualitative Methodologies

Courses

Sociology of Gender
Sociology of Sexualities

Research Interests

Tristan's research interests are in a subfield of gender studies: studies on men and masculinities. He is broadly interested in how men resist, reproduce, and ignore changes in gender relations in the United States. His research speaks to the flexibility of gender and the persistence of insecurity among men alongside enduring patters of gender and sexual inequality. Toward this end, Tristan has a few projects.

His interest in masculinities began with an ethnography of a bodybuilding community he undertook while in graduate school. From there, Tristan studied three separate groups of men with varying affiliations of feminism to assess variation and change in men's understandings of gender and sexual inequality, as well as patterns of behavior and identification that did not vary by group. This project highlights changes in contemporary masculinities emboldening men to engage in diverse behaviors while still retaining "masculine" identities. His findings indicate, however, that while the composition of contemporary masculinities seems to be shifting, relations of power and inequality have not been subject to the same transformation. He is currently working on the book manuscript for this project—"Liquid Masculinities: Transformations in Gender and Politics among Men."

While finishing this previous project, Tristan is currently undertaking an interview project that investigates the relationship between gender and space. He'll be interviewing heterosexual couples with "man caves" in their homes. He's interested in how couples justify the use of space in their homes, what men put there, what the rules are surrounding the use of the room, and how both men and women discuss these rooms.

Selected Publications

2011. "Engaging Men in the United States: Soft Essentialism and the Obstacles to Coherent Initiatives in Education and Family Policy." Pp. 159-173 in Men and Masculinities around the World: Transforming Men's Practices, edited by E. Ruspini, J. Hearn, B. Pease and K. Pringle. Palgrave Macmillan.

2011. "Masculinity." In Oxford Bibliographies Online: Sociology. Ed. EIC. New York: Oxford University Press.

2010. "Men Just Weren't Made to Do This: Performances of Drag at 'Walk a Mile in Her Shoes' Marches." Gender & Society 24(1): 5-30.

2009. "Gender Capital and Male Bodybuilders." Body & Society 15(1): 83-107.

Grants & Awards

2010-2011. University of Virginia Faculty Senate Dissertation Year Fellowship.

Events

Mon, Sep 16

Zotero (Education focus)
5 pm - 6:15 pm

Tue, Sep 17

Naturalization Ceremony
11 am - noon

Fri, Sep 20

Leadership Program Kick-off
3:30 pm - 5 pm

Wed, Oct 2

ADP Distinguished Speaker Series "The Audacity to Heal: Our Rape Culture"
7 pm - 9 pm

Thu, Oct 3

Faculty/Staff Campaign Kickoff
noon - 1:30 pm