Profile
Biography
In 2004, I received my B.A. in Communication Arts from Gordon College (Wenham, MA). After graduating I spent a year as an AmeriCorps Vista at Mt. Ida College (Newton, MA) as the Civic Engagement Coordinator working with students to promote volunteer service, voter education and social justice. In 2007, I graduated from the University of Hartford (West Hartford, CT) with a M.A. in Communication, after which I taught adjunct at Northern Arizona University (Flagstaff, AZ).
After our son was born in 2008 I stayed at home full-time until deciding to begin work on my PhD at the University of York in October 2010.
Research
Overview
My research interests remain focused around human trafficking, specifically sex trafficking. I am interested in the reasons why people choose to get involved in the field of sex trafficking and their perceptions of trafficking victims, perpetrators, legislation and solutions.
As well, I am interested in the way sex trafficking is socially constructed in the media, in research, in governments, in the public and other avenues. There is much controversy within this area regarding accurate facts and statistics due to the obvious difficulty in retrieving data. Many opposing viewpoints, stories and strategies to solve the issue abound. How do people navigate these seemingly paradoxical areas of the issue that from the surface may seem like an easy good versus evil scenario? How do people negotiate compassion for those involved in sex trafficking?
Finally, I am interested in whether or not (and then potentially how and where) hyper-masculinity and its portrayals within Western cultures (particularly the US and the UK) influence the demand for paid sexual services and the implications this has on sex trafficking.