BREA L. PERRY
blperry@indiana.edu

I am a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Sociology at Indiana University, and I will defend my dissertation in June 2008. I am currently on the academic job market. My areas of interest include social networks, medical sociology, mental health/illness, genetics and society, at-risk children and adolescents, and longitudinal methodology.

My dissertation, The Ripple Effect: Social Network Dynamics and Mental Illness, investigates how and why social networks evolve in response to the onset of a major life event — the emergence of mental illness and entrance into the mental health treatment system. This research advances social network theory by illustrating how an individual-level event reverberates through the network, and by conceptualizing transitions into and out of different social roles and statuses as a causal mechanism of network dynamics. More broadly, it addresses the classic sociological tension between structure and agency by demonstrating that social network processes are driven by individuals’ interpersonal strategies unfolding within the context of illness-related and structural constraints.

Broadly, my other work seeks to understand the interrelated roles of social relationships, social interaction, social structure, culture, and biological systems in disease etiology and the illness career. My research has focused on the cases of serious mental illness and at-risk youth, and I have a strong interest in longitudinal research and dynamic social processes.

I enjoy photography, soccer, camping and hiking, and watching professional football (Go Colts!). I also have a wonderful family that keeps me laughing and brings me joy every day.