Barrie Thorne, professor of sociology

Barrie Thorne is a sociology professor specializing in the sociology of gender, childhood, and families, as well as feminist theory and ethnographic methods. She is the former co-director of the Berkeley Center for Working Families, which focused on changes in family life in the context of global economic restructuring. Thorne received the American Sociological Association’s Jessie Bernard Award in 2002 for her work on the role of women in society. She is the author of Gender Play: Girls and Boys in School; co-editor of three books on the family, language and gender, and feminist sociology; and has published numerous articles about widening class divides, immigration, and the experiences of children growing up in urban California.