Stephen Vaisey | Scholars@Duke

Stephen Vaisey
Professor of Sociology

The main goal of my research is to understand moral and political beliefs: what they are, where they come from, and what they do. I lead the Measuring Morality project, the goal of which is to understand how different ideas of morality fit together and influence politics and other domains of life.

I also work quite a bit on statistical methods for observational data, including panel data, treatment effects analysis, and multilevel modeling.

Current Appointments & Affiliations

Professor of Sociology, Sociology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2016
Director of Graduate Studies in the Department of Sociology, Sociology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2013
Faculty Research Scholar of DuPRI's Population Research Center, Duke Population Research Center, Duke Population Research Institute 2010

Contact Information

Background
Education, Training, & Certifications
- Ph.D., University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 2008
Duke Appointment History
- Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology, Sociology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2012 - 2016
- Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology, Sociology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2011 - 2012
- Scholar In Residence in the Department of Sociology, Sociology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2011
Recognition
In the News
- SEP 2, 2014
  
  How Do You Measure Morality?
- MAY 30, 2014 WUNC
  
  Stephen Vaisey: Is there anything you would not do for a million dollars?
- APR 30, 2014 The Huffington Post
  
  Measuring Morality project: What would you do for a million dollars?
- AUG 22, 2013
  
  Kenan Institute Project on "Measuring Morality" Opens Data to Researchers
Expertise
Subject Headings
Research
Selected Grants
- The Spread and Impact of Moral Messages: Machine Learning, Network Evolution, and Behavioral Prediction awarded by University of Southern California 2015 - 2018
- "The Social Context and Consequences of Transformative Experience" awarded by University of Notre Dame 2014 - 2017
Publications & Artistic Works
Selected Publications
- Books
  - (2010). Handbook of the Sociology of Morality. S Hitlin and S Vaisey (Eds.). Springer.
- Academic Articles
  - Vaisey, S, & Valentino, L. (2018, June 1). Culture and choice: Toward integrating cultural sociology with the judgment and decision-making sciences. Poetics , 68 , 131-143. Full Text
  - Boutyline, A, & Vaisey, S. (2017, March 1). Belief network analysis: A relational approach to understanding the structure of attitudes. American Journal of Sociology , 122 (5), 1371-1447. Full Text
  - Vaisey, S, & Miles, A. (2017, January 1). What You Can—and Can’t—Do With Three-Wave Panel Data. Sociological Methods and Research , 46 (1), 44-67. Full Text
  - Dehghani, M, Johnson, K, Hoover, J, Sagi, E, Garten, J, Parmar, NJ, Vaisey, S, Iliev, R, & Graham, J. (2016, March). Purity homophily in social networks. Journal of experimental psychology. General , 145 (3), 366-375. Full Text
  - Miles, A, & Vaisey, S. (2015, September). Morality and politics: Comparing alternate theories. Social Science Research , 53 , 252-269. Full Text
  - Victor, EC, Miles, A, & Vaisey, S. (2015, January 1). The Role of Moral Worldviews in Predicting Sexual Behavior From Adolescence to Emerging Adulthood. Journal of Adolescent Research , 30 (6), 779-799. Full Text
  - Johnson, KM, Iyer, R, Wojcik, SP, Vaisey, S, Miles, A, Chu, V, & Graham, J. (2014, December). Ideology-Specific Patterns of Moral Indifference Predict Intentions Not to Vote. Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy , 14 (1), 61-77. Full Text
  - Edelmann, A, & Vaisey, S. (2014, October 1). Cultural resources and cultural distinction in networks. Poetics , 46 , 22-37. Full Text
  - Vaisey, S, & Miles, A. (2014, April 24). Tools from moral psychology for measuring personal moral culture. Theory and Society , 43 (3), 311-332. Full Text
  - Vaisey, S. (2014, January 1). The "Attitudinal Fallacy" Is a Fallacy: Why We Need Many Methods to Study Culture. Sociological Methods and Research , 43 (2), 227-231. (Review) Full Text
  - Vaisey, S. (2014, January 1). Is interviewing compatible with the dual-process model of culture. American Journal of Cultural Sociology , 2 (1), 150-158. Full Text
  - Beyerlein, K, & Vaisey, S. (2013, August 1). Individualism revisited: Moral worldviews and civic engagement. Poetics , 41 (4), 384-406. Full Text
  - Hitlin, S, & Vaisey, S. (2013, July 1). The new sociology of morality. Annual Review of Sociology , 39 , 51-68. Full Text
  - Longest, KC, Hitlin, S, & Vaisey, S. (2013, June 1). Position and Disposition: The Contextual Development of Human Values. Social Forces , 91 (4), 1499-1528. Full Text
  - Kahwati, LC, Lewis, MA, Kane, H, Williams, PA, Nerz, P, Jones, KR, Lance, TX, Vaisey, S, & Kinsinger, LS. (2011, November). Best practices in the Veterans Health Administration's MOVE! Weight management program. Am J Prev Med , 41 (5), 457-464. Full Text Link to Item
  - Vaisey, S. (2010, July). What People Want: Rethinking Poverty, Culture, and Educational Attainment. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science ,, 75-101. (Academic Article)
  - Vaisey, S, & Lizardo, O. (2010, June). Can Cultural Worldviews Influence Network Composition?. Social Forces , 88 , 1595-1618. (Academic Article)
  - Trinitapoli, J, & Vaisey, S. (2009, September 1). The transformative role of religious experience: The case of short-term missions. Social Forces , 88 (1), 121-146. Full Text
  - Adkins, DE, & Vaisey, S. (2009, June 1). Toward a unified stratification theory: Structure, genome, and status across human societies. Sociological Theory , 27 (2), 99-121. Full Text
  - Vaisey, S. (2009, June). Motivation and Justification: A Dual-Process Model of Culture in Action. American Journal of Sociology , 114 , 1675-1715. (Academic Article)
  - Vaisey, S. (2008, September 1). Reply to Ann Swidler. Sociological Forum , 23 (3), 619-622. Full Text
  - Vaisey, S. (2008, September 1). Socrates, skinner, and aristotle: Three ways of thinking about culture in action. Sociological Forum , 23 (3), 603-613. Full Text
  - Vaisey, S, & Smith, C. (2008, June 1). Catholic guilt among U.S. teenagers: A research note. Review of Religious Research , 49 (4), 415-426.
  - Longest, KC, & Vaisey, S. (2008, January 1). Control or conviction: Religion and adolescent initiation of marijuana use. Journal of Drug Issues , 38 (3), 689-715. Full Text
  - Perrin, A, & Vaisey, S. (2008, January). Parallel Public Spheres: Distance and Discourse in Letters to the Editor. American Journal of Sociology , 114 , 781-810. (Academic Article)
  - Shanahan, MJ, Erickson, LD, Vaisey, S, & Smolen, A. (2007). Helping Relationships and Genetic Propensities: A Combinatoric Study of DRD2, Mentoring, and Educational Continuation. Twin Research and Human Genetics , 10 , 285-298. (Academic Article)
  - Vaisey, S. (2007). Structure, Culture, and Community: The Search for Belonging in 50 Urban Communes. American Sociological Review , 72 , 851-873. (Academic Article)
  - Vaisey, S. (2006, December 1). Education and its discontents: Overqualification in America, 1972-2002. Social Forces , 85 (2), 835-864. (Review) Full Text
  - Kalleberg, AL, & Vaisey, S. (2005, September 1). Pathways to a good job: Perceived work quality among the machinists in North America. British Journal of Industrial Relations , 43 (3), 431-454. (Review) Full Text
  - Vaisey, SB. The Role of Moral Worldviews in Predicting Adolescent Sexual Behavior (In preparation). Journal of Adolescent Research .
- Book Reviews
  - Vaisey, S. (2012, September). Why Things Matter to People: Social Science, Values and Ethical Life. Contemporary Sociology: a Journal of Reviews , 41 (5), 671-672. Full Text
  - Vaisey, S. (2012, January 1). The Righteous Mind. Archives Europeennes De Sociologie , 53 (3), 448-451. Full Text Link to Item
  - Vaisey, S. (2011, January). The Theory of Cultural and Social Selection by W.G. Runciman. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY , 116 (4), 1377-1380. Link to Item
  - Vaisey, S. (2009, February). Fuzzy Set Theory: Applications in the Social Sciences by Michael Smithson and Jay Verkuilen. SOCIOLOGICAL METHODS & RESEARCH , 37 (3), 455-457. Full Text Link to Item
  - Shanahan, MJ, Vaisey, S, Erickson, LD, & Smolen, A. (2008). Environmental Contingencies and Genetic Predispositions: Social Capital, Educational Continuation, and a Dopamine Receptor Polymorphism. American Journal of Sociology , 114 , S260-S286.
  - Vaisey, S. (2007, May). Emerging Moral Vocabularies: The Creation and Establishment of New Forms of Moral and Ethical Meanings. Contemporary Sociology: a Journal of Reviews , 36 (3), 259-260. Full Text
  - Vaisey, S. (2004, September 1). Human Institutions: A Theory of Societal Evolution. By Jonathan H. Turner. Rowman & Littlefield, 2003. 309 pp. Cloth, $75.00; paper, $29.95. Social Forces , 83 (1), 432-433. Full Text
Teaching & Mentoring
Recent Courses

Some information on this profile has been compiled automatically from Duke databases and external sources. (Our About page explains how this works.) If you see a problem with the information, please write to Scholars@Duke and let us know. We will reply promptly.

Education, Training, & Certifications

Duke Appointment History

In the News

Subject Headings

Selected Grants

Selected Publications

Books

Academic Articles

Book Reviews

Recent Courses