Contexts Magazine
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Contexts Magazine
@contexts.org
2.7K followers 3.9K following 240 posts
A quarterly magazine that believes public sociology can be both approachable and applicable! Edited by Amin Ghaziani, Seth Abrutyn, and Letta Page, with incoming editors David Grazian and Elena G. van Stee.

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Q&A! aminghaziani.bsky.social speaks with former Contexts editors Jodi O’Brien & ajoystein.bsky.social about translating research and engaging with the public.

journals.sagepub.com/doi/epdf/10....
November 17, 2025 at 5:08 PM
contexts.org
In brief! In "Coding our AI Interactions," @colteruscola.bsky.social reviews Elizabeth Rodwell's research on the UX designers who decide how machines "talk" to people.

journals.sagepub.com/doi/epdf/10....
November 14, 2025 at 6:35 PM
contexts.org
Nantucket construction uncovered human remains right where the map said they’d be.

Read "Digging into Indigenous History" by Stephanie A. Bohon and Shaylee Hodges in @contexts.org!

➡️https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/epdf/10.1177/15365042251377360
November 11, 2025 at 6:43 PM
contexts.org
🥇 What makes a 3-year-old applicant “worthy” of admission to an elite preschool? Incoming managing editor @elenavanstee.bsky.social reviews @estelabdiaz.bsky.social & Lauren Rivera's recent ASR article.

➡️https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/epdf/10.1177/15365042251377354
November 10, 2025 at 8:07 PM
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New on the blog! @amcneely.com (@utdallas.bsky.social) responds to @davidyamane.bsky.social ➡️ contexts.org/blog/a-forme...
November 7, 2025 at 5:32 PM
contexts.org
New in Books! @kaareeenah.bsky.social on Worn Out and Data Driven. 📚
➡️https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/epdf/10.1177/15365042251377368
November 6, 2025 at 6:01 PM
contexts.org
In case you'd like to read our entire note of apology regarding our Summer 2025 cover (as seen in our current profile images):
A screenshot reads: Dear Readers, Let’s start by saying that we owe you an apology. Recently, we received an email from Laurel Davis-Delano, Professor of Sociology at Springfield College. In it, Dr. Davis-Delano explains that she studies White Americans’ beliefs, representations, and practices that they associate with Native Americans and that, while she is happy to see that our Summer 2025 issue features two articles on Indigenous issues, she is concerned about our cover image choice. By raising a series of questions about the image—from its content to its creator—Prof. Davis-Delano takes a thoughtful approach, full of curiosity it is clear our team did not explore when it came to our pick for a cover image. We are immensely grateful. We are grateful, too, to our editorial board member Kimberly Huyser (Navajo), Professor of Sociology at the University of British Columbia, who spoke with us further about our cover, helping us to understand it as a controlling image that stands as an example of racial ignorance of the sort written about in Stephanie Bohon and Shaylee Hodges’ feature article in this issue, “Digging Into Indigenous History.” Among the additional problems Drs. Davis-Delano and Huyser raised with our Summer 2025 cover was that a tipi is not representative of the ancestral or current dwellings of a number of the Native American peoples featured in the issue’s content. Additionally, the photo, sourced through online stock image service iStockPhoto, was taken by a non-Indigenous photographer who, when contacted by Dr. Davis-Delano (who worked with a reference librarian to provide initial context), explained that the structure was not created by Native Americans but was, instead, an imitation tipi made in Canada by members of a marginalized, though not Indigenous, ethnic group. With each new facet of this image reinforcing its poor fit for the Summer 2025 issue, it’s clear that this picture is worth far more than 1,000 words. To that end, we thank Dr.… A screenshot reads: We emphasize “soon” not only because our misstep demands a prompt response, but also because we want to be sure that this piece is published on our website while our Summer 2025 issue is still open-access at journals.sagepub.com/toc/ctxa/24/3 (no paywall through November 17, 2025). As we told Dr. Davis-Delano, had we taken the time to reach out to a Native American photographer to discuss licensing an image from them on the theme of Indigenous erasure, we surely would have been informed of the wrong-headedness of our image idea while also directly supporting both an Indigenous artist and the representation of Native peoples by Native peoples. Again, we want to extend our thanks for Dr. Davis-Delano’s kind and thought-provoking email and for her ongoing willingness to be a part of our learning, helping Contexts do better, issue by issue. With deepest appreciation, Seth Abrutyn Amin Ghaziani Letta Page
November 5, 2025 at 5:45 PM
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A letter from the editorial team: contexts.org/articles/a-n...
November 4, 2025 at 8:35 PM
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Who's sleeping with the Trumpian Elephant? 👀

Read liamswiss.bsky.social (AcadiaSociology.bsky.social) in the latest issue of @contexts.org!
➡️https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/epdf/10.1177/15365042251377357
November 3, 2025 at 6:36 PM
contexts.org
"...the idea that plants should be considered part of society is not a new one; it’s just new to some people," writes @sarahelton.bsky.social. 🌿

Free to read, download, and share ➡️ journals.sagepub.com/doi/epdf/10....
October 29, 2025 at 5:43 PM
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New photo essay! 📸
Contexts in pictures: Ryan Centner on an imperial network.

Find it here: journals.sagepub.com/doi/epdf/10....
October 28, 2025 at 8:48 PM
contexts.org
Why do White conservatives and White liberals disagree about what is—and is not—racist and sexist? @jessistreib.bsky.social and Betsy Leondar-Wright reveal a definitional divide driving this persistent gap and recommend a better way forward.

Read the essay ➡️ journals.sagepub.com/doi/epdf/10....
October 24, 2025 at 6:23 PM
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One thing Doug Massey knows? Social inequality is firmly grounded in geographic inequality. 📍

Check out his new essay for @contexts.org ➡️ journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
October 23, 2025 at 8:49 PM
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🚨 New page! Contexts Magazine is now on LinkedIn. Give us a follow to bring snack-sized sociological insights to your feed!

➡️ www.linkedin.com/company/cont...
October 22, 2025 at 7:26 PM
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"The Little Engine that Maybe Could" 🚂
Co-editor @aminghaziani.bsky.social interviews former editors Syed Ali and @philipncohen.com (univofmaryland.bsky.social) about overcoming challenges to deliver meaningful sociology to the public.

Paywall-free! ➡️ contexts.org/articles/su2...
October 22, 2025 at 6:59 PM
contexts.org
🚨New Issue Out Now!! Open Access!!

Navigate all the fresh #sociology with our clickable table of contents (contexts.org/articles/su2...), listen to the issue's companion playlist (open.spotify.com/playlist/5PB...), and read the "digest" (mailchi.mp/ea0c38553548...) to learn more!
October 17, 2025 at 4:49 PM
contexts.org
🚨Fresh #sociology alert! In "Good Lawyer, Bad Lawyer," @elenavanstee.bsky.social summarizes
@mathuclair.bsky.social and Sophia Hunt's research into the decision-making processes of young progressives entering professions they see as perpetuating #inequality
contexts.org/articles/goo...
A screenshot of the website contexts.org shows a photo of a person in a graduation gown holding up a hand-written sign that reads "Now What?" The caption is "Young, mostly liberal law students in this study navigated the ethical conflicts of their career paths through a series of moral justifications." The article below is titled "Good Lawyer, Bad Lawyer," and it is written by Elena G. Van Stee.
October 10, 2025 at 6:13 PM
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One man's stigma is another man's professional asset? In "Listing Addiction on Your Resume," @elenavanstee.bsky.social covers recent work from Joe Silcox and @evanstewart.bsky.social on personal experience and the emerging field of recovery coaching
contexts.org/articles/lis...

#sociology #sobriety
A screenshot from contexts.org shows a photo of a man with both hands over his heart as he addresses several other seated people. The caption reads: Many of those in the burgeoning field of recovery coaching find that their own past drug use can become an asset in helping others overcome addiction. iStockPhoto // Jacob Wackerhausen. Below the caption is the article's headling, "Listing Addiction on Your Resume," and byline, "By Elena G. Van Stee."
October 9, 2025 at 6:21 PM
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🚨New research brief! In "Fire Flight," Parker Muzzerall writes up work from Kathryn McConnell (UBC Sociology) et al. on out-migration following wildfires like those that hit Los Angeles County in 2025: contexts.org/articles/fire-flight/

#naturaldisaster #climatechange #environmentalsociology
A screenshot of Contexts.org shows an "In Brief" article. The photo shows two people with their arms around each other surveying fire damage. The caption reads, "Affected areas can see out-migration for over a year following rare, highly destructive wildfires. iStockPhoto // VladTeodor. The article below is titled "Fire Flight" and is authored by Parker Muzzerall.
October 6, 2025 at 2:33 PM
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Sneaks and peeks! Just sharing a little taste of our Spotify playlist for the next issue of Contexts--think of them as catchy clues to the contents of Vol. 24, Issue 3 🎧
A screenshot shows a sample of a Spotify playlist with the songs: "Island in the Sun," by Weezer "Just Me & My Plants," by Rocco Elliot "This Is America," by Childish Gambino "Just Got Paid," by ZZ Top "Elbows Up Canada," by King of the Cipher "You Can't Hurry Love," by The Supremes "Runnin'," by Pharrell Williams "What's Love Got to Do with It," by Tina Turner "Octopus's Garden," by The Beatles
October 1, 2025 at 9:25 PM
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New! From @michaelbriscoe.bsky.social, a response to Eppard and Mackey's @contexts.org piece on liberal bias in academia: "A Closer Look at Ideology *and* Truth on Campus"

contexts.org/blog/a-closer-look

#sociology #highereducation #liberalbias
A screenshot of the homepage of Contexts.org shows a new blog post titled "A Closer Look at Ideology *and* Truth on Campus: A Response to Eppard and Mackey." The image shows a lecturer in a campus lecture hall. A screenshot from contexts.org shows the quote "Reflecting widely held ideologies back to the public would no doubt raise trust in academia, but this is not our mandate."
September 30, 2025 at 1:21 PM
contexts.org
🤖New on the blog! In "Working for AI," sociologist Jeffrey C. Dixon @holy-cross.bsky.social considers techno-optimism, but concludes: "The AI industry does not “stand on the shoulders of giants”... Its feet are firmly placed on workers’ and users’ backs." contexts.org/blog/working...
A screenshot of contexts.org shows an image of a sullen looking student working with a robot teacher. The article is titled "Working for AI." A pullquote below reads, "As someone who teaches and writes about AI in a sociological context, I have mixed opinions about the technology."
September 23, 2025 at 3:51 PM
contexts.org
🚨With the McNair program on the chopping block, Chandra Reyna @isutriomcnair.bsky.social reflects on the ways her own GED-to-PhD journey exemplifies McNair's power to enrich our intellectual and social worlds:
contexts.org/blog/ged-to-phd-mcnair/

#sociology #highereducation #McNairProgram
September 19, 2025 at 6:09 PM
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Bite-sized sociology! @contexts.org grad student ed Colter J. Uscola's "Parental Profiteering" covers @tomdivon.bsky.social, @taylorannabell.bsky.social, & @cgoanta.bsky.social's new work on "kidfluencers" & the social media commodification of childhood: contexts.org/articles/parental-profiteering/
A screenshot of the homepage of Contexts.org: Sociology for the Public shows an image of a child wearing sunglasses and headphones. The photo is captioned, "Is that just a kid having fun, or a kidfluencer subtly selling glasses and headphones?" Below the photo, the article begins: In Brief: Parental Profiteering, by Colter J. Uscola. September 18, 2025. Spring 2025.
September 18, 2025 at 4:16 PM
contexts.org
🚨New sociology! In "How the Rich Turn Sludge into Money," @shdoron1.bsky.social (@ipratnu.bsky.social) keys in on the bureaucratic practices wealthy families use to fend off threats to resources and intergenerational wealth transfers--and how these tactics change families contexts.org/blog/sludge/
A screenshot of the homepage of contexts.org shows a blog post titled "How the Rich Turn Sludge Into Money," by Doron Shiffer-Sebba, illustrated by a photo of enormous stacks of paper.
September 10, 2025 at 3:29 PM