About Me

I am a graduate student in the Sociology Department at Brigham Young University.

My masters thesis examines discussions about immigration in an online news forum in the context of Jurgen Habermas's theory of deliberative democracy.

My findings offer support for the hypothesis that although the online forum I studied is not a good example of a "public sphere" as described by Jurgen Habermas, Lincoln Dahlberg, and others, communication about immigration over an extended period of time has decreased the degree of polarization and hostility between forum users with differing opinions. However, the reduction in polarization has not led to consensus and has had no measurable impact on policy outcomes.

Friday, January 21, 2011

Curricula Vitae


Curricula Vitae

Brian D. Harris

30 North 700 East #10, Provo, UT 84606
(208) 761-8980
bdharris712@gmail.com

last updated 30 December, 2010

Education
  • M.S. Candidate, Sociology, Brigham Young University, expected graduation August 2011.
  • B.S., Sociology, Brigham Young University, 2009

Experience
  • Instructor: Sociology 307: Data Analysis & Presentation
◦   Spring 2010
◦   Spring 2011

  • Principal Investigator: Perceptions of Immigrants Project, with Charlie V. Morgan, and with help from Jason Simons, Ramon Castillo, and Benjamin G. Gibbs.  Mixed methods longitudinal analysis of online public discourse about immigration.  I designed the study, led the sampling, coding, and analysis of the data. Wrote most of the research report, including literature, methods, and findings sections. Preliminary findings presented at the annual meeting of the Pacific Sociological Association, 2010. Paper to be submitted for review early in 2011.

  • Co-Principal Investigator: Marathons and Families Project, with Todd L. Goodsell. Grounded theory study of serious leisure, time management, and family life.  Developed an interview guide, conducted in-depth interviews and participant observation, directed the coding and analysis of the data, and wrote most of the research report, including literature, methods, findings, and conclusion sections.  Interpreted data and guided the development of new serious leisure theory. Research presented at the annual meeting of the National Council on Family Relations, 2010. Paper accepted for publication in Journal of Leisure Research, forthcoming 2011. Assisted with analyzing the interviews again for a separate paper on family structure, gender, and motivations for running. Paper in progress.

  • Research Assistant: 2008 – present
◦   Charlie V. Morgan. May 2009 – present. Directed the Perceptions of Immigrants Project.
◦   Todd L. Goodsell. July 2008 – present. Co-directed the Marathons and Families Project.
◦   Kristie J. R. Phillips. August 2009 – April 2010. Collected administrative data for every charter school in the United States in order to evaluate the effectiveness of charter support organizations on student test scores.  Assisted with merging large quantitative datasets and organizing data in preparation for analysis.
◦   Todd L. Goodsell. March 2008 – June 2008. Assisted with inductive coding of interviews collected as part of the St. Louis Fatherhood Project, for use in future publications.

Publications
  • Harris, Brian D. and Todd L. Goodsell. 2011. “Family Life and Marathon Running: Constraint, Cooperation, and Gender in a Leisure Activity.” Journal of Leisure Research (in press).

Conference Presentations
  • Harris, Brian D. & Todd L. Goodsell. 2010, November 2-6. “Family Life and Marathon Running: Constraint, Cooperation, and Gender in a Leisure Activity.” Poster presented at the annual meeting of the National Council on Family Relations. Minneapolis, MN.
  • Harris, Brian D., Jason D. Simons, Charlie V. Morgan, and Ramon Castillo. 2010, April 8-11. “Perceptions of Immigrants: An Analysis of Online News Reader Commentary.” Paper presented at the annual meeting of The Pacific Sociological Association. Oakland, CA.
  • Mike Rutkowski, Tisah Quarnberg, Jason Simons, Brian D. Harris, and Jackie Freeman. 2010, April 8-11. “Assessing MTV’s ‘True Life’ as a Sociological Research Method.” Paper presented at the annual meeting of The Pacific Sociological Association. Oakland, CA.
  • Harris, Brian D., Jason D. Simons, Camm Clark, & Bert O. Burraston. 2009, April 1. “Relationship Influences on Teen Substance Abuse”. Poster presented at the Mary Lou Fulton Mentored Research Conference. Provo, UT.

Skills
  • Proficient in data analysis software (SPSS, Stata, Microsoft Access, and Nvivo)
  • Trained in ethnographic and quantitative methods, including linear models, logistic models, time series models, etc.

Scholarships, Grants, and Awards
  • Graduate Studies Dean’s Award – Research Presentation Award. College of Graduate Studies, Brigham Young University. For presenting high-quality original research at a professional conference, $400, Winter 2010.
  • Brigham Young Scholarship. Brigham Young University. For high academic performance, $1,000, Fall 2008 – Summer 2009.
  • Spring/Summer Continuing Student Scholarship. Brigham Young University. For high academic performance, $510.

References
  • Charlie V. Morgan, Assistant Professor of Sociology, Brigham Young University.
    (801) 422-3652.
  • Todd L. Goodsell, Assistant Professor of Sociology, Brigham Young University.
    (801) 422-3336.
  • Kristie J. R. Phillips, Assistant Professor of Sociology, Brigham Young University.
    (801) 422-4882.
  • Carol Ward, Associate Professor of Sociology, Graduate Program Coordinator, Brigham Young University.
    (801) 422-3047.
  • Benjamin G. Gibbs, Assistant Professor of Sociology, Brigham Young University.
    (801) 422-8284.
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