About
Lara Foley, Ph.D., is a professor of sociology whose research explores identity, community and environmental change. She studies the ways people narrate their lives, relationships and occupations and how those stories shape identity, particularly in liminal spaces such as cultural transition, relationship change and contested occupations. Her work also examines environmental justice and community responses to environmental disruption, including research connected to the Tar Creek Superfund site in northeastern Oklahoma and the experiences of international students navigating multiple cultural worlds.
Education
- Ph.D., University of Florida
- Dissertation: “Catching Babies: Identity and Legitimation in Midwives’ Work Narratives”
- B.A., University of Georgia
Research Interests & Areas of Expertise
- Occupational identities
- Environmental sociology
- Qualitative research methods
- Migration and mobility
- Community-based research
