Dr. Lara Descartes

Division of Sociology and Family Studies
Office: St. James 124
Email: ldescart@uwo.ca
Telephone: 519-432-8353 x28059

Academic Background

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, Ph.D. in Anthropology,
April, 2002
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, M.A. in Anthropology,
April, 1995
University of California, Los Angeles, California, M.S. in Astronomy,
June, 1992
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, B.S. in Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, May, 1990

Research and Scholarly Interests

Gay and lesbian health
Mothering
Popular culture and family
Work and family
Support relationships

Work History

2008-	Associate Professor, Family Studies, Brescia University College
2011-14	Chair, Division of Sociology and Family Studies, Brescia University College
2011-14	Adjunct Research Professor, Department of Sociology, University of Western Ontario
2008-11	Adjunct Research Professor, Department of Anthropology, University of Western Ontario
2002-08	Assistant Professor in Human Development and Family Studies, University of Connecticut
2002	Postdoctoral Research Associate, Center for the Ethnography of Everyday Life, University of Michigan

Publications

Peer Reviewed

Descartes, L., Asencio, M., & Blank, T. (2011). Paying project participants: Dilemmas in conducting research with poor, marginalized populations. Advances in Social Work, 12(2), 1-9.
England, D., Descartes, L., & Collier-Meek, M. (2011). Gender role portrayal and the Disney princesses. Sex Roles, 64, 555-567. DOI 10.1007/s11199-011-9930-7.
Asencio, M., Blank, T., Descartes, L., & Crawford, A. (2009). The prospect of prostate cancer: A challenge for gay men's sexualities as they age. Sexuality Research and Social Policy, 6(4), 38-51.
Blank, T. O., Asencio, M., Descartes, L., & Griggs, J. (2009). Aging, health, and GLBTQ family and community life. Journal of GLBT Family Studies, 5, 9-34.
Descartes, L., Kottak, C. P., & Kelly, A. (2007). Chauffeuring and commuting: A story of work, family, class, and community. Community, Work, and Family, 10, 161-178.
Descartes, L. (2007). Exchange in adult sibling relationships: Support and tension. International Journal of Sociology of the Family, 22, 303-325.
Descartes, L. (2007). Rewards and challenges of using ethnography in family research. Family and Consumer Science Research Journal, 36, 22-39.
Descartes, L. (2007). Variations in support exchange by marital status and gender. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 38, 645-650.
Descartes, L. (2006). Put your money where your love is: Parental aid to adult children. Journal of Adult Development, 13, 137-147.
Thronson, H., Majewski, S., Descartes, L., & Hereld, M. (1990). A subdued interpretation of the visual and infrared emission from merging galaxies. Astrophysical Journal, 364, 456-470.

In preparation

Descartes, L., & Goldman, J. Desirability of foods depicted in popular children's literature: A content analysis.

Non-peer reviewed

Descartes, L. (2010). Review of Longing and belonging: Parents, children, and consumer culture, by Allison J. Pugh. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 41, 478.
Bubriski, A., & Descartes, L. (2007). African American family strategies for moving into and staying in the middle class. Family Focus, National Council on Family Relations Report, FF33, F5-F7.
Descartes, L. (2002). A comparative study of informal support networks in Culver City, California. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Michigan, Michigan.
Descartes, L., Kottak, C. P., & Kelly, A. (2002). Moms and minivans: Maintaining a middle class lifestyle in a small town. University of Michigan CEEL Working Paper 032-02.
Descartes, L., & Kottak, C. P. (2001). Media in the middle: Work, family, and media use in a middle class Midwestern town. University of Michigan CEEL Working Paper 023-01.
Descartes, L., & Kottak, C. P. (2000). Media and the work/family interface. University of Michigan CEEL Working Paper 007-00.
Descartes, L. (1999). Surveying the big city. Anthropology Newsletter, 40(3), 26. An invited piece for the series Anthropological Approaches to Middle-Class Working Families.
Thronson, H., Majewski, S., Hereld, M., & Descartes, L. (1990). The stellar and dust emission from NGC 6240. In R. Elston, Ed., Astrophysics with Infrared Arrays (pp. 60-62). San Francisco: Astronomical Society of the Pacific.
Descartes, L., Majewski, S., Thronson, H., & Hereld, M. (1989). Near infrared imaging of the merging galaxy NGC 6240. Bulletins of the American Astronomical Society, 22, 999.

Edited Volume

Rudd, E., & Descartes, L. (Eds.). (2008). The changing landscape of work and family in the American middle class: Reports from the field. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.

Chapters in Edited Volumes

Blank, T., Asencio, M., & Descartes, L. (2012). Issues in the health of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in couple and family therapy. In J. Bigner & J. Wetchler (Eds.), The Handbook of LGBT-Affirmative Couple and Family Therapy (pp. 299-312). New York: Routledge.
Blank, T., Asencio, M., Descartes, L., and Griggs, J. (2010). Older GLBT family and community life: Contemporary experiences, realities and future directions. Republished: C. A. Fruhauf & D. Mahoney (Eds.), Older GLBT family and community life. London: Routledge.
Descartes, L., & Rudd, E. (2008). Changing landscapes of work and family. In E. Rudd & L. Descartes, Eds., The changing landscape of work and family in the American middle class: Reports from the field (pp. 1-14). Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.
Descartes, L., & Kottak, C. P. (2008). Patrolling the boundaries of childhood in middle class “ruburbia.” In E. Rudd & L. Descartes, Eds., The changing landscape of work and family in the American middle class: Reports from the field (pp. 141-155).Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.

Chapters in Edited Volumes, forthcoming

Descartes, L., Asencio, M., Blank, T. O., & Crawford, A. Gay men, prostates, and knowledge about prostate cancer. What every gay man needs to know about prostate cancer. G. Perlman (Ed.). New York: Magnus Books.

Book

Descartes, L., & Kottak, C. P. (2009). Media and middle class moms: Images and realities of work and family. New York: Routledge.

Reviews of Publications

Cody-Rydzewski, S. (2010). Review of Rudd, E. & Descartes, L. (2008). The changing landscape of work and family in the American middle class: Reports from the field. Gender & Society, 24, 267-269.
Usdansky, M. (2009). Review of Rudd, E. & Descartes, L. (2008). The changing landscape of work and family in the American middle class: Reports from the field. Journal of Family Theory and Review, 1, 170-173.

Professional Memberships

Canadian Sociological Association, Vanier Institute of the Family, National Council on Family Relations, American Anthropological Association

Grants

2011	Brescia University College Research Grant Single Lesbian Mothers. $500.
2010	Brescia University College Research Grant Single Lesbian Mothers—Family Identity, Parenting, Social Support. $1,000.
2007	Marchionne Foundation Gay men and prostate cancer: Exploring an invisible health issue. PI Thomas O. Blank (University of Connecticut), Co-PIs Marysol Asencio (University of Connecticut) and Lara Descartes (University of Connecticut). Qualitative, exploratory research on gay men’s experiences of prostate cancer. $31,214.
2007	University of Connecticut Center for Health, Intervention, and Prevention Gay men and prostate cancer: Exploring an invisible health issue. PI Thomas O. Blank (University of Connecticut), Co-PIs Marysol Asencio and Lara Descartes (University of Connecticut). Qualitative, exploratory research on gay men’s experiences of prostate cancer. $5,000.
2004	University of Connecticut Research Foundation Faculty Large Grant A qualitative study of exchange between parents and adult children and between siblings among middle class African Americans of different wealth statuses. Award to conduct interview-based research on African American family support networks in the Greater Hartford area. $6,278.
2003	Hartford Consortium for Higher Education Award to sponsor event series entitled Urban politics and urban culture: Poverty, race, and social action in Hartford, 1969/2003 (co-authors Susan Pennybacker and Luis Figueroa (Trinity College), Robert Fisher (University of Connecticut), John Christie and Peggy Schuler (Capital Community College)). $2,500.
1997	National Science Foundation Dissertation Improvement Grant American families and kinship: Ideology and practice. Dissertation research award to implement fieldwork. $11,564.

Teaching Experience

Brescia University College
2008-present | Family Studies Undergraduate Courses:

FS 1020	Introduction to Family Studies
FS 2200E	Current Issues in Family Studies, Essay Course
FS 3325B	Diversity and the Canadian Family
FS 4220A	Theoretical Perspectives in Family Studies Research
FS 4403	Practicum in Family Studies

University of Connecticut
2002-08 | Human Development and Family Studies Undergraduate Courses:

HDFS 201	Diversity Issues in Human Development and Family Studies
HDFS 270	Low Income Families
HDFS 272	Family and Work
HDFS 277	Issues in Human Sexuality
HDFS 278	Family in Society

Human Development and Family Studies Graduate Courses:

HDFS 304	Qualitative Research Methods
HDFS 377	Human Sexuality

Conference Posters and Presentations, past 6 years

Descartes, L. (2012, Apr.). Single lesbian moms. Presented at Queer Research Day, University of Western Ontario London, ON.
Descartes, L. (2012, Apr.). The representation of single lesbian mothers in parenting and family literature. Presented at the annual meeting of the Popular Culture Association, Boston, MA.
Descartes, L. (2011, Oct.). Single lesbian moms. Presented at the International Conference on Mothering, Education and Maternal Pedagogies, Toronto, ON.
Descartes, L. (2010, Nov.). Media matter: Comparison, connection, and common ground. Presented at the American Anthropological Association for the annual meeting, New Orleans, LA.
Descartes, L., & Hart, S. (2010, March). Prostate cancer and gay men. To be presented at the annual meeting of Rainbow Health Ontario, Toronto, ON. (also with T. Blank, M. Asencio, A. Crawford, D. Latini, D. Coon).

Blank, T., Asencio, M., Descartes, L., & Crawford, A. (2009, November). The intersection of aging, sexuality, and the prostate: Gay and bisexual men’s perspectives. Presented at the 2009 annual meeting of the Gerontological Society of America, Portland, OR.
Blank, T., Asencio, M., Descartes, L., & Crawford, A. (2009, April). Men’s knowledge and attitudes about the prostate and prostate cancer. Presented at the 2009 annual meeting of the Society of Behavioral Medicine, Montreal, QC.

Descartes, L., & Bubriski, A. (2007, November). African American family strategies for moving into and staying in the middle class. Presented at the 2007 annual meeting of the National Council on Family Relations, Pittsburgh, PA.

Descartes, L., & Kottak, C. P. (2006, February). Middle class life in a small town: Work, family, and gender. Presented at the annual meeting of the Eastern Sociological Society, Boston, MA.