Expertise

Research Areas:

  • The Intersection of Family Sociology, Demography, and Social Psychology.

Barber's research and teaching interests lie at the intersection of family sociology, demography, and social psychology, with a focus on young pregnancy, intimate relationships, reproductive control, and intimate partner violence.

Current projects focus specifically on (1) how violent and/or demanding intimate partners derail young women's post-secondary education plans, (2) how and why the dissolution of violent and non-violent intimate relationships during the transition to adulthood varies across sociodemographic groups, and (3) how intimate relationships shape young women’s expectations and ability to control heterosexual intercourse and contraceptive use.

Research interests:

  • Family sociology 
  • Social demography
  • Social psychology
  • Reproductive health
  • Intensive longitundinal data collection
  • Mixed-methods analysis.
Past Affiliations

International Institute, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, University of Michigan (past)

Center for South Asian Studies, International Institute, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, University of Michigan (past)

Research Professor, Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan (past)

Research Professor, Population Studies Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan (past)

Associate Director, Population Studies Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan (past)

Professor, Department of Sociology, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, University of Michigan (past)
2009

Associate Chair, Department of Sociology, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, University of Michigan (past)

Associate Professor, Department of Sociology, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, University of Michigan (past)

Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, University of Michigan (past)

University Fellow, University of Chicago
1992 - 1994

Trainee, National Science Foundation Family, Penn State University Park, The Pennsylvania State University (past)
1994 - 1997

Michigan Center on the Demography of Aging, Population Studies Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan (past)

Sociologist, Population Studies Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan (past)

Postdoctoral Fellow, Population Studies Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan (past)
1997 - 2000

Assistant Research Scientist, Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan (past)

School of Social Work, University of Michigan (past)

Communities
Asian Studies, Sociology
Degrees
PhD, Pennsylvania State University, Sociology and Demography, 1997
MA, University of Chicago, Sociology, 1994
BS, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Statistics and Computer Science, 1992
Keywords
asia, southern family surveys and survey research demography social psychology statistics
Languages
Nepali
Associations
American Sociological Association
Population Association of America